Caryl Goldsmith

Caryl Goldsmith died at home on 2/23 after a brief illness. She was 96. Born in Baltimore to Rose and Mark, she attended Park School and came to NYC to attend her beloved Barnard College (Class of 1948). After a stint back in Baltimore working at then managing The Little Theater, she returned to NYC where she worked in the world of film and theater before starting her own company, Caryl Goldsmith Group Sales, in the 1970s. Well known and well regarded for her knowledge and passion for theater, she worked until she was 92, and would have continued to work indefinitely if the pandemic hadn’t shut down live theater. Even in her last year, she still spoke with long-time clients and recommended shows.

Caryl loved her work and was known and loved by everyone in box offices on and off-Broadway, and by her clients, many of whom worked with her for decades. College professors from theater departments across the country knew they could trust her to find great plays for their students who’d travel to NYC for field trips to experience the magic of Broadway. She loved the challenge of working with budgets and box offices to package these trips for theater students, and professors loved her up-to-date knowledge of what plays would be best for their particular classes, always getting right to the point with theater box offices – “I want a price I can sell in the orchestra.” All kinds of special interest groups – Senior Living, Jewish, Church, Black, Gay – counted on her knowledge of their particular preferences to recommend and book great plays for them. When someone produced a Pirandello play in ancient Greek, she convinced the Classics Departments of local universities to buy tickets! Producers and box offices loved her for the same reason – she knew exactly how to “get the right butts in the right seats on the right nights.”

Caryl saw everything on Broadway, which was not just a bonus for clients, but for her family and friends, making us the beneficiaries of many extraordinary nights of theater with her +1 tickets, evenings that always included dinner out at some fun hot spot in the Village or the Theater District, great conversation and sometimes drinks afterwards at Sardi’s. Post-theater drinks were a tradition she started with her late husband Ted, a publicist, as the two would chat with directors, producers and actors they knew, all waiting for the reviews to come out on opening nights! It was the place to go to feel the energy of Broadway that she loved so much. She was funny, smart, current in her knowledge of the city and the country, and passionate about theater. She read the New York Times voraciously. A consummate relationship builder and a savvy businesswoman, she kept her clients and friends engaged in the contemporary theater world by proactively – decades before Facebook and Constant Contact – sending monthly email newsletters with her thoughts on the latest plays to open. Her knowledge and natural direct communications skills made her the go-to person to work with when booking groups for Broadway plays.

Many a night each week, well into her 80s, you’d be hard pressed to reach her at home before 11 pm. She’d be out with friends for theater, dinner and drinks. Few can turn their passion not only into a fulfilling work life but also a joyful lifestyle, but Caryl did just that!

Caryl loved and deeply admired her daughter Judy, and Judy’s husband Andy Klapper, both of whom have rich academic lives in Kentucky. She loved to share Judy’s myriad accomplishments in the fields of Artificial Intelligence, computer ethics and science fiction, her travels to conferences around the world, and – closer to home – her brilliance when it came to Scrabble matches! Judy was hard to beat but Caryl tried and sometimes succeeded. She kept close relationships with her nieces Suzy Sureck, an artist who exhibits internationally, and Shana Sureck, a photographer, who, inspired by her aunt’s savvy business advice, left a newspaper job to start her own business.

In her spare time, she relished doing the daily NYT Crossword Puzzle in pen, and until her sister Nancy’s death in 2006, she and her sister would talk every Saturday night discussing “5 Down, 11 Across” until the puzzle was filled in. Her daughter and nieces fondly remember those calls and the additional daily calls between the two sisters, a deeply loving friendship that nurtured them both.

She lived alone in the Village following her husband’s death in 2004, but she was rarely alone. Her life was rich with friends and activities into her 90s. She was friends with many in the entertainment world, and cultivated relationships with her clients that spanned decades. She was accepting, nonjudgmental, funny, generous, steady, and loved people for who they were. She also valued simplicity and routine - her dinners with Hardy every Sunday night, her conversations with Robert Braglia, an advisor and friend, Saturday trips to the hair salon, stopping in the Korean market for a sweet dessert and conversation with the owner, New Year’s Eve parties with her friends Fran and Steve, doing the puzzle with Nancy.

For those who knew and loved her, it’s hard to imagine a world without Caryl in it. She will be remembered for her passion, humor, strength and generosity. Although we reluctantly say good-bye to her today, with each story and memory we share with one another, her kind, loving spirit will live on in our hearts.