- [Narrator] Funding for this edition of One-On-One with Steve Adubato has been provided by Wells Fargo.

New Jersey Institute of Technology.

NJIT makes industry ready professionals in all STEM fields.

MD Advantage Insurance Company.

Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

Working for a more a healthier, more equitable New Jersey.

The New Jersey Education Association.

Delta Dental of New Jersey.

Everyone deserves a healthy smile.

New Jersey Sharing Network.

NJM Insurance Group.

Serving New Jersey'’s drivers, homeowners and business owners for more than 100 years.

And by The Adler Aphasia Center.

Promotional support provided by Northjersey.com and Local IQ.

Part of the USA Today Network.

And by BestofNJ.com.

All New Jersey in one place.

- This is One-On-One.

- I'm an equal American just like you are.

- The jobs of tomorrow are not the jobs of yesterday.

- I'’m hopeful that this is the beginning to accountability.

- Life without dance is boring.

- I don't care how good you are or how good you think you are, there is always something to learn.

- I did do the finale, and guess where my trailer was?

A block away from my apartment, it couldn'’t have been better!

- People call me 'cause they feel nobody's paying attention.

-_ It'’s not all about memorizing and getting information, it'’s what you do with that information.

- (slowly) Start talking right now.

- That's a good question, high five.

(upbeat music) (upbeat music) ♪ Could it be that the lady is me in the photograph?

♪ ♪ I'm afraid, cuz it feels too good ♪ ♪ And I want it too bad ♪ ♪ It's just not true ♪ ♪ Couldn't ask for any more than you ♪ ♪ Because you look at me as though I'm beautiful ♪ ♪ Could it be that you want me?

♪ - Hi, everyone.

I'm Steve Adubato.

See, you could see her shushing her dog right now.

We're actually live on camera right now.

That is the Amy... That's Amy Irving.

That's right, Academy Award nominated actress.

She's a singer as well.

Her first album is coming out called "Born in a Trunk" April 17th.

This'll be seen before and after.

Amy, do you mind if I give you some credits while you're petting your dog at the same time?

Do you mind if-- - Good, I need to be reminded.

(Steve laughing) - Here we go.

"Yentl," "Crossing Delancey," "Carrie," "the Fury," "Honeysuckle Rose," "the Competition."

You are amazing.

- I've been in a few movies.

That doesn't necessarily make you amazing.

(Steve laughing) - You got into acting when?

- I was born in-- That's why "Born in a Trunk."

My dad, Jules Irving, started the San Francisco Actors Workshop in 1954.

My mother was the lead actress in the company and all three of us kids were put on the stage.

My first play, I was nine months old and I was the baby in Rumpelstiltskin, then I was two and a half for, I believe it was my first speaking role.

I was Princess Primrose in the Magic Butterfly.

We used to tour around the Bay Area with Children's Theater, my dad's company.

So I acted a lot in those shows.

- Always loved to sing, always could sing, correct?

- Always loved to sing.

I've pretty much been learning how to sing.

I sang in a few projects.

I actually was at the St. Louis Opera doing "A Little Night Music" that Isaac Mizrahi directed and designed, and so I sang Stephen (indecipherable), but he wrote that one particularly for actors who can act better than they sing.

So I felt okay doing that.

But my son apparently likes the way I sing and he's a music manager, Gabriel Barreto.

And he handles this wonderful band called Goolis.

And he convinced me to do an album with them.

And I had a blast and they're so wonderful.

Jules David Bartkowski, AKA Goolis, did all new arrangements for every song that I chose and it's pretty thrilling to get up on a stage with an amazing group and be able to sing a song.

I did get training from a wonderful coach, Celeste Simone, who helped me figure out how to strengthen my voice and how to use it and how to have stamina, and so during COVID, I sang every day.

I worked with her constantly and was able to say yes to my son as far as getting up on a stage and performing these songs.

- And speaking of getting up on a stage, by the way, let's keep plugging "Born in a Trunk," Amy'’s first album.

Also March 4th, Montclair Outpost, in the burbs.

which is great, in my hometown of Montclair, also in New York City, you're performing there as well April 10th, and where is that?

- City Winery main stage.

It's in Chelsea Piers.

- Right, but I'm curious about this.

So that's not the first time you've been up singing in front of a live audience?

No.

- As myself, yes.

In character, I've had to sing a few times, but as myself getting up there, it's my first time.

- What are your thoughts and feelings about that as you lead up to it right now?

- Well, at first it was daunting.

I was terrified.

I didn't think I could do it.

I thought I would be shaking too much.

So we did a test run.

