TDCNYC Brings THE DINING ROOM To Your Living Room

TDCNYC Presents a brand new production of The Dining Room by A.R. Gurney. Pre recorded in quarantine under strict COVID-19 safety measures, this brand new staging uses 52 live actors to bring Gurney's 1981 play about the decline of Northeastern WASP culture and tradition to a diverse 2021 audience.

The play is set in the dining room of a typical well-to-do household, the place where the family assembled daily for breakfast and dinner and for any and all special occasions. The action is comprised of a mosaic of interrelated scenes-some funny, some touching, some rueful-which, taken together, create an in-depth portrait of a vanishing species: the upper-middle-class WASP. Each vignette introduces a new set of people and events; a father lectures his son on grammar and politics; a boy returns from boarding school to discover his mother's infidelity; a senile grandmother doesn't recognize her own sons at Christmas dinner; a daughter, her marriage a shambles, pleads futilely to return home, etc. Dovetailing swiftly and smoothly, the varied scenes coalesce, ultimately, into a theatrical experience of exceptional range, compassionate humor and abundant humanity.

"What is unique I think, about our production is the way in which it was made. This production is very specific to the circumstances in which we are currently living." Says Director Andrew Benvenuti. "All of the theaters in New York City were closed when we decided to do this. With no access to a traditional theater space, we decided to make our own. We turned my living room in Harlem into The Dining Room."

The play was pre recorded for on-demand streaming using very strict COVID-19 safety measures put in place by Director of Health and Safety for TDCNYC Elias Preciado, MPH. "Like many others have said: we are living in unprecedented times. As an epidemiologist, we're trained to think on our feet and roll with the punches; so trusting my training was definitely an advantage for this situation. We still have a lot to learn about theatre in the time of COVID-19, there is always a certain percentage of risk involved when undertaking something of this nature. I truly believe that this production was the safest it could be."

The play is directed by TDCNYC artistic director Andrew Benvenuti. Set design is by Sara Laursen. Lighting design by Allison Newcombe. Director of Photography/on set Technical director Cesar Brandi. Director of Health and Safety Elias Preciado.

The play will be available to stream on demand for 48 hours on January 30th and January 31st at www.showtix4U.com/events/tdcnyc.

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