Hilary Russo |
  Attached at the hip, we’re like sisters no doubt.We laugh the same; cry the same…have the same pout. We both break for turtles when crossing the street. The windows are down when we sing in our cars. She’s always an elegant lady with style. It wasn’t the easiest life as a teen. We made it through marriages, deaths and divorce. |
Lauren Hathaway |
 I moved to New York to become my own person after years of standing onstage playing Louise in GYPSY, opposite my real-life mother as Mama Rose. We had starred in the show in Las Vegas together in the 1980's and in San Diego and Civic Light Opera’s around Los Angeles. We were both working actresses until my mother decided to become a teacher, which furthered her evolution into the kind of extraordinary person she is today. But way back when, we were always struggling against each other. I was undeniably dependent on my mother, always wanting her approval and yet fighting tooth and nail to hear my own voice. (But I ask you, how can a person hear ANYTHING with "Roses Turn" blaring at them 8 shows a week, and that's 12 a week in Vegas!). So, although my mother was not a Mama Rose in real life, there was this constant push-pull with me needing her too much and wanting not to need her - wanting to take care of her and wanting to branch out on my own. We had bonded from the time of my birth the way a mother can with a baby when her husband is unavailable, not the "family-kind-of-guy". How could I ever leave her? Well, it turns out I didn't have to leave her in my heart...or in reality really. Although we live on different coasts for now, we have ultimately become closer than we were when we acted together because I was able to step out on my own and find that I could need her because I WANT to need her sometimes and not because, if I rejected needing her, I'd cease to exist. Now she is my best friend and we laugh together and talk on the phone or send e-mails most everyday. She has her own full life and couldn't be happier that I have my own.  [Back to top] |
Lena Holubnyczyj |
 My very own Mother and I - can you image - are entering our first contest together! I told her we could win tickets to see Grey Gardens once again - an that's all it took. I only had to prod her slightly - you understand - and she quickly acquiesced. We avoided quite a fight. Not that we fight often - quite the contrary. We get along very well and do many things together. Indeed, we are as close as any mother/daughter pair could hope to be. That's right - two proverbial peas in a pod we are! We go to the theater together (obviously!), the ballet together, and even, at times, travel together. Our relationship, born some - - well, a certain number of years ago - - has matured into a best friendship. And we couldn't think of a better way to celebrate this friendship than by seeing the spirit of the Beales light up the stage one more glorious time! [Back to top] |
Allison Parks |
 As my cell phone rings, I glance down and notice it’s my mother calling. I pause momentarily and gamble as to whether or not to answer, as I know there is a 50/50 chance there is a new demand, extraneous detail, or some pseudo Lifetime tv-esque program she would like me to watch.I accept the risk and answer. She says ‘hello, its mommie dearest calling’. Mom has always cooked, cleaned, and has done every household chore on an unwavering schedule. I believe her mother, my Grammy, operated like that. Maybe it’s genetic. Maybe it works. I began to wonder. Maybe forcing me to sit down for dinner every night, taught me the importance of family. Maybe actually making my bed in the mornings offered me a comfortable place to retire after a stressful workday. So next time I step out of character and organize, plan ahead, or make my bed in the morning, I only have my mother to thank. As I prepare for marriage to the man my mother adoringly approves of, I allow her to plan, organize and nag all she wants, as this Mother’s Day I will rename her ‘dearest mommie’. [Back to top] |
Elizabeth Forristall |
 It was only after coming to college that I realized how special my relationship with my mother really is. Sure, she may drive me up the wall sometimes, but when I have something important to decide, she is the one I turn to. It does not matter if it is something insignificant or something potentially life altering, hers is the only one that matters. The friends I have made while at school do not talk to their mothers, and more often than not, they horribly angry with them. My mom and I are not like that. We may not speak for a few days because one of us made the other mad, but we have never, and will never, go a full week without speaking. The longest we have lasted without talking to one another has probably been about four days. Even that is probably a stretch. The distance college has put between us, has only brought us closer together. Sure, I may be a little more cynical than when I left for school, and her fashion sense has taken a turn for the worse because she has developed a strange affinity for sparkles, but we are closer than ever. [Back to top] |
Miranda Perez |
 My mom and I are two peas in a pod for sure. She and I both love the theater. I am only 10 years old and already I have seen over 30 Broadway shows! Should I name all of them? This month alone we saw "Pirate Queen", "The Drousy Chaperone' and "Les Miz." We saw Beauty and the Beast 4 times!!! We live in Manhattan and love the hustle and bustle of Times Square. Sometimes on Saturday we take the subway downtown and do one of the ticket lotteries. If we don't win we go to a movie and dinner. Oh yes, we are also foodies. We love to eat and New York is famous for it's fabulous food!!! My mom has loved the story of the Beales since she saw the movie in the 70's. She even has it on her DVR. And oh yes, she helped me with this essay, but not that much!!! We really want to see Grey Gardens, especially on Mother's Day!!! [Back to top] |
