The New York Botanical Garden's annual Rose Garden Dinner is already one of the more enchanting evenings of the New York social calendar-a night of wine, champagne, delicacies and dancing enjoyed between a saunter through a magnificent garden and dinner in a ballroom. Add Julie Andrews to the list of this year's honorees, and you have an incredibly elegant event.
Ms. Andrews giving remarks during the cocktail hour held at the Rose Garden. (Photo: Kelly Taub/BFA.com)
Now 80, Ms. Andrews is much more than the stage and screen actress best known for her classic titular roles in musicals like My Fair Lady, and Victor Victoria, and films such as Mary Poppins, The Sound of Music, and The Princess Diaries. She also happens to be the author of over 30 children's books, with her newest title just published and hitting shelves in time for Halloween.
The Very Fairy Princess: A Spooky, Sparkly Halloween, is the seventh in a best-selling series co-authored with her daughter, writer Emma Walton Hamilton. It follows the daily adventures of Geraldine (Gerry), who is convinced she's fairy princess and goes nowhere without her crown and wings.
Ms. Andrews' revealed The Very Fairy Princess series is being adapted for an animated television series.
The Observer spoke with Ms. Andrews before the evening festivities, which were filled with the sounds of familiar tunes from Ms. Andrews films-a little "Spoonful of Sugar" here and "Sound of Music" there. Here, Ms. Andrews' thoughts on princesses, her daughter, and a long-lasting career of creating memorable characters and stories for children.