Andrea Grelle is a licensed esthetician specializing in body waxing. She owns her own waxing studio, Windham Wax, which is temporarily located in Salem but will soon return to Windham.
Explain your job.
I do full body waxing and spray tans for men, women and youth, with parental consent. My day mainly [consists of] doing brows.
How long have you had this job?
I’ve been waxing for six years, and I opened Windham Wax about four years ago.
What led you to this career field and your current job?
I went to Berklee [College of Music], then moved to Nashville to pursue music. … Then, I hit [age] 30 and thought, ‘I should probably get an actual career.’ I became a freelance makeup artist and did a lot of makeup for music videos, and I loved it. … Then, life started leading me toward hair removal. I started working as a receptionist at a wax salon, and I got some hands-on training there. I fell in love with helping people get the brows they wanted, or helping them get their brows back if they had a bad experience at [another salon].
What kind of education or training did you need?
I went to Tennessee College of Applied Technology, where I got 860 hours of [studying] theory and doing hands-on training, working with actual clients, and I got my esthetician’s license. … I’m always continuing my education by going to classes and conferences to keep up with new techniques, products, styles and trends.
What is your typical at-work uniform or attire?
Casual, but professional and fashion-forward. I wear a lot of funny T-shirts, since I work with high schoolers a lot.
How has your job changed over the course of the pandemic?
I’ve always been pretty obsessive when it comes to sanitation and hygiene — I have, like, 15 different kinds of disinfectants, like one for cosmetics, one for metal implements, one for the counters — so my [sanitation] steps didn’t really change. I did add [air purifying] filters to my work space, and I started extending my time [between clients] so that I have enough time to diligently clean everything, and so that I only have one person in at a time.
What do you wish you’d known at the beginning of your career?
I wish I had gotten into it sooner. … In high school I felt like there was this stigma about going to a vocational school … so I went to college and was never exposed to the option of aesthetics as a career.
What do you wish other people knew about your job?
I wish people knew that [getting waxed] isn’t as bad as it’s [portrayed to be] in the movies. … I try to make the whole experience as painless as possible. It’s never going to be completely pain-free, but it’s kind of like going to the dentist — you don’t want to do it, but afterward, you’re glad that you did. … There’s also this idea that waxing is a luxury thing; I think it used to be, but now it’s available to anyone. I think it’s just another [form] of self-care for people.
What was the first job you ever had?
I worked in the drive-thru at Wendy’s in Salem.
What’s the best piece of work-related advice you’ve ever received?
When I was just [starting out] and was really nervous about doing brows, my old boss at the salon … said, ‘Trust yourself. You know what you’re doing, and you know how to listen.’ That really helped me [realize] that I just have to have confidence in my ability and trust what I know.
Five favorites Favorite book:Harry Potter series Favorite movie:Arsenic and Old Lace Favorite music: Chris Stapleton and Shinedown Favorite food: Greek and Italian Favorite thing about NH: The seasons
I was given this many years ago. I love it but have never been able to figure out what it actually is or what it was originally used for! There are no markings on it, but I think it’s brass. It’s 9 inches long, 6 1/2 inches high and 3 1/2 inches wide. I’d really appreciate your thoughts on my little catch-all.
Diane
Dear Diane,
At first glance from the photo I thought maybe it was a gravy boat, but after looking more it really couldn’t be. It is definitely silver-plated (silver over a mixed metal). You can see wear inside the dish, down to base metal (possibly brass).
It’s Victorian style (mid to late 1800s) with the north wind face on the side, goose, bird footed and design work. It may have even had a beautiful glass bowl insert at one time.
It is a very sweet catch-all. I think the original with or without a glass insert was a decorative basket. The value would be in the range of $40.
Without marks it is tough to tell when it was made and by whom. So we just have to look at the piece for what it is now to evaluate it.
Those big yellow school buses have been lumbering along for well over a month now, so you know it is time to start getting your gardens ready for winter. This is a good time to work outside; the bugs are fewer and it’s not so cold that you’ll be miserable in an hour.
