Spotted: A Tony Winner and Two 'Fresh Faces' on Gossip Girl

Welcome back Upper East Siders! As we settled down with a dirty martini (actually, iced tea) and kicked off our Louboutins (okay, Aerosoles) for the third season premiere of Gossip Girl on September 14, we just knew some theater folks would turn up. This pop culture guilty pleasure is filmed on the streets of New York, after all, and has tapped the likes of Margaret Colin, Wallace Shawn, Sam Robards, Aaron Tveit, Matt Doyle, Linda Emond, John Shea and Jan Maxwell in recurring roles.

In an otherwise yawn-filled catch-up episode, it was fun to see Tony winner James Naughton holding court at a polo match as Chace Crawford’s imperious Grandpa Vanderbilt. Broadway.com Fresh Face Sebastian Stan is back as Carter Baizen, mysterious swain of heroine Serena van der Woodsen (Blake Lively). Now sporting short dark hair, the Romanian-born Stan is unrecognizable from his role as a punky blond troublemaker in the Broadway revival of Talk Radio. (In real life, he’s dating co-star Leighton Meester.)

But wait! Who’s that paparazzi guy snapping photos of tabloid target Serena? Why, it’s another Broadway.com Fresh Face, Matthew Risch, last seen stepping up from understudy to title role in the Broadway revival of Pal Joey. At episode’s end, it was revealed that he’s working with Serena to try to attract the attention of her long-absent father. So maybe we’ll see Risch again among the rich and famous of Gossip Girl. XOXO!