Jonathan Elliott’s review of “The Little Prince” in U.S. 1 sent us down to the Bristol Riverside Theatre last night. We were frankly thrilled to see such a tour-de-force of puppetry and acting. The famous classic, written by Antoine de Saint-Exupery, and adapted for life-size puppets, was directed by Scott Hitz and had a superb cast.

We stopped off at the Kelch House beforehand. Because we were short on time we just had appetizers, and because it was still happy hour (until 7) the appetizers were all half price so we made out like Flynn. Get there by 6 if you want a regular meal. We didn’t even miss dessert, ’cause gourmet gelato was served at intermission at the theater. A perfect evening.

Which was the best puppet? The snake was wonderful, but we liked the fox best. Of course.

The “Little Prince” continues through Sunday, February 13. Don’t be dismayed if you can get seats only on the side; the sightlines are fine. And it won’t spoil it to read the review beforehand. I also want to add that, given such a strong recommendation I’d better say that we paid for the tickets. I’ll say so if we don’t.

Finally, I finished my 5,500 word account of our “journey to the center of the earth,” our adventures with installing a geothermal system, published in this week’s paper. After using a tripod and self-timer to try to take the cover photo, we enlisted the help of neighbor Kate Newell after the last snow storm to take just one more shot, the best. Thanks Kate! We were supposed to be posing for an “American Gothic” headline but we were smiling too much.

Brooke Shields was Princeton’s media darling in the ’80s, glimpsed around campus and in Triangle productions (photo by Y.S. Kim, ’87).

They hone their speaking skills, pick up speaking tips, do some networking, and chow down on yummy food. This describes the monthly “Speaking That Connects: workshops held by Eileen Sinett of Comprehensive Communication Services at her Plainsboro Road studio for a dozen or so entrepreneurs.

Those at the January meeting shared these opportunities:

The “Queen of Laughter” ” (Sherri Waryasz, in the caricature) offers “Laugh Yourself Healthy” workshops on first Wednesdays (March 2), at 7 p.m. at Robert Wood Johnson’s Fitness & Wellness Center, 3100 Quakerbridge Road. Register at 609-584-5900, $5 payable at the door. She promises that to show how to use laughter as a powerful tool to ease and enhance your personal and professional life. sherri@queenoflaughter.com

Kathy Kyriakou of GiftCatalogs4u issues an invitation to an open networking event sponsored by BNI Mercer County on Friday, Feb. 11, 5:30 to 8 p.m., at the Wyndham Hotel and Conference Center on Scudders Mill Road. Those who pre-register at http://www.bnimercer.com pay $20 at the door, other pay $24.

Organize Yourself for Inner Peace with Ellen Tozzi’s interactive workshop on Saturday, February 19, 10 to 1 p.m. Cost $20. “Learn the tools and mindset you need to get organized in this interactive workshop. Explore the causes of clutter and get tips on how to eliminate items, organize what remains and develop systems to stay organized,” says Ellen Tozzi. Call 609-683-1101. Cost: $20. Tozzi also teaches at the Princeton Adult School, starting Thursday, February 24. Ellen@NaturalOrderDesign.com

Karen Hodges Miller of Open Door Publications will stage a day-long “Writing, Publishing, and Selling Your Book” on Saturday, April 16.

Robert Gough of Green Energy Economics (www.Viridian.com/Green4Less) and also president of the Jamesburg-Monroe Regional Chamber of Commerce invites new chamber members at a cost of $100 annually.

For these fourth Friday breakfast meetings, the baked goods – muffins, breads, and egg/cheese dishes – are provided by Shirley Reynolds of Private Party Chefs. (In the photo, she is on the right, shown with Sinett). Reynolds is a culinary arts and business graduate who has been a food service director in business, industry, school district, and R&D; environments and who has now opened her own catering business (workingchefs@aol.com).

Sinett offers the next breakfast meeting on Friday, February 25, 8:30 to 10 a.m., at 610 Plainsboro Road. Cost: $10. Register at 609-799-1400 or http://www.speakingthatconnects.com

In today’s NYT Book Review, Neil Genzlinger makes a compelling case for not writing the memoir.

With a “hot needle and a burning thread” I’m posting the calendar of Shakespeare films at the Seminary (that’s Princeton Theological Seminary. I discovered them by chance, and they start Tuesday, February 1, at 7 p.m. in Stuart Hall Room 6. Surely these films are ideal for introducing students to the Bard. Best, they are free.

A DIALOG FOR ALUMNI ON HOW TO:

FIND NEW USES FOR YOUR WISDOM, EXPERIENCE AND PASSION

Featuring

President Shirley M. Tilghman, Princeton University

Keynote Speaker: Marc Freedman, Founder and CEO of Civic Ventures

Author of “Prime Time: How Baby Boomers will Revolutionize Retirement and Transform America” and

“Encore: Finding Work That Matters in the Second Half of Life”

Morning Plenary: A Meaningful Midlife: The Purpose Prize Panel

Featuring three individuals who found inspiring encore careers:

• Chet Safian ’55, Princeton AlumniCorps, Princeton Project 55 fellowships View Chet’s Bio
• Barbara Chandler Allen, Fresh Artists View Barbara’s Bio
• Richard Cherry, Community Environmental Center View Richard’s Bio

Afternoon Plenary: Serve Society Professionally: Careers in the Public Interest

Featuring:

• Kerry Hannon, author of What’s Next? Follow Your Passion and Find Your Dream Job
• Stephanie Scott Harbour, President of Mom Corps

AFTERNOON WORKSHOPS:

• Model Behavior: Mentoring opportunities in your city and/or through Princeton
• The Alumni Network: Starting an alumni-driven projectat another college or university
• A Class Act: Learn the Basics of Princeton Class Service Projects
• Little Time, Big Hearts: Short-term service projects offered through Princeton and other public interest organizations

• Make Your Next Chapter Meaningful: Substantive opportunities to lend your for-profit skills to the nonprofit sector

February 25, 2011 9:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Princeton University info@alumnicorps.org

Registration will begin at 8:30 a.m.

If you’ve skated at Princeton University, you skated at the Hobey Baker rink. I didn’t realize what an icon Hobey Baker was until today’s New York Times article about the New Hampshire prep school where Baker first made history.

New Jersey Technology Council’s Capital Conference (the state of available capital — what is it?) on January 28 at the Westin in Princeton.

NJEN’s February 2 meeting on how to access university smarts for your business, with Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno speaking at Rutgers.

NJTC’s CEO Forum at Edison Venture Fund on February 4.

Bill Ford speaks at the Keller Center at Princeton University, February 15.

Looking ahead: Mercer County Economic Summit, March 24

“Women must learn to play the game as men do,” said Eleanor Roosevelt. In her new book, Thinking About Leadership, Princeton professor Nan Keohane takes 34 pages to discuss whether gender makes a difference. As the former president of Wellesley and Duke, she concluded that one’s ability to maintain gender-based leadership qualities depends on the job. “Even though my leadership of Wellesley or Duke may have had a slightly more inclusive flavor than is typical of such offices, I soon learned that the necessity of getting things done, dealing with varied interests and personalities, and perspectives, and making tough decisions and moving on brought me to lead in ways that were generally quite similar to how male leaders of such institutions perform.”

Keohane will speak at the Princeton Public Library on Monday, January 31, 7:30 p.m.

In her “Does Gender Make a Difference?” chapter she discusses some of the great women leaders in history: Hatshepsut , Elizabeth I, Jane Addams, Margaret Thatcher, Katharine Graham, Michelle Bachelet , Ellen Johnson Sirleaf , and Angela Merkel.

The careers of Addams and Eleanor Roosevelt, says Keohane, “exhibited pragmatism and idealism and combined deep moral conviction about their mission with administrative abilities.” But in 1935 Roosevelt published an article on why women were not ready to run for high office; “they had not learned to build networks or become organized. She argued that women ‘should come up from the bottom and learn their jobs in public life, step by step, and above all they must learn to take other women with them.’ In 1936 she wrote that women in politics must be ready to ‘stand up and be shot at,’ and ‘all women in public life needed to develop skin as touch as rhinoceros hide.'”

How prescient.