Reality hit Martha’s Vineyard on Tuesday night as the new television show The Vineyard premiered on ABC Family.

Christine Todd, Oak Bluffs Association executive director and mother to cast member Cat Todd, hosted an informal premiere party at the Chowder Company in Oak Bluffs. The mother and daughter both appear on the show and will attend the party, Mrs. Todd said.

“We’ll talk about it and have a fun night watching things filmed on the Vineyard,” Mrs. Todd said. “I saw a preview last week . . . it’s such a beautiful setting. The show has nothing to do with reality on Martha’s Vineyard, at least from the standpoint if you were an Islander, but it’s catering to a national audience.”

“It’s fun to see the place we live featured,” she added.

Crews wrapped up filming at the end of June after spending two months on the Island following a group of twenty-somethings struggling with the realities of life during a summer on the Vineyard. Billed as a docu-soap, the latest preview of the show includes a glossy portrayal of plenty of beach days, pushing and shoving, beach bonfires, emotional love triangles and, in the case of Cat Todd, deciding whether to stay on the Vineyard to develop her artistic talents or leave the Island for exploration.

Her mother said they had a “very good” experience filming.

“I found the cast and crew to be really great to work with and extremely accommodating,” she said. “They filmed in my home a few times . . . [Cat and I] are some of the closest to real characters in it and some of the very few that actually live here.”

“I hope it’s a good opportunity for my daughter,” Mrs. Todd added. “She had a great time doing it.”

The television screens at the Chowder Company will flip from regular sports programming to the reality show at 10 p.m. The party begins around 9:30 p.m.

The Sand Bar & Grille in Oak Bluffs, where some scenes were filmed, will also host a viewing party at 10 p.m. 

For more behind-the-scenes photos, see our gallery: Filming of ABC Family's The Vineyard.