James Van Der Beek celebrated the birthday of his eldest child, his daughter Olivia, on Thursday, September 25. And in light of recent events, the milestone was all that much more special.
On Monday, September 22, the cast of Van Der Beek’s seminal teen drama, Dawson’s Creek, reunited for a reading of the pilot at Richard Rodgers Theatre in New York City. Unfortunately, the 48-year-old was unable to attend in person, as he is currently battling stomach virus complications related to his stage 3 colorectal cancer diagnosis.
However, while Van Der Beek couldn’t be there in person, his wife Kimberly Van Der Beek and the couple’s six children, Olivia, Annabel, 11, Emilia, 9, and Gwendolyn, 6, and sons Joshua, 13, and Jeremiah, 2, were all in attendance.
At one point in the evening, the cast assembled on stage to sing the show’s theme song, “I Don’t Want to Wait,” by Paula Cole. Olivia and Emilia then walked out onstage mid-song with microphones to sing solo performances of one of the verses, before being joined by the rest of their family.
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For Van Der Beek, who made a brief virtual appearance at the event, it was certainly a proud and bittersweet moment. As such, he took to Instagram to wish Olivia a happy birthday and share a video of her performance.
“My oldest turned 15 today. Same age that Dawson was in the pilot,” Van Der Beek wrote. “To watch you stand there in that red dress, so confidently taking center stage amidst all those people I’ve known so long and cherish so deeply … I’m just left in awe.”
“I’ve always joked that you came out ‘parent proof,’” he continued. “But this last year, as I’ve watched you accelerate into so many big decisions, jump into so many activities, budget your time, do your homework and your hair (which, from my point of view, seem to require roughly the same amount of time & focus) … the less I think the parent-proof thing is a joke.”
Van Der Beek noted that while no one is perfect, a few weeks ago Olivia had “screwed up” his ticket to her high school basketball game when he was on his way there. But when she sensed his annoyance, he noted that the teen took responsibility, apologized, and did what she could do to fix the mess.
“I was more proud of how you handled the mess-up than if you’d done it all perfectly the start,” he wrote.
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“Keep taking big swings, kiddo. Risk imperfection. Keep dreaming big and most importantly, be true to who you are,” he concluded. “Because, while only YOU will know exactly who your most authentic self will be, as someone who’s known you your whole life … I can guarantee you’re going to love her.”
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Although Van Der Beek couldn’t make the reunion, which was a fundraiser for the F Cancer nonprofit, several of his A-list co-stars were in attendance, including Michelle Williams, Katie Holmes, Joshua Jackson, and Busy Philipps.
“I have been looking forward to this night for months and months ever since my angel Michelle Williams said she was putting it together,” Van Der Beek told the audience in a pre-recorded video “I can’t believe I’m not there. I can’t believe I don’t get to see my castmates, my beautiful cast in person.”