I recently did some pruning on my Japanese red maple trees. We all know that sugar maples pump sweet sap up from the ground in spring, but did you know that all maples send lots of liquid up in spring, even if not the sweet stuff? Because of that, spring is not a good time to prune. Now is a much better time.
I attended a pruning workshop in 2019 at Shin Boku Nursery in Wentworth. Palmer Koelb has been growing, pruning and selling trees trained in the Japanese tradition for over 50 years. Some of his nursery stock is several decades old, and all of it is beautiful.
One of the things I learned at that workshop is that Japanese red maples are best trained over time. It is better to do a little pruning every year or two than to wait 10 years and need to cut big branches. I was told that I should never use a saw on a Japanese red maple; apparently they don’t react well to removing big branches. Hand pruners are best.
So what did I do? I reined in the height of my trees. I like them to top out at around 8 feet, so I looked for skyward-growing branches and cut each back to a lower fork, one hidden in the foliage. I also removed extraneous foliage and small branches in the interior of the trees, opening up the center of the tree so that the interesting branch shapes are visible. These trees, by their very nature, are not dominated by a single straight trunk, and I want to see the structure of a tree. I remove clutter and rubbing branches.
‘Pink Diamond’ hydrangea blooms each year in the fall. Courtesy photo.
This is also a good time to shape all your hydrangeas and prune them to keep them to the size you like. If you want to develop a new hydrangea to be upright, this is a good time to prune out downward-growing branches, and even to stake up a central branch to be the “leader” growing upward.
I like to collect some flowers for drying indoors. Most of us cannot afford to buy flowers from a florist for the table each week, so picking blossoms now that look good in a dry vase is a good alternative. All the hydrangeas will provide lovely blossoms now, so long as you pick them before frost, which causes them to turn brown.
My favorite hydrangea is one called Pink Diamond. It produces lots of big pointy flower panicles that start out white and turn to pink. In a dry vase the pink will fade a little but stay quite pink all winter, as will other hydrangeas. The stems on Pink Diamond are stiff and upright on the bush and don’t flop the way some others like Annabelle do when rained on.
Unlike lilacs and forsythia, hydrangeas are late-season bloomers so you do not lose any blossoms next year if you prune now. They bloom on stems that grow in the spring. I like to leave some blossoms on all winter to remind me that summer will get here eventually.
Grasses and grains are blooming now and can look good in a dry vase too. I grew an annual grain this year called black millet and I recently picked some stems and put them in a dry vase. Millet produces small seeds on narrow “cobs” much like corn, but without the outer leaves. It is found in bird seed mixes, and I ate it as a gruel when serving in the Peace Corps in West Africa. This year I bought some plants at a nursery, but I will start plenty from seed next year. Purple Majesty is probably the name of the variety I planted.
Black millet works well in a dry vase. Courtesy photo.
I’ve been potting up annual plants I want to bring in before winter, rather than waiting until the afternoon before the first hard frost. I potted up some Diamond Frost euphorbia that I bought in small pots last spring and planted in the ground. This is a delightful plant that has tiny white blossoms all summer. As a “Proven Winner” plant, it is trademarked and is not sold by seed.
Diamond Frost makes a nice house plant that continues to bloom indoors all winter. It prefers a bright windowsill but will survive most anywhere so long as you remember to water it regularly. Then in the spring it can go outdoors again — and at no expense.
Each fall I dig up at least one rosemary plant and bring it indoors. I like to do this early in the fall so that it can get used to being in a pot while sitting in the garden in just the same place it was in the ground. This lets it have fewer changes in its environment at a time. Later I will wash it well with a hose in order to get rid of any aphids or other pests before bringing it indoors.
Don’t use any fertilizer now for any houseplants coming inside. A plastic pot or an enameled one will keep moisture in better than an unglazed clay pot, so if you are a lazy waterer, select them.