The band came out to my barn, this is a barn I live in, and we just did it for like 30 neighbors and friends, and I had such an excellent time doing it, and I didn't get nervous, which shocked me.

A little bit of tequila helped.

(laughing) - Whatever it takes.

- But after that rehearsal, dress rehearsal, I guess, I said to Gabriel, "Okay, I think I can do this," and since then, in order to get up and sing to get some experience, there's Birdland.

Susie Mosher has a Tuesday night lineup and twice she's had me on, and I've sung two of the songs from the album on her show, and that was a good experience, and I didn't get terrified, and I thought, "Okay, I'm enjoying this," and I told Gabriel, as long as I'm having a good time, I'm gonna keep doing it.

- I have this crazy idea that I want you to either buy into or disagree with.

I always tell people there's a fork in the road when it comes to something in public or something they're afraid of, and the road to the left is fear, anxiety.

"What if I screw up?"

"What if this happens?"

The road to the right is, "Listen, I'm gonna go all in, Try to have fun with this, connect with the crowd," and once you're in, you're on that road to the right and you can't get off.

Does that make any sense?

- It does, and I think you're absolutely right, and I do feel-- I geared my whole life to be an actor.

So the anxiety of getting up on the stage as an actor, I've had stage fright all my life.

I've dealt with it, but getting up and singing...

This is Jules.

- Who is that?

That's Jules.

- That's Jules.

This is another Jules.

He's a Wirehaired Griffon Pointer.

- How big?

- He's 85 pounds.

- Just checking.

Okay, good.

You were talking about anxiety-- - That's why he's not sitting on my lap, although he'd like to.

- By the way, check out our Steven Van Zandt interview where his dog was on his lap the whole time.

Not 85 pounds, I'm just gonna say that.

Amy, go back to the anxiety part, please?

- Well, I have been gearing up to be and I have been working as an actress all my life.

To get up and sing, there's a little less of an onus on me, because this isn't what I geared my whole life to do.

I'm doing it now, and you're right, connecting with an audience after being isolated for all these years, it's like when I was out there and I'm looking at people, and they don't have masks on anymore, and they we're looking at each other, and were communicating, and we're connecting, and it's just been so great to feel connected in the world again.

I just thought I was gonna be staying home for the rest of my life and it just feels good to be getting out again, and that connection, and this show is very personal.

It's very much, every song is from my life.

Whether it's from a film I did or from a love affair gone wrong, or a marriage, or my family, or whatever it was, it all came from me.

I'm the common denominator of these 10 songs.

I don't think anyone else would piece these 10 songs together.

For instance, I sing, "Why Don't You Do Right?"

I'm the singing voice of Jessica Rabbit in the movie "Who Framed Roger Rabbit?"

So it made sense for me to do that song.

But Jules has done an amazingly different arrangement for it.

So it's nothing like what I did in the movie and it's really fun to sing, and I did a film called "Honeysuckle Rose," and Willie Nelson and I became quite close, and he wrote a beautiful song for me called "I'm Waiting Forever for You."

I do that and Willie sings it on the album with me.

- That's awesome.

That is you, and obviously I'm gonna plug this again.

March 4th, Montclair Outpost in the Burbs, eight o'clock, and the New York City show, April what, again?

- City Winery, April 10th, main stage.

- City Winery.

And check out the Instagram that's been up for Amy.

Amy, you honor us by joining us and we thank you for all the great work you've done, and the great work you're going to do moving forward.

- Come to the show.

- Well done-- Well, it's around the corner from us in Montclair.

We're checking it out March 4th.

- Okay.

- That's Amy Irving.

Stay with us, we'll be right back.

- Thank you.

- [Narrator] To watch more One on One with Steve Adubato find us online and follow us on Social media.

- We're now joined by Dr. Ami Vaidya, who is co-vice chair of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Hackensack University Medical Center.

And also, she's affiliated with John Theurer Cancer Center as co-chief for the gynecological oncology division at the John Theurer Cancer Center.

Good to see you, doctor.

- It's great to be here, Steve.

- Let's get right to this issue of gynecological cancers.

What are we talking about specifically, A, and B, how prevalent are they?

- So, when we talk about gynecologic cancers, we're talking about cancers that essentially affect only women.

We're talking about cancers of the female reproductive tract, which include ovarian cancers, fallopian tube cancers, uterine and cervical cancers, as well as vaginal and vulvar cancers primarily.

Fortunately, these are not very common cancers of the group.

Most common are endometrial or uterine cancers.

And the incidence for women is about, a lifetime risk of about 3%.

- Let me do this, because I work with many of your colleagues.

