The 67-year-old lifestyles guru (whose 153-acre Cantitoe Corners has become a topic of high interest and curiosity among her fans) is welcoming them, and the rest of the world, for an unprecedented visit on Monday's "The Martha Stewart Show" (syndicated; check local time and station).
"So many people ask me, `What's the farm like? What do you grow? What animals do you have?'" she explained to a reporter. "I decided it would be fun to kick off the fourth season at the farm
- fun for the crew, too."
Any other weekday, "Martha Stewart" would be originating from Manhattan, often live, in front of a studio audience. But this taped premiere called for mobilizing a staff and crew of 100 (and enough equipment to shoot a feature film) at Stewart's estate, a spread she bought eight years ago in tony, leafy Bedford, about 30 miles north of the city.
Stewart also convened an audience of some 50 friends, neighbors and members of a local garden club. Shortly after 9 a.m. Thursday, they were in place in matching wicker chairs, which were painted in what's known as Traditional Martha Green and arranged in front of the immaculate, stone-and-slate-roofed stable. With the stable as backdrop, her three guest chefs would be preparing lunch for the crowd during the episode's cooking segments.
The job of making sure "Martha Stewart" stays true to the signature style of Martha Stewart
- that's art director Anduin Havens' responsibility. (It could hardly have been by chance that those wicker chairs matched the green-striped shirt Stewart wore.)
But Havens said the on-location show had been less demanding for her than the typical in-studio episode.
"This property is gorgeous," she declared. "The best thing I can do is not cover it up."
"It's nice to get out of the studio," said executive producer Bernie Young as he watched Stewart grill molasses-and-chile-glazed pork with chef Chris Schlesinger.
Everything was going smoothly. On the other hand, the day was young. The variables of this shoot
- people and food out in nature - meant something could still go awry and rattle Young.
Young, whose first career was as an NYPD detective, shook his head.
"Calm is better," he said with a smile.
Around noon, the program's concluding segment was taped: lunch for all the guests served at a long, beautifully arranged table on a grassy lane.
The out-of-sequence shooting schedule listed more segments, including a gardening scene, for the afternoon.
But before then, Stewart headed back to her house, beyond a manicured pasture and the paddock with several miniature donkeys, to chat with a reporter.
Her French bulldogs, Francesca and Sharkey, rested at her feet as she sized up the first three seasons of "Martha Stewart."
"We started off the show with a lot of celebrity guests, and we still have celebrities," she said. "But we also have incorporated more of our artisans, craftspeople, gardening experts. Viewers really want to learn. Everybody wants to learn something!"
As the economy sours and the buying power of many viewers is threatened, Stewart noted, "You can do many of our recipes or projects on a budget. We're very conscious of that, and always have been."
