Area graduate is a 'success in the city'

BY EDIE GROSS

For the first time in months, Tiffany Hayzlett Parker's BlackBerry is quiet.

It chirped day and night, through fall, winter and spring, demanding attention from technical support, scheduling, the production team, wardrobe and a host of personal assistants associated with filming "Sex and the City."

But now, several weeks after the film's U.S. premiere, not a peep.

"Now I'm like, is it on? Is it working? Nobody's calling my phone. I don't know what to do with myself," says Parker, a workaholic and Fredericksburg native who was one of the film's associate producers.

Parker, 31, was unaccustomed to taking it easy long before she moved to the Big Apple and joined the "Sex in the City" team, which includes her sister-in-law Sarah Jessica Parker.

Before that, she earned straight A's as a theater major at Mary Washington College, balancing her coursework with independent research projects, jobs in the school's box office and theater department, and two prestigious summer internships in New York.

Before that, she embraced drama at Chancellor High School under the late Jerry Pritchett, who as technical director and set designer for the Fredericksburg Theater Co. instilled in her a love of community theater.

"She was a person who really took advantage of every opportunity," says UMW Professor Gregg Stull, chairman of the school's Theater and Dance Department. "You want students to have their eyes open to a world they didn't know, to really seize that world and become a part of it. When I look at Tiffany's journey, that's what I see."

IN LOVE WITH NY

The funny thing is, Parker hadn't intended to journey that far.

When she visited Mary Washington as a high school senior, she told Stull she'd pursue community stage work in her hometown.

"She loved the town she grew up in and felt like that was the place she wanted to spend her life," he recalled.

"But she was ambitious and her potential couldn't be realized by staying in Fredericksburg," said Stull, who encouraged her to pursue an internship in New York.

At the nonprofit New York Theatre Workshop, Parker earned just enough for subway fare and the occasional meal of brown rice.

She scraped together change and slept on 41st Street to score last-minute, discounted tickets to "Rent," that year's Tony winner.

1 2 3 4 Next Page

Tiffany Hayzlett Parker, a Fredericksburg native and graduate of Chancellor High School and Mary Washington College, recently wrapped up her role as an associate producer on the movie "Sex and the City." Here's Parker's take on: Working in film:

"It's exciting, but it's not glamorous," says Parker, who says eating and sleeping often fall by the wayside. "You have no idea how many peanut M&M's you can justify at 2 in the morning."

Sis-in-law Sarah Jessica Parker:

"It's always the people you respect the most who don't have attitudes. Sarah's a perfect example. When she asks you a question, she legitimately cares about the answer. She doesn't have any pretense."

'Sex and the City' style:

"I know nothing about fashion," says Parker, who attended a meeting in Vogue editor Anna Wintour's office during filming. "I had to have the wardrobe department dress me."

After leaving the meeting, Parker took off the black Chanel top, fitted skirt and high heels, changing back into a T-shirt and Gap khakis. Plum Sykes, a fashion editor for Vogue and a New York "It Girl," spotted the dressed-down Parker on the set and did a double-take.

"I didn't know if you were one of them," Sykes said, "or one of us."

Premieres and after-parties:

The star-studded parties are often mob scenes, where hungry, tired guests can't find a seat, says Parker. But she enjoyed the "Sex and the City" event largely because her mom and sister, Susan and Megan Hayzlett, joined her. Said mom: "It was like fantasy land."

Read more stories about Fredericksburg
Date published: 7/11/2008

1. Be respectful. No personal attacks.
2. Please avoid offensive, vulgar, abusive, hateful or defamatory language.
3. Read and follow THE RULES.
4. We will block violaters and ban repeat offenders.

Breaking News - click here to have the latest delivered to your email box or cell phone