Raking the leaves can wait till later, after all the leaves have fallen. But go outside and start chipping away at the chores on nice days, even if it means playing hooky from work.
Featured photo:This Japanese red maple was full of clutter before pruning. Courtesy photo.
The latest from NH’s theater, arts and literary communities
• ArtWeek continues: City Arts Nashua’s virtual ArtWeek is going on now through Sunday, Oct. 24, highlighting local artists and their works through professionally filmed segments, aired each day on Access Nashua Community Television (Comcast Channel 96) and the City Arts Nashua website (accessnashua.org/stream.php) and posts on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Twitter and LinkedIn. Coinciding with KidsWeek Nashua, ArtWeek also features a kids scavenger hunt with 50 mini art kits, filled with supplies for painting, sewing and sculpture projects, hidden around Nashua’s public sculptures. See the full story at hippopress.com; you’ll find it in the Oct. 14 issue. Or visit cityartsnashua.org for social media links.
• The art of carpet: A new special exhibition, “As Precious as Gold, Carpets from the Islamic World,” opens at the Currier Museum of Art(150 Ash St., Manchester) on Saturday, Oct. 23. It features 32 carpets with various geographical origins, dating from the 15th century to the 19th century, including a Spanish rug, three Egyptian rugs, Lotto and Holbein patterned carpets, a 16th-century Ushak Medallion and a late 17th-century Small Medallion carpet. The exhibit, on loan from the Saint Louis Art Museum, will be at the Currier until Feb. 27, 2022. Museum admission costs $15 for adults, $13 for seniors age 65 and up, $10 for students, $5 for youth ages 13 through 17, and is free for members and children under age 13. Museum hours are Thursday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., and Friday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Call 669-6144 or visit currier.org.
• ’90s on stage: It’s the final week for The Seacoast Repertory Theatre’s (125 Bow St., Portsmouth) production of Cruel Intentions: The ’90s Musical. Based on the 1999 teen movie, the musical follows Sebastian and Kathryn, a pair of manipulative step-siblings who place a bet on whether or not Sebastian can seduce the school headmaster’s daughter Annette, who had published an essay advocating for abstinence until marriage. Showtimes are Thursday, Oct. 21, at 7:30 p.m.; Friday, Oct. 22, at 8 p.m., and Saturday, Oct. 23, at 2 and 8 p.m. Ticket costs range from $32 to $46. The show will also be available to watch livestreamed on Friday and Saturday, with tickets priced at $25 for one viewer, $40 for two viewers and $60 for three or more viewers. Visit seacoastrep.org or call 433-4472.
“Truth” by Valerie Hall, featured in “Truth Be Told” exhibition. Courtesy photo.
• Women explore race: Two Villages Art Society presents a new exhibit, “Truth Be Told: An Artful Gathering of Women,” at the Bates Building (846 Main St., Contoocook) from Oct. 23 through Nov. 13. The exhibit is a collaboration of 14 women artists — seven who identify as Black and seven who identify as white — from across the country who have been meeting bi-weekly over Zoom to discuss race. “This is a unique group of outstanding artists who share a fervent desire to understand and eradicate racial injustice in our country and are motivated to pursue this goal through their art,” Alyssa McKeon, president of Two Villages Art Society, said in a press release. Gallery hours are Wednesday through Friday, from 1 to 5 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. An opening reception with two of the artists will be held on Saturday, Oct. 23, from noon to 5 p.m. Visit twovillagesart.org.
• A musical message: The Portsmouth Symphony Orchestra will perform its fall concert at The Music Hall Historic Theater (28 Chestnut St., Portsmouth) on Sunday, Oct. 24, at 3 p.m. The concert will feature Tchaikovsky’s Tempest, Julius Eastman’s “Gay Guerilla” and Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony. Together these pieces create “a complex musical metaphor of weathering and coming out of a storm; … a powerful message of the invincible human spirit; and a moving transition from darkness to light,” according to the orchestra website. Tickets cost $25 to $35 for adults, $25 to $30 for seniors age 60 and up and $20 for students. Visit themusichall.org or call 436-2400.