I teach, to disclose, in the HMH, the Hackensack Meridian Health Physician Leadership Academy, and many of them come out of the OB, if you will, world.

But I'm curious about this as I've talked to them and tried to understand this.

Genetic testing keeps coming up and I've tried to understand what is genetic testing, how does it relate to the work you do, and what is relevant, more importantly, for our audience watching?

- So, genetic testing has really undergone an incredible transformation over the last several years.

What it is, is a means by which we can try to identify individuals who are at risk for certain diseases.

Since we're talking about gynecologic oncology, we're specifically talking about blood work that will allow us to identify those individuals who may have inherited a mutation from either of their parents and are at higher risk of developing some of these gynecologic cancers that we're talking about.

We do have quite a bit of information about certain genetic mutations such as BRCA1 and BRCA2, which- - What does that mean?

Help to understand BRCA1, BRCA2.

- Sure, absolutely.

So, these are two genetic mutations that again, can be inherited from either parent.

An individual carrying this genetic mutation would not feel ill.

They wouldn't know that they have it unless they underwent testing.

But for those that do have this mutation, these are individuals that are at higher risk for developing breast cancer, and risks as high as 60 to 80% in some groups.

Ovarian and fallopian tube cancers, risks as high as 20 to 40%.

And that's really significant.

That's much higher than the general population.

- You know what's so interesting, this genetic testing, I've never said this on air but I'm going through some genetic testing 'cause my dad had vascular issues, I've got some vascular issues.

And the genetic testing, the specialists in the field were telling me, "Steve, it'll tell us certain things.

It won't tell us everything."

Is that the same approach, philosophy, fact is true in the genetic testing involved with the work that you and your colleagues are doing?

It won't tell us everything but it tells us something.

That's important.

- That's absolutely true.

The technology has moved so fast that we have some information that we don't even fully know how to interpret for the genes that we've identified and have established and have linked to certain cancers.

That's just one piece of the puzzle.

There're other variables like the environment, what do we do to our bodies, you know, as we live our lives.

- That's right.

- These are things that also pose risk for developing certain diseases.

So you're right, the genetic piece is not the be-all, end-all answer but for some patients it can provide a really helpful piece of insight into the possible future and allow patients to make decisions about screening for cancers and even, in some cases, decisions about doing things to prevent certain cancers.

- Okay, let's fast forward, because doctor was talking about gynecological cancer, cervical cancer, ovarian cancer, uterine cancer, vaginal and vulvar cancer.

Now, prevention, screening, or testing, all that treatment, relevant and important.

If, big if, if a woman opts for surgery now versus 15, 20 years ago, as we're talking about robotic surgery, what exactly are we talking about and what are the potential benefits to a patient, doctor?

- So, I'm a huge advocate, a huge proponent for robotic surgery because I've seen over the last 15 years just what a big difference this technology has done for our patients.

In a nutshell, we're talking about very advanced, minimally-invasive surgery that allows us to do really complex procedures, cancer cases in many cases, at a way that allows for better cosmetic results, less postoperative pain and thereby less narcotic use, shorter recovery times, shorter hospital stays, often significantly lower rates of infection, and decrease in blood loss.

I mean, these are tremendous wins for the patient because of technology that's allowed us to access the body in a way that sort of old-fashioned, now, laparoscopy just never could.

- So much important information and a couple other questions here.

Preserving fertility.

Where are we now compared to where we were, you say, five, 10, 15 years ago?

Go ahead, please.

- So, fertility preservation is a very big deal as we are identifying women with cancer and especially identifying younger and younger women with cancers.

Or the flip side of that, some women just delaying childbearing based on numerous, you know, personal reasons.

Well, we are seeing women that want to have an opportunity to preserve fertility wherever possible.

We work really closely with our infertility specialists.

Again, technology has helped.

We've been able to harvest eggs, for example, for women who may be undergoing treatment where those eggs could be be compromised and thereby fertility could be compromised.

In addition, we have testing now that can be done for those individuals, we were just talking about genetics.

Individuals who are found to have certain genetic mutations may not wanna pass those on to their offspring and it is now possible to actually test embryos.

So, to have a woman's eggs fertilized by her partner's sperm and actually test those embryos to find out if any carry a genetic mutation.

This really allows individuals, then, to select which embryos would be transferred back and to try to spare their offspring, you know, certain cancer and other disease risks.

It's really quite amazing what we can do, even from a single egg.

- The science, the technology, the innovation, the advancements.

Extraordinary.

Next time when you join us, doctor, I wanna talk about the issues of mental health associated with a lot of the cancers that you're describing and the treatments and the protocols, but more importantly, the impact on the patient and her family.

