A Q&A With Candace Bushnell of 'Sex and The City' Fame

More than 30 years ago, New York City writer Candace Bushnell created a sensation with ‘Sex and the City,” her column in The New York Observer and subsequent book, which became a hit HBO series beginning in 1998.

Now, Bushnell is bringing her one-woman show to Canoe Place Inn in Hampton Bays for one night only. Thursday, August 17, at 8 p.m., the writer performs “Candace Bushnell: True Tales of Sex, Success, and Sex and the City,” a whirlwind tour of the Big Apple, from Studio 54 to the Lipstick Jungle and beyond, sharing her remarkable stories that gave rise to the HBO series.

Bushnell recently shared some insight into the show and her life, both in the city, and here on the East End.

Q: What made you decide to create “True Tales of Sex, Success, and Sex and the City?” and actually get up there to perform it yourself?

CB: The producer of the show, Marc Johnston, who also produces [musician] David Foster’s show, suggested I should write and perform a one-woman show. Somehow he intuited that I was “fearless,” meaning I didn’t suffer from stage fright, and he turned out to be right.

I wrote the show during the pandemic. We worked out the kinks at the Bucks County Playhouse and brought it off-Broadway to the Daryl Roth Theatre [at Union Square]. It grew from there. I’m doing it at the Canoe Place Inn, then I take it to South Africa, back to New York at Greenroom 42, Chicago, Hartford and eventually Palm Beach, Canada and hopefully England.

Q: What are the issues you’re dealing with in the show and how much of your real life and truths are in here? Did you feel there were parts (or people) that needed to be fictionalized for the stage?

CB: “True Tales of Sex, Success and Sex and the City” is the origin story of “Sex and the City” — how I created “Sex and the City,” how hard I worked to get there, why I invented Carrie Bradshaw and what happened to me afterward.

Q: Were there a lot of challenges of transitioning from your role as a writer to a performer?

CB: Not a lot. It all came pretty naturally!

Q: I’m curious about your relationship with New York City these days. How much time do you spend there versus the East End?

CB: I go back and forth all year long, although I like to stay on the East End during the summer.

Q: Has the city become something different or less familiar to you as younger generations move in?

CB: The venues and people change but as I’ve written extensively in my many books about the city, like “Trading Up” and “One Fifth Avenue,” the city essentially remains the same. People still come to make it here. Some succeed and some don’t.

Q: Has your life shifted away from the city over the years?

CB: I don’t spend every minute in the city the way I did in my 20s, but in many ways the Hamptons is an extension of the city.

Q: How do you think life has changed for young women making their way in NYC since the 1990s? Is it easier or more difficult to break into fields of one’s choice?

CB: There are many, many more career opportunities for women now than there were 20 or 30 years ago when I first came to the city.

Q: Now we have “And Just Like That,” a continuation of the original series, following the characters into menopause, divorce, remarriage, dating in your 50s and 60s. What do you think of the reboot?

CB: I’m enjoying it very much!

Q: What are you hoping that fans of your work take away from your one woman show?

CB: I’ve had a terrific response to the show. So many people tell me they find it inspirational and funny and some people have even seen it three or four times. Honestly I couldn’t ask for more.

Tickets for “Candace Bushnell: True Tales of Sex, Success, and Sex and the City,” part of the Front Row Series at Canoe Place Inn & Cottages, are $195 at canoeplace.com. The show will be held in the Canoe Place Pavilion, 239 East Montauk Highway, Hampton Bays. Wine and refreshments will be served.