Lively art
The New Hampshire Art Association has two shows showcasing work by NHAA artists at Creative Framing Solutions (89 Hanover St., Manchester) through October. “The Joy of Life” features oil paintings on canvas by Sally Newman. The paintings depict cityscapes, still life and landscapes with bold and saturated colors that highlight the vitality of life. “I am excited to show people my paintings as they will get a different perspective of day-to-day living as I imagine it,” Newman said in a press release. “A Little of This, A Little of That” features photography by Jean Chase Farnum. Taken mostly in New England, the photographs capture scenes of daily life in different kinds of light. “I have come to appreciate all aspects of natural light that is available on a 24 hours basis from the sun, moon and stars,” Farnum said in the release. “Witnessing fundamental nature and nature’s simplicity within the world around me forms the basis for the presentation of my work.” Gallery hours are Tuesday through Friday, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Call 320-5988 or visit nhartassociation.org.
ART
Exhibits
• “KICK-START!” Also known as “the shoe show,” this themed art exhibition from the Women’s Caucus for Art’s New Hampshire Chapter opens at Twiggs Gallery, 254 King St., Boscawen. The exhibit runs through Oct. 31. The shoe theme is expressed in a wide variety of works that include paintings, sculptures, artist books, drawings and mixed media pieces. Gallery hours are Thursday and Friday, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Saturday, from noon to 4 p.m. Visit twiggsgallery.wordpress.com.
• JOAN L. DUNFEY EXHIBITION Features artwork in a variety of media by regional NHAA members and non-members that follows the theme “Portals.” On display at the New Hampshire Art Association’s Robert Lincoln Levy Gallery, 136 State St., Portsmouth. Now through Nov. 28. Visit nhartassociation.org or call 431-4230.
• “AROUND NEW HAMPSHIRE” On exhibit at the Greater Concord Chamber of Commerce’s Visitor Center, 49 S. Main St., Concord, on view now through Dec. 16. Featuring the work of New Hampshire Art Association member Elaine Farmer, the exhibit features her oil paintings embodying New Hampshire’s iconic views and ideals, ranging from mountain lakes and birch tree woods to historic landmarks. Visit concordnhchamber.com or nhartassociation.org.
• “AS PRECIOUS AS GOLD: CARPETS FROM THE ISLAMIC WORLD” Exhibit features 32 carpets dating from the 15th century to the 19th century. The Currier Museum of Art (150 Ash St., Manchester). Opens Oct. 23. Museum admission tickets cost $15, $13 for seniors age 65 and up, and must be booked online. Call 669-6144 or visit currier.org.
• “TRUTH BE TOLD: AN ARTFUL GATHERING OF WOMEN” Two Villages Art Society presents a collaborative exhibit of works by 14 women artists — seven who identify as Black and seven who identify as white — from across the country who have been meeting bi-weekly over Zoom to discuss race. On view Oct. 23 through Nov. 13. Bates Building (846 Main St., Contoocook). Gallery hours are Wednesday through Friday, from 1 to 5 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. An opening reception with two of the artists will be held on Saturday, Oct. 23, from noon to 5 p.m. Visit twovillagesart.org.
• “1,000 CRANES FOR NASHUA” Featuring more than 1,000 origami paper cranes created by hundreds of Nashua-area kids, adults and families since April. On display now at The Atrium at St. Joseph Hospital, 172 Kinsley St., Nashua. Visit nashuasculpturesymposium.org.
