Recap from the First Twin Peaks: Conversation With The Stars in Tysons, Virginia

The “Twin Peaks: Conversation With The Stars” tour officially kicked off on Aug. 4 at Capitol One Hall in Tysons, Virginia. Presented under license from Paramount Location-Based Entertainment, this multi-city tour in August and October 2025 celebrates David Lynch and Mark Frost’s iconic television series, affording fans first-hand recollections of amazing on-camera and behind-the-scenes moments from the cast and crew who made it. One such fan is Ethan Diddlemyer who shared his experiences from this first show with Twin Peaks Blog.

TWIN PEAKS CONVERSATION WITH THE STARS | AUGUST 4, 2025 IN TYSONS, VIRGINIA

The first Twin Peaks: Conversation With Stars was held on Monday, Aug. 4, 2025 at Capital One Hall in Tysons, Virginia. The event featured stars of Twin Peaks, Ray Wise, Harry Goaz, Kimmy Robertson, and Dana Ashbrook, and the Executive Producer of Twin Peaks: The Return, Sabrina S. Sutherland.

A specially designed event logo was projected onto a screen above the stage where the conversation would take place.

The stage was decorated with couches and chairs for the Twin Peaks conversation.

The Capital One Hall offered themed specials for attendees including a drink called “Cherry Pie” made with cherry, Brandy, cherry/lemon cordial topped with boozy hazelnut/butterscotch foam. They also offered “Damn Good Coffee & Donut Holes” which could be turned into an adult beverage with Vodka, Mr. Black Coffee liqueur with boozy butterscotch foam.

ETHAN’S EXPERIENCE AT TWIN PEAKS: CONVERSATION WITH THE STARS

“It goes without saying David Lynch has had a huge impact on me,” said Ethan when asked about his interested in Twin Peaks. “I love all his works but Twin Peaks has always been the one I’ve held very near and dear. My dad Steve Diddlemeyer got me into Twin Peaks. It is without a doubt my favorite show of all time, and I’m so happy I saw [Twin Peaks] The Return when it first aired in 2017. It was such an extraordinary experience.”

Ethan was inspired to attend the “Conversation” event following Lynch’s passing earlier this year and a more recent trip to Washington state.

“Lynch’s passing in January and my recent trip to Washington state to visit Twin Peaks locations, which I covered on YouTube, were signs that I should attend,” explained Ethan. “I live in Maryland, so when I saw the event was taking place nearby, I knew I had to go!”

David Lynch’s work inspired Ethan to pursue filmmaking.

“David always pushed boundaries and, with Twin Peaks, he created a world that we all fell in love with,” he continued. “He inspired me to purse film. My best friend Sebastian Fischer and I now have a production company called ES Productions with our first full length film coming out on September 13 called The Killer Within.”

The Conversation with the Stars event is a jam-packed night according to event co-organizer Ben Jackson.

He said there is a 30-minute montage of photos with drone footage from the “Real Twin Peaks” of Snoqualmie Valley, Washington, a screening of Part 8 from Twin Peaks: The Return, a “Question and Answer” session with the cast, and a video tribute to David Lynch. There is also special event merchandise and autographs available to purchase.

Before the conversation began, fans were treated to a screening of the iconic Twin Peaks – Part 8.

“It was such a great surprise watching Part 8 in its entirety on the big screen,” recalled Ethan. “Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me along with Twin Peaks: The Return are my favorite Twin Peaks content and what I consider to be some of the most Lynchian stuff out there. Part 8 is one of the greatest television episodes in the history of TV.”

I can only imagine what it was like seeing Nine Inch Nails, the New Mexico nuclear explosion, The Fireman and Señorita Dido, and the Woodsman at KPJK on the silver screen.

Following the screening, a panel conversation was moderated by long-time Twin Peaks fan Josh Eisenstadt. He has an incredible wealth of knowledge about the show, and it’s been a joy spending time with him during the Real Twin Peaks events in Washington. For years, Josh has ran the Twin Peaks Trivia contests at fan festivals, so he knows nearly everything about the show.

“The host Josh was awesome and he is definitely a true Twin Peaks fan,” said Ethan. “Going into this event I had two questions I wanted to ask the stars yet Josh asked them for me, like he read my mind.”

Ethan shared a few highlights from the “outstanding” conversations.

“I learned that Harry Goaz who played Deputy Andy used to be David Lynch’s driver,” said Ethan.

Goaz also shared he had no idea what he was filming in The Return when he disappeared at Jack Rabbit’s Palace in Part 14.

Ray Wise not only sang “Mairzy Doats” on stage from the iconic season two opener, but he shared a story about how he possibly ruined the mystery of who murdered Laura Palmer for all of Russia in the mid 1990s.

The stars were also asked about what they remembered filming the famed ending to the “International Pilot.” Harry, Kimmy Robertson and Ray was shared their memories.

Dana Ashbrook shared one of Ethan’s favorite behind the scenes stories from the memorable exchange between Don Davis as Major Briggs at the Double R Diner.

“The exchange between Bobby and Major Briggs is one of the most touching scenes in the whole series,” Ethan remarked. “Dana shared his whole experience of filming that scene. He felt it wasn’t working the way it should’ve been so David pulled Don to the side and told him basically that he thought maybe if he cried it would cause Dana to react to it in a more natural way. So Don came over and they did the scene again this time with the camera facing Dana and Don started weeping which then got the emotions flowing and got the reaction they needed out of Dana. Very cool stuff hearing how that all went down.”

Kimmy Robertson, who played Lucy Moran, talked about how David and Mark approached her about choreographing the dance for the Miss Twin Peaks contest at the end of the second season. She also shared a story about her scene telling Sheriff Harry Truman that Pete Martell was on the phone.

Lastly, Sabrina Sutherland discussed her process going into the show’s third season with David. She handled finances basically letting David know if they “could make everything he wanted to happen in season 3 happen.”

A wonderful tribute to David Lynch was screened following the panel discussion which was an emotionally moving moment for all attendees.

“After the panel ended, we were walking out of the orchestra and someone pointed out my shoe was untied,” said Ethan. “For whatever reason I immediately thought of the clip of David Lynch during the tour for Mulholland Drive where during an interview his shoe was untied. David said he was going to keep it untied until after the festival for good luck which he ended winning, so I guess it paid off. My shoelace being untied made me tear up. I took it as a sign that David was there with us.”

Ethan thought the event was a perfect way to kick off the tour.

“Overall, it was a super fun night and a great way to kick off this tour,” Ethan exclaimed. “I hope everyone buys a ticket as you’ll have a blast. Maybe if it does well, we’ll get more of these in the future with even more guests. Thank you David Lynch for creating the world of Twin Peaks for us you’ll always be loved and your legacy will live on!”

Thank you to Ethan for sharing his stories and photos with me. Find tickets and event information in this article on Twin Peaks Blog or on DRW Entertainment.