“Real Housewives” vs. “Working Housewives”

Potential “Real Housewife” castmate thinks that a local spinoff of the Bravo series would just serve as an imposter.

“It’s a cheap knock-off,” said Wald, owner of, of "Working Housewives of Westchester."

“Working Housewives of Westchester” is a pilot being independently created by Rye resident, actress and children’s novelist Mary Amy and her partner Paul Moore—a photographer from Rye. The pilot hasn't been picked up yet, and the duo plan to pitch to “any and all” television stations.

"We’re winging it and making it work," said Amy, a 40-something mother of three who grew up in Larchmont.

Amy, who will appear in her pilot as a housewife, says she wanted to take a slightly different approach from the usual hair-pulling and cocktail-throwing women viewers are used to seeing in the Bravo "Real Housewives" series. 

“I thought it was a positive approach. These ladies have children, they have their own business or are working in a serious field,” said Amy. “How are they doing that, plus being married? I just thought it would be interesting to see how these women succeed, work through their problems and help each other problem solve.”

Amy interviewed 75 local women through a Craigslist casting call, and selected nine to film—including Pelham resident Cheri Corso, a former model and mother of two.

Corso is also the creator of a line of organic and Reiki-charged nail care products called G2organics—sold in in Pelham where she got her hair and make-up done Tuesday morning before the first shoot for the “Working Wives of Westchester."

“She’s got a great personality,” said Adrienne Brini, manger at Nicholas Day Spa. “She’s the typical 6-foot blonde bombshell. She wore a screaming red Valentino gown to the shoot. She’s just so easy to work with.”

After getting all dolled up, Corso and the other eight ladies headed to a photo shoot held at the Wainright House—a spiritual and holistic center in Rye, which had the USA show “Royal Pains” recently film on site for a week.  

Amy said the nine women—who also include Alyssa Dweck of Chappaqua, Melissa Cass of Irvington, Jene Luciani of White Plains, Pamela Gill Alabaster of Pelham, Kahleen Rozowsky of Rye, Eunie Han of Rye, and Lisa Avellino of Scarsdale—might not all make it into the pilot.

“We’ll film each of our lives, and through the editing process find out who is the most interesting,” said May. “They’re all wonderful, lovely very intelligent women.”