Guess Who's Coming to 'Dinner' at the Loeb Ex

Imagine yourself at the dinner party from hell: terrible food, mutual contempt that’s almost palpable, the bibulous hostess who no longer cares what she says, and if that isn’t enough, inclement weather so bad any pipedream of escape vanishes into the fog. Now imagine yourself not as a participant, but rather as a passive observer, free to soak in and enjoy all that deliciously dark humor without all the accompanying awkwardness. If all this tickles you pink, you Wes Anderson loving noirist you, then be sure to check out “Dinner,” produced by Ben M. Poppel ’09 and directed by Catherine “Calla” Videt ’08.

The gist of the story is as follows: Paige (Renée L. Pastel ’09) is the seemingly dutiful and devoted wife of Lars (Arlo D. Hill ’08) who decides to throw a dinner party to celebrate the publication of his Nietzschean empowerment/philosophy text. Invited guests include: Hal, the biologist (Simon N. Nicholas ’07); his wife Sian, the “newsbabe” (Catrin M. Lloyd-Bollard ’08); and Wynne, the dumb blonde (Julia L. Renaud ’09). It soon becomes apparent from Paige’s neurotic preparations and treatment of the guests as they arrive that she has ulterior motives. As the night goes on, conditions both inside and outside the house worsen, allowing a view of everyone’s quirkier side, and even bringing in an unexpected guest: Mike, a man of ambiguous professions (Rory N. Kulz ’08)

“Dinner” is a relatively new play, written by Moira Buffini, and commissioned by the National Theater in London in 2002. Videt writes in an e-mail that she chose the play for “many of its nontrivial themes about marriage, absent children, consumption (of life, of experience, of food, of products), and social stereotypes.” She writes that she also “felt that Buffini had written incredibly complex and beautifully multifaceted female characters” in contrast with the predominance of “meaty male roles.”

Videt promises to provide a more abstract presentation of Buffini’s work. “I wanted to explore a more dreamlike sequence of events as the night draws on,” she writes.

The action of the play is largely based on the uncomfortable interactions between the characters, but this production will utilize more abstract blocking, such as getting the actors away from the dinner table—where most of the scenes take place—as a means of communicating themes in more representational ways.

According to Videt, the most promising and interesting element of Buffini’s play and Harvard’s production is the dark comedy. It “pushes and pries at an audience’s comfort zone,” and makes you “laugh at things that, with perspective, perhaps aren’t all that funny.”

Remember the dinner scene in the “Rushmore” in which Max gets drunks and spews insults: “I like your nurse’s outfit, guy?” The HRDC’s production of Moira Buffini’s “Dinner” promises to be just as dark, just as funny, and possibly just as awkward.

“Dinner” runs from Oct. 27-29 and Nov. 1-4, at 7:30 p.m. in the Loeb Experimental Theatre. Don’t wait for your cordial invitation, trust me, it’s not coming. Just go check it out—after all, tickets are free.