The fourth annual PAFA wine auction, held at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts museum on Friday, September 27th, featured wines of New Zealand and Australia. Astrid Bowlby had an outlandish and clever exhibit of various, cut-out, black, outlined shapes and sizes stuck to the walls, corners, and floors of a room on the first floor. Unless you were strictly business and spit out your wine after tasting it, that room was a little disorienting.

There aren't many days with as perfect weather as Thursday, September 12th, when the Young Friends of the Philadelphia Museum Art held their annual Rodin Party in the courtyard of the Rodin Museum on the Parkway. One of the better Young Friends events of the year, it drew a considerable crowd which packed the walkways outside the museum chatting and mingling with specialty martinis in hand.

Le Bec Fin underwent major redecorating in its main dining area – from hot pink to rich, gold, woven fabrics and floral chintz on the walls, to ultra luxe crystal stemware and silver. Owner Georges Perrier invited his most favored and loyal clients to view the handiwork of DAS Architecture, Interiors, and Furnishings. The designers were on hand to overhear the various accolades and murmurings directed equally toward the design as well as to the outrageously rich fare. After an hour or so of mingling, Monsieur Perrier mounted the staircase with a methuselah (that's equivalent to eight bottles!) of Laurent-Perrier Champagne and bellowed good-naturedly, "silence! Silence! I will have silence!" before ardently thanking his patrons.

The Mann Center celebrates the legendary American composer, Richard Rodgers, in a tribute performance by America's renowned Boston Pops Orchestra. The Pops is famous for its illustrious conductors, including Arthur Fiedler and award-winning film composer John Williams. In 1995, Keith Lockhart succeeded Williams as the third and youngest conductor to lead the Boston Pops Esplanade Orchestra. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the birth of Richard Rodgers, one of the most influential musical artists of the 20th century. During a career that spanned over six decades, Rodgers wrote more than 900 published songs and 40 Broadway musicals and received unparalleled recognition, including Tony, Oscar, Grammy, and Emmy Awards and the Pulitzer Prize.

Local actor/director Melanie Mayron, formerly of the show "Thirtysomething", was on hand to help promote her new film " Slap Her, She's French" at the United Artists King of Prussia theatre. After milling about in the VIP lobby at the cinema, making silly French jokes, and munching on the crudites, guests were shepherded into their seats. This movie is hilarious, mostly a send-up of Texan mores and not the Francais-bashing one might expect judging from the title. We won't give away the surprise twist at the end, so make sure to see this when it comes out in September.