• “NEW HAMPSHIRE NOW” A collaborative photography project presented by the New Hampshire Historical Society and the New Hampshire Society of Photographic Artists, on display in eight exhibitions at museums and historical societies across the state. Nearly 50 photographers participated in the project, taking more than 5,000 photos of New Hampshire people, places, culture and events from 2018 to 2020 to create a 21st-century portrait of life in the Granite State. Exhibition locations are Belknap Mill in Laconia; Colby-Sawyer College in New London; Portsmouth Historical Society; Historical Society of Cheshire County in Keene; the Manchester Historic Association; Museum of the White Mountains at Plymouth State University; and the Tillotson Center in Colebrook; with the flagship exhibition at the New Hampshire Historical Society in Concord. Visit newhampshirenow.org and nhhistory.org.
• GALLERY ART A new collection of art by more than 20 area artists on display now in-person and online. Creative Ventures Gallery (411 Nashua St., Milford). Call 672-2500 or visit creativeventuresfineart.com.
• “TOMIE DEPAOLA AT THE CURRIER” Exhibition celebrates the illustrator’s life and legacy through a collection of his original drawings. On view now. Currier Museum of Art, 150 Ash St., Manchester. Museum admission tickets cost $15, $13 for seniors age 65 and up, and must be booked online. Call 669-6144 or visit currier.org.
• ART ON MAIN The City of Concord and the Greater Concord Chamber of Commerce present a year-round outdoor public art exhibit in Concord’s downtown featuring works by professional sculptors. All sculptures will be for sale. Visit concordnhchamber.com, call 224-2508 or email [email protected].
THEATER
Shows
• CRUEL INTENTIONS THE ’90s MUSICAL The Seacoast Repertory Theatre (125 Bow St., Portsmouth) presents. Now through Oct. 23, with showtimes on Thursday at 7:30 p.m., Friday at 8 p.m., Saturday at 2 and 8 p.m., and Sunday at 2 and 7:30 p.m. Tickets cost $32 to $50. Visit seacoastrep.org.
• SPONGEBOB THE MUSICAL The Manchester Community Theatre Players present. In-person performance at MCTP Theatre at The North End Montessori School (698 Beech St., Manchester), and live streamed performance. Now through Oct. 23, with showtimes on Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m. Tickets cost $20 per person for the in-person show and $20 per streaming device for the live streamed show. In-person attendees must purchase tickets in advance and show proof of Covid-19 vaccination. Visit mctp.info or call 327-6777.
• AMERICAN SON The Hatbox Theatre (Steeplegate Mall, 270 Loudon Road, Concord). Now through Oct. 24, with showtimes on Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m., and Sunday at 2 p.m. Tickets cost $22 for adults, $19 for students, seniors and members and $16 for senior members. Visit hatboxnh.com.
• MAMMA MIA The Palace Theatre presents. 80 Hanover St., Manchester. Now through Nov. 14, with showtimes on Thursday and Friday at 7:30 p.m., Saturday at 2 and 7:30 p.m., and Sunday at noon and 5 p.m. Tickets cost $39 to $46 for adults and $25 for children. Visit palacetheatre.org or call 668-5588.
• HEATHERS THE MUSICAL Presented by Cue Zero Theatre Company. Oct. 22 through Oct. 24. Derry Opera House, 29 W. Broadway, Derry. Visit cztheatre.com.
• WONDERS Phylloxera Productions presents. The Hatbox Theatre (Steeplegate Mall, 270 Loudon Road, Concord). Oct. 29 through Nov. 7, with showtimes on Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m., and Sunday at 2 p.m. Tickets cost $22 for adults, $19 for students, seniors and members and $16 for senior members. Visit hatboxnh.com.
Classical
• “SUITES AND SCHUBERT” Symphony New Hampshire presents music by Bach, Schubert and Florence Price, the first African American female composer to have her music performed by a major symphony orchestra in 1933. Notable pieces will include Price’s Suite of Dances, Bach’s Orchestral Suite No. 3, “Air on a G String,” and Schubert’s Symphony No. 5. St. Mary and Archangel Michael Coptic Orthodox Church (39 Chandler St., Nashua). Fri., Nov. 5. Visit symphonynh.org.
