“It’s About You, Your
Friends and How You Change”
Food is a basic element of life. We need it to survive. We celebrate with it, comfort with it and
entertain with it. Being such a close
companion of human connection, it is always refreshing to see food given proper
stage time. Immediately we are drawn
into a familiar world. They eat – I eat.
She chops garlic – my father chops garlic.
She devours dessert while sobbing–my best friend knocks back a pint of Ben
and Jerry’s every time she’s fired. Playwright
Donald Margulies understands this. He
knows just how much food to serve the audience to entice them while dishing
some delicious life questions along the way in “Dinner with Friends”.
Ever since Karen and Gabe played matchmaker with their
friends Beth and Tom, the two couples
have been inseparable – going to the Vineyard every summer, raising their kids
and enjoying countless dinners together. But when one marriage unexpectedly crumbles,
the couples' lives begin to veer in opposite directions. Can these four friends move on to the next
chapter without moving apart… or have they changed beyond recognition?
Marguiles writing is a wonderful canvas on which the actors,
under the direction of Pam Mackinnon, can paint. The cast has perfect chemistry and each gives
a steady performance. Marin Hinkle
colors Karen with such a wonderful, natural presence. From the way Karen embraces Gabe to the way
she rests her hand on the opposite shoulder while thinking, Hinkle breathes
palpable life into this character.
Karen’s lines could very easily be delivered bone dry or sopping with
sarcasm, but Hinkle finds a delicate balance and delivers them effortlessly. Heather Burns brushes the character of Beth
with subtle yet defining energy. She
easily blends the crazy artist with the discontented wife. Darren Pettie does a beautiful job of blurring
the lines. Tom is a character the
audience could easily turn against but Pettie instills such charm and charisma
that we feel like he is our own best friend.
Jeremy Shamos as Gabe is a standout. He gave Gabe a true resonating
reliability, sadness, and comfort. 
The scenic design by Allen Moyer at the top of Act II was particularly
striking. Set in a kitchen in Martha’s
Vineyard with a view of the sunset – a backdrop which seemed to be a large
watercolor painting – the audience was stunned with vibrant colors and
textures, giving quite a contrast to the rest of the play. Since this scene took place twelve and a half
years prior to Act I, it was a beautiful and creative transition for the
flashback.
Dinner with Friends
is as simple and as complex as real life. There is no immediate mystery to
solve, no prince rescuing a maiden in distress and no eleven o’clock number; but
it will fill your plate with familiar characters, topics and emotions. And it
will leave you hungry for answers.
Dinner with Friends
opened February 13.
Review by Staci Morin
Photos by: Richard Perry
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