And also, let me just say that HMH is a supporter of our healthcare programming.

Doctor, I wanna thank you so much for joining us.

We appreciate it, very educational.

- Thank you so much for having me.

- You got it, I'm Steve Adubato.

Stay right with us, we'll be right back.

- [Narrator] To watch more One on One with Steve Adubato find us online and follow us on Social media.

(dramatic violin music) - [Robert] Pamela Colman Smith.

(dramatic violin music continues) Discovered by Bram Stoker, and commissioned to create the tarot deck that would become the most popular of all time.

(dramatic violin music) Now, Pamela must fight to keep those cards from being used for evil.

(dramatic violin music) - First off, I'm joined by my colleague, the executive producer of "One on One," Georgette Timoney.

Georgette, do us a favor, introduce our guest, because you found her.

She's a friend, and you have the connection, please.

- It really is my honor to introduce to you an amazing writer, actor, producer, Susan Wands.

- And also author of the book, "Magician"- - The brand new book, "Magician and Fool."

Look for it.

It's the first book in a series, a three-book series, hopefully be an 11-book series, so it's really exciting.

Susan, can you tell us what the book's about?

- Yes, I'm thrilled to be here today.

Thank you so much, Steve, for having me as a guest.

"Magician and Fool" is the first book in a series based on a real life person, Pamela Colman-Smith.

She is known as the mother of the modern day tarot deck, or teh-row deck.

And I have been researching her for about 15 years, following her journey.

She was the daughter of American parents.

Her father was the mayor of Brooklyn.

And she became a very influential force in the world of tarot, designing these cards, and actually competing with someone else who was known as the wickedest man alive, Aleister Crowley.

- Hold on one second.

You used the word, is it tarot?

Teh-row?

What is the proper correct pronunciation?

- You can say it either way.

It's either tarot or teh-row.

- It's like either or eye-ther, Steve.

It can go- - Po-tay-to, po-tah-to.

- I got it.

I got it.

By the way, the book comes out-- we're taping on actually Valentine's Day 2023, book's coming out in May, 2023.

Meddling with magic.

What do you mean meddling with, why can't you meddle with magic?

- Well, Steve, you know, magic, especially at that time, they weren't sure what was science and what was magic.

And what they were doing is that they were trying to channel all these new ideas about what was reality.

I mean, they were tripping on opium.

They were astral traveling, but some of them were actually creating magical spells and having duals.

You know, Aleister Crowley and WB Yates actually had several duels.

One was in Watkins Books and the other one was on the streets outside the headquarters of The Golden Dawn, this was this cult of magicians.

And so they didn't know yet what really was science and do we really know what is science and what is magic?

I think the jury's still out.

- So, Georgette, what's so interesting, Georgette, it's fiction as you were describing, it's fiction, but go ahead, set that up.

- It's historical.

Yeah, it's historical fiction.

And I love this genre because I find it so interesting.

You have, you're set in the Victorian era, right Susan?

And you're using real people, but where do you make the decision about which part is fiction?

What part is historically accurate?

How do you determine that?

- Oh, that's a great question, Georgette.

I'm sort of in the genre of what's called alternate history.

I fudge dates a little bit.

I'm really going back to try to find magic realism with The Golden Dawn Cult.

So I wasn't there.

I don't know the dialogue, but I've certainly spent the majority of my life researching what they could have said.

So some of the dates, some of the people, maybe they met, maybe they didn't, but I try to bring them together in this parallel universe.

- And it's also the themes that you're exploring that I find so fascinating too, right.

It's this idea of it's good versus evil, but it's also, you know, in Pamela's case, the main character, discovering what your gifts are.

And following that through despite what the obstacles are that are in front of you.

Can you tell us a little bit about that?

- I think it's, especially anytime you use a tarot deck, I actually have them here, that you have to be able to sign over to what is other.

You know, because there's 78 cards.

They all have archetypes.

And the idea of this is that Pamela is an outsider.

And so we all feel like outsiders at the time.

And so these tarot cards or tarot cards help you access your own ideas about what can help you in terms of introspection.

Jung was a big enthusiastic fan of these cards.

He actually thought they helped people look inside themselves in terms of problem solving and trying to identify what was in their subconscious at the time.

- All right, Susan, let's do this.

My wife challenged me, Georgette, Georgette who is strong, assertive, and incredibly persuasive and talented.

She said, "Just do this."

I've been reluctant, but for the good of our production, tell me how I do this.

Do you pick?

Do I pick the card?

What do I do?

We're remote.