Heathers the Musical brings dark high school drama to the stage
Gritty, shocking, vulgar, an emotional roller coaster — those are some of the words that come up when Director Dan Pelletier and cast members talk about Heathers the Musical, on stage Friday, Oct. 22, through Sunday, Oct. 24, at the Derry Opera House.
Photography by Paula T. Trout.
When Pelletier explains Heathers to younger generations, he describes it as “Mean Girls if Lindsay Lohan murdered Rachel McAdams.”
Heathers is based on the 1988 movie, about a girl in high school named Veronica who is trying to survive her senior year and sells out to the popular clique, all of whom are named Heather. Veronica also starts to pursue the mysterious new kid, JD, which upsets the lead Heather, Heather Chandler. When Veronica and JD accidentally kill Heather Chandler, they cover it up by making it look like a suicide.
“It’s a dark comedy,” Pelletier said. “It doesn’t cut corners. It’s very gritty. … There are moments in the show where … you laugh and then you’re upset with yourself for laughing. [But] you have to laugh at these awful things. It’s a coping mechanism.”
He said it would be the equivalent of an R-rated movie.
“There are explosives and drugs and very creative swearing,” Pelletier said. “We didn’t let anyone under 18 audition [because of] the sexual nature of some scenes, drugs, violence.”
Despite the over-the-top drama, Pelletier calls the show a “very human piece.”
“It’s about [transitioning] from adolescence to reality and learning that the world isn’t black and white and how complicated things can get,” he said. “You think every day of your life is the most important day of your life and you’re really unsure of who you are.”
Brooke Wolz, 21, of Bedford, plays Veronica.
“She has a good head [and] a big heart,” Wolz said. “When she gets thrown into this crazy world of … the popular girls, she just doesn’t know what to do.”
Wolz calls Veronica a “very naive lovesick teenager.”
“When JD comes around, she’s just very taken back by the fact that this guy is showing her attention,” she said. “She falls very quickly for him.”
JD is played by Joel Michael King, 23, of Tamworth.
“He’s definitely a very complex character with a lot of deep-rooted issues,” King said.
Both Wolz and King said these are their dream roles. Wolz said she throws a lot of herself into Veronica, and the experience has been emotionally draining but worth it.
“It’s such an emotional roller coaster that it’s difficult every time we do the run,” Wolz said. “She’s on stage the entire show and it just goes from this cute innocent naive [teen] to a murderer in a toxic relationship.”
The fact that the stage version of Heathers is a musical simplifies some things, Pelletier said — and gives it a very ’80s rock ’n’ roll vibe.
“Our pit is legitimately a rock band that plays musical theater,” he said.
The show has been a long time coming for Cue Zero Theatre Co. It was originally supposed to be the 2020 season-ender. The show had been cast and they were about to start working when the pandemic postponed it for a year. Only six of the 16 cast members were able to stay on — including Wolz and King — so they held auditions again in July.
“It’s been an adventure,” Pelletier said. “This is our first real production since February 2020.”
He said it’s been a bit of a challenge working around safety precautions, but the cast and crew are excited to be back.
“This is our big return to the main stage, to real theater,” he said. “The arts need support to come back, and we’re trying to come back with a vengeance.”
If that means bringing the unexpected to the stage, mission accomplished.
“It’s shocking, honestly,” King said. “You go to kind of have your views reexamined.”
Heathers the Musical
Where: Derry Opera House, 29 W. Broadway, Derry When: Friday, Oct. 22, and Saturday, Oct. 23, at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, Oct. 24, at 2 p.m. Cost: Tickets must be purchased online. Every audience member must present either proof of a Covid-19 vaccination or a negative Covid test from the past 72 hours to enter the building. Masks are required. There’s also a virtual livestream option. All tickets, for in-person or livestream, are $15 plus a $1.25 fee. Visit cztheatre.com to buy tickets.
Featured photo: Photography by Paula T. Trout. Courtesy photo.