Ryan Goldner |
 If there were ever two peas in a pod, it would be my mom and I. She raised me on her own, as a single parent, and although at times we drive each other absolutely crazy, there is not only an abundance of love and support, but a unique friendship which I don't see in many mother and son relationships.I remember how she would save up to take me to see shows in New York. In 1984, she took me to see Cats, my first Broadway show on my 13th Birthday. Since we didn’t have a big family, and it was "just us" for many years, we made it a tradition that every Christmas Eve and Mother’s Day we would see a show in the city. I have the most wonderful memories of us standing on line at TKTS in Time's Square the years that money was short. Theater has always been something that has brought us together. This year she is retiring in Florida, so this will be our last Mother's Day in NYC for a while, but I will always cherish my memories of Broadway with my mom. I love her very much. [Back to top] |
Emily Leonard |
 My mother and I are the perfect example of two peas in a pod. We both cry at everything: weddings, conflicts, and (embarrassingly enough) Hallmark commercials. We also share a passion for books: I bribed her to start reading Harry Potter by promising to keep my room cleaner, and five days and five books later she was completely hooked (we’re throwing a party for the last one). I learned my love of cooking from her, and she learned how to prepare a Thanksgiving dinner for twenty without succumbing to a nervous breakdown from me. We definitely have our quirky side, as well. We have a tendency to start, and cheat on, diets simultaneously, with both of us lamenting that we live within walking distance of a Dairy Queen. My mom and I have also been known to sit on the couch and eat potato chips while watching exercise videos. Last December, I had to do a project for school on the Grey Gardens documentary, and mom watched it with me. We watched it with our mouths agape- especially my Polish mother, who is fanatical with housecleaning. As the credits rolled, we knew we had to go see it on Broadway- their crazy story must make for great theater! [Back to top] |
Sarah Ackerman |
 Not only are my mom and I two peas in a pod, we are also the Edies. Really. We call each other 'Mother Darling', 'Kid' and Edie'. I live in Manhattan and she lives in San Francisco. She's my best friend in the entire world. We used to be three peas -- in fact, one of my favorite memories of my father was after we all three saw Grey Gardens on Broadway last December, and he turned to me and my mom at the end of the show (after he applauded wildly and gave a standing ovation) and laughed and told us that some day we might end up as the Edies -- minus the squalor, of course, living in a large house in East Hampton with 25 lhasa apsos (we are dog people) and a piano for our 'sing alongs' which would be performed in our staunch costumes. My mom and I are both very dramatic. We sing in the car (and even on the NYC MTA and in taxi cabs), we act out scenes from our favorite movies (Talented Mr. Ripley and Soapdish), we complete each other's sentences and sometimes we contradict ourselves. She always supported my love of the stage and my choice to pursue a career in theater. But I think she took her head out of the proverbial oven when I gave up acting to teach children in Manhattan and the Bronx. Sadly, my dad passed away very suddenly and unexpectedly on January 26th of this year. And Grey Gardens has provided my mom and I endless happiness and comfort in these very difficult months. I'm sure there are others who deserve to win this contest more than we do. After all, we've seen the show together 5 times (including that wonderful night with my dad). But if we won, it would be the best mother's day gift ever. This will be our first mother's day without my dad. I am an only child, and it is just me and my Big Edie now. My mom has been coming to NY a lot to stay with me because we feel better when we're together. And every time she comes, we end up seeing Grey Gardens. I'm sure there are other good shows on Broadway, but we just have no interest in seeing anything else yet. [Back to top] |
Jeremy Slagle |
 My mother and I are “Two Peas in a Pod,” because we have a great relationship that has gotten better with time apart and a change of address. My mother has always cared greatly for me and has tried everything to make the best parenting choices possible, even when I feared she was being too overprotective. When I was younger, I used to rebel against her wishes and fight her decisions. It took us both learning to respect each other in order to relate and form a better bond. Ever since I moved away for college, I have been given the chance to put all that she has taught me to the test, learn lessons on my own, and be responsible for myself. Time and distance have played a key in strengthening us and now I understand where she’s coming from. My mother has pushed me to accomplish whatever I wanted to accomplish and stood by the decisions I have chosen for my life. It’s hard for her to let me go, but she is proud of the strong individual I have become and the independence I have achieved. Thanks, “Mother Darling,” I love you! [Back to top] |