How do we do this?

- I do this all the time remote, Steve.

It's no big deal.

So what I'm gonna ask you to do is just ask for guidance, not for answers.

I'm gonna shuffle them very quickly with your energy in it.

- Can I tell you I'm very vulnerable?

- You are very vulnerable.

And the cards love vulnerability.

So what I'm going to- - No, I meant don't hurt me.

(everyone laughs) - I'll try not to pull up a scary card for you, Steve.

But what I'm going to do is I'm actually gonna hold the deck here and I'm going to cut the card depending on how you feel.

So I'm gonna take my finger here and when you feel like it's good for me to cut the card, say when.

- When.

When right there.

That's it.

- All right - I'm getting ready for this.

What is it?

Temperance.

- Temperance.

See, these are the red wings of the Angel Bethesda.

This is asking you to have more balance.

You see you have one foot in the water and one foot on the ground.

You also have lilies, so you have lots of projects coming up.

So this is just a foretelling that you're branching out, but it's asking you, please keep your balance.

Please pour your resources from one cup to the other without losing who you are.

Does that make sense?

- Georgette, did you pick?

Hold on one second.

By the way, I'm gonna disclose something.

I have this, weird people like me, have these little things to whatever, keep your balance.

I think it's temperance.

Is this also, temperance is about demeanor and calm, and the yeah.

Georgette, did you pick that card?

(Susan laughs) - I didn't.

I wish I could take credit for it.

(Georgette laughs) - You picked this card, Steve.

You have no one to blame yourself.

- If I find out that all of 'em say temperance, that's.

(everyone laughs) - Show them, yeah.

We didn't do this ahead of time.

We wanted it to be real.

- Georgette, I got a couple minutes left.

Pick it up from there.

- Sure.

Let's talk a little bit for a second, Susan, about the whole publishing realm, right?

Because you had started as an incredible actress and then producer as well, but publishing.

People watching now, like how do you do it?

- Well, it's a very crowded market right now, especially with COVID.

A lot of people didn't get to launch their books for almost three years.

So I was fortunate enough to be picked up by a hybrid press called Spark Press.

And what they do is that we share costs for publishing.

And that means I get more royalties.

And I'm thrilled actually because I have a terrific team.

Brooke Warner, who's the executive of it and my personal editor, Shannon Green, they really helped me shape this book.

The book was put out very prematurely seven years ago in England and it was only listed online.

So that gave me the opportunity to go back and really make the book the best book that it could be and write the subsequent two other books.

But publishing is yikesy.

You have to have a really good publisher that believes in you and will be willing to walk you through the steps to make sure you understand your genre and know who your audience is.

And I feel very lucky that Brooke Warner from Spark Press picked my book to publish this year.

- Well, congratulations.

Georgette, could you put the book up again?

- Sure.

- Susan Wands is the author of that book right there Magician- - [Georgette] "Magician and Fool" coming to you soon.

- [Steve] Georgette, when?

- It's in May.

- That's right.

- It's launching in May, but you're also gonna be able, we'll run Susan's website and you can take a look at it there as well.

It's absolutely fabulous.

I couldn't put it down when I started it.

It is the first of three, but hopefully they're gonna be like 11 of 'em, right?

So I'm gonna be reading all the time, so I'm gonna need to take some time off, Steve, 'cause I gotta- - Georgette, I know you didn't have a card that said this, but can you see in the chat where it says, "Wrap to black, we have no more time."

Do you see that?

(women laugh) - Shoot, I'm sorry.

This was a lot of fun.

Thank you Susan.

- Susan, terrific job.

Georgette, terrific job finding Susan and booking her.

Wish you all the best.

I'm practicing temperance.

See you next time.

- All right, thank you, Steve.

- [Narrator] One-On-One with Steve Adubato has been a production of the Caucus Educational Corporation.

Funding has been provided by Wells Fargo.

New Jersey Institute of Technology.

MD Advantage Insurance Company.

Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

The New Jersey Education Association.

Delta Dental of New Jersey.

New Jersey Sharing Network.

NJM Insurance Group.

And by The Adler Aphasia Center.

Promotional support provided by Northjersey.com and Local IQ.

And by BestofNJ.com.

Hey, kids, PBS Kids and Delta Dental want you to have a healthy smile.

So here are some tips for you to remember.

Number one, eat plenty of crunchy fruits and vegetables.

Number two, brush your teeth after eating sugary snacks or drinking sodas.

And number three, drink lots of water to wash away food particles.

When your teeth are happy, all of you is happy.

From PBS Kids and Delta Dental.

Have a healthy smile.