The Studio Theatre, on the campus of Wayne State University, will open Dinner With Friends by Donald Margulies at 8:00 p.m. on December 2, 2004.
This 2000 Pulitzer Prize-winning play is about two couples who have been close friends for 12 years--sharing dinner, their lives, their children and their friendships. How far can a relationship fall before it breaks? In their Connecticut home, Karen and Gabe, international food critics, are hosting a dinner for Beth and Tom, which Tom doesn't attend. What emerges from the heartbroken Beth is that Tom has left her for another woman. When Beth and Tom announce their decision to separate, the relationship between the four friends begins to change. They find that their collective love of cooking may be the one thing that can keep them together.
Director Hsiu Wei Hu (Taipei, Taiwan) will direct his third production at the Studio Theatre. Hu is a third year PhD candidate who has traveled extensively in the United States and comes here with vast performance experience from Taiwan. After completing his degree, he plans to go back to Taiwan and share the knowledge he has learned here through teaching.
Cast members include: Andre Anton (West Bloomfield) as Gabe, Katie Clark (Livonia) as Beth, Marianne Gagrica (Jenison) as Karen, and Dan Howard (Bloomfield Twp) as Tom. Dinner With Friends also features scenic design by Cory Johnson (Grosse Pointe Park), costume design by Hsiu Wei Hu, lighting design by Andrew Amis (Farmington Hills), assistant lighting design by Justine Brock (Berkeley), and sