Rosewood Ribbon Cutting

Billionaire Los Angeles developer Rick Caruso nearly came a cropper at the final hurdle when developing the Rosewood Miramar, he has revealed.

Rick was at a ribbon cutting ceremony at the oh-so tony five star resort and recounted he was in our Eden by the Beach for the final hearing on his $200 million development, when he was pulled over by police.

He was asked for his driving license, but found it had expired, which meant that his car would have had to be impounded.

After explaining the urgency of the situation, the officer allowed him to park his car and get a lift to the vital hearing, which gave the go ahead for the long awaited 161-room, 16-acre development on 495 ft. of Pacific Ocean frontage.

“Afterwards I went to the DMV and renewed my license immediately,” Rick explained, describing his battle to build the impressive property as “a twelve-year love affair.”

Aimee Eyer-Delevett, rector of All Saints-by-the-Sea Episcopal Church, gave an invocation, and dynamic duo Annie Bosko on guitar and Julia Lago on double bass sang “Miramar,” an original song by Maurice Guitierez updated by Pacific Palisades musician Jimmy Dunne, after it was found in archives when the former hotel on the site was demolished.

Among the heavenly throng witnessing the event and attending the bounteous reception at Caruso’s afterwards were William and Barbara Tomicki, Gretchen Lieff, Das Williams, Gina Carbajal, Thomas Rollerson, Judy Foreman, Hiroko Benko, Margarita Lande, Larry Feinberg, Karen Earp, Roberto van Geenen, Nina Terzian, Wayne and Sharol Siemens, Gregg Hart, Kate Kurlas, John Dickson, Dana Hansen, and Landon Clements of Bravo’s Southern Charm.

Illuminated Impresses 

Ensemble Theatre Company debuted the fourth show of its 40th anniversary season, the southern California premiere of Jonathan Safran Foer‘s Everything Is Illuminated, based on his New York Times best-selling novel and directed by Jonathan Fox.

The play centers on the Jewish-American writer, who travels to Ukraine to seek out the woman who may have saved his grandfather from the Nazis. He hires a young local tour guide, who takes him on a hilarious road trip in search of the woman’s village, Trachimbrod.

Along the way, they confront haunting memories as both their characters histories become entwined.

Jeremy Kahn, in his ETC debut, is perfect for the role of Jonathan, as is Matt Wolpe, in his fifth show with the company, as the highly amusing translator with his sublimely butchered English.

Award-winning Adrian Sparks, in the dual role of an irascible grandfather and historical relative, is superb, with Anne Gee Byrd and Emily Goglia rounding out the cast.

Kudos also goes to Francois-Pierre Couture for wonderful rural scenic design and Pablo Santiago for his very effective lighting.

Mental Health Matters

Queen Elizabeth’s grandson, Prince Harry, is partnering with TV talk show titan Oprah Winfrey as co-creators and executive producers of a new mental health documentary series for Apple.

Harry, 34, who is expecting his first child with wife, Meghan Markle, later this month, has spoken about battling “numerous breakdowns” while coming to terms with his mother Princess Diana’s death when he just 12, and the cause will be close to his heart.

The multi-part documentary series, which Oprah, 65, and the Duke of Sussex have been working on for several months, will focus on both mental illness and mental wellness, and aims to inspire viewers to have honest conversations about the challenges they face.

“I am incredibly proud to be working alongside Oprah on this vital series, which we have been developing for several months,” says His Royal Highness.

“I truly believe good mental health – mental fitness – is the key to powerful leadership, productive communities, and a purpose-driven self. It is a huge responsibility to get this right.”

Montecito’s most famous resident was a guest at the couple’s wedding at St. George’s Chapel, Windsor, last May and hosted Meghan’s mother, Doria Ragland, at her sprawling East Valley Road estate before the nuptials.

Treble in Paradise 

Trinity Episcopal Church was sold-out when the Choir of New College, Oxford, under director Robert Quinney, performed a glorious concert featuring works by William Walton, Thomas Tallis, and Tomas Luis de Victoria, among many others.

The choral pieces were accompanied by impressive organ works performed by Charles Maxtone-Smith and Timothy Wakerell.

The choir, first established in 1379, features 15 boy choristers and 13 adult clerks, who are professional singers or undergraduate members of the college.

“To bring an English men-boy choir of such distinction to Santa Barbara is a rare opportunity for the community,” says Grey Brothers, Westmont College music professor and minister of choral and congregational music at Trinity. “With its stunning visual and acoustical space, the church is the ideal venue for this kind of concert.”

The delightful event was sponsored by Westmont, Trinity, CAMA and The American Guild of Organists…