War Horse Star Andrew Durand on the Best and Worst Valentine's Gifts

Valentine’s Day is all about romance, so Broadway.com decided to collect romantic stories (and ideas for celebrating the national day of love) from some of the most passionate people we know: Broadway stars! Read on for memories, menus and much more.

ANDREW DURAND (Albert Narracott in War Horse)

What is your happiest Valentine's Day memory?
My happiest memories are from elementary school, when you'd buy 20 packs of little tear-away cardboard cards with Hot Wheels cars on them for the boys, ponies or kittens for the girls, and everyone would make their own Valentine's Day-themed "mailbox" to tape to the front of their desk. You'd get cards and candy from almost everybody. It was also a great opportunity to make a move on whoever you had a crush on at the time, by getting them a special card and gift. I wonder if everyone did this...we did in my public schools in Georgia.

What was your biggest Valentine's Day disaster?
One Valentine’s Day, not too long ago, fell on tech week for a show I was doing. We were working 10-hour days, so things were pretty stressful, and I was very preoccupied. I had made reservations to have dinner at a nice restaurant near the theater during my two-hour dinner break. The problem was...I hadn't gotten anything for my girlfriend at the time. No flowers, nothing. Let's just say I learned my lesson. Just going out to dinner isn't really special enough. I should have taken the extra time and thought to do a bit more, even if there wasn't any extra time to be had.

What's the best Valentine's gift you ever gave—or received?
The best gift I ever received, or the one that stands out in my mind, was when a girl I was dating wrote a lovely poem about me. I thought that was really nice. What's better than hearing all the nice things your loved one has to say about you?

Keep checking back for more Valentine's Day ideas from your favorite stars.