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p20 weekender october 31 1s87- dining room is instantly forgettable 99 you can tell a lot about a cul ture from the way it eats says a character from one of the funniest scenes in the dining room ar gurney jrs hit play that opened at cullen barns last week alas flowers herbs country crafts collectibles specials save 500 triple heart root baskets reg 3000 save 1 00 off mini twig double hearts for wall decor reg 499 gourds vz price now 300 ea save 1 000 off heart shaped goose mat reg 8500 or 500 off braided heart rugs reg 4000 bring this coupon for advertised savings til nov 7 1987 while quantities last start your christmas shopping early at magnolias 318 main st markham 2946919 mofkvillc cinema if the mflrhuille jhoppiflo ctntre hwy 7 s mccowan bd telephone 927show wttkoats doors open 630 saturday 1 sunday continuous irom 1 10 free parking direeily ill ffonl ol ememj eotuncc on north pjikimj now playing 0 fatal attraction fri mon to thurs 700 930 sat sun mon 145 405 700 930 scenes of violence and sexuality thotrn bimi qui o baby boom fri mon to thurs 720 940 sat sun mon 130 355 720 940 6 parental guidance stake out fri to thurs 705 945 snow white sat sun mon 130 330 special family prices in effect j parental guidance hi family fatal beauty fri monthurs 730 945 sat sua 200 415 730 945 coarse language thouet branch ont all seats every fro ff tuesjdjky qovu the hapless audience cant tell much if anything about the cul ture in question in this production like jane austen before him but with less distinction gurney has carved out a niche for himself in fiction by the gently satirical examination of one small res tricted segment of society in this case the upperclass wasps of the northeastern united states he has produced a modest body of work some lightweight novels and a few very good plays the dining room among them it is structured in a series of amusingyetmeaningful vignet tes about different people in diffe rent situations in their different dining rooms but one room stands in for all of them the set is not so much a place as a state of mind a metaphor for a vanishing way of life and the characters while individual belong to the same class in society old family old money they send their children to new eng land prep schools and ivy league colleges a cook presides in the theatre in review tizotstfi w kitchen and one or two maids wait at table manners are everything morals something else again as the birthday party scene makes clear above all they are people of taste as written by gurney that is as presented by director and set and costume designer marni walsh they are something else again consider we are asked to believe that a oneyearold who attends a private dayschool eats with a jackknifed arm sprawled all over his grandfathers table that a hostess nostalgically re- caling her parents palmy days of elegant dinner parties doesnt sunday november 8th 1130 am 400 pm we present a dixieland jazz brunch featuring henry cuesta and his royal garden quintet tickets for the gourmet brunch table service and the greatest jazz sounds 35 each pick up your tickets now fashion watch 87 presented by trend setter nov 3 87 at 730 pm in the heritage room 144 main st 4711772 getwttdvwnglt now wing it every tuesday at markham otooles a plate of lipsmackin chicken wings topped off with friends fun and great tunes its mma all yours for a cheep price as on added bonus you can also wing it every sunday night youll just eat it up good friends goserthanbuthlnk markham otooles 258 wellington st west markham 4715952 fully licensed sorry no take out know how to seat six people cor rectly that a man dressed in a bright apple green suit pink shirt yel lowstriped and white shoes a employs a maid b belongs to an exclusive mens club and c de claims pompously about family honor and the joys of correcting his sons grammar at a pleasant family dinner adding quantity to tasteless- ness walsh compounds the felony of her costumes their very di versity works against the play not to mention gurneys explicit instructions after advising eco nomy and simplicity he writes this is not a play about cos tume changes but rather a play about people in a dining room there is simply not enough time between scenes to allow for elabo rate changes as scott maudsley discovered when he had to go on hopelessly entangled in a sweater the scenes are short and tightly written every line counts in establishinga new set of charac ters in a new situation but here the attention is diverted from pertinent dialogue by a mind- boggling parade of chorus girl tawdry and good will castoffs and then there is the set in stead of the simple elegance of fine furniture cherished for gen erations we are confronted with early salvation army this is a room that belongs to people of modest means and questionable taste not the upper crust attempts at grandeur in mirrors and wall sconces are merely gar nish against a visual background that makes a nonsense of every other line the acting becomes almost irrelevant which is most unfair to the six competent actors who share 56 roles and play char acters ranging in age from five to 80 they are more than capable of achieving the depth and subtley ignored by walshs direction warren coates a fine- actor whose restraint and ironic sensi bility set him apart epitomizes the right style particularly as the father in the breakfast scene and as the old man planning his funer al candy chorley best captures the patrician manner especially in her clipped delivery but her characters lack individuality gurney who was born into buf falos silverspoon milieu in 1930 yes even buffalo has its aris tocracy would be appalled by the liberties taken with his play like the impossible and impossibly bogus foreign accent adopted by contd on page 21 m luncheons dinners corporate personal catering 3550 victoria park avenue south ofsteeles at monicoli 7560054 kcomphmentary parking k 1 i i ii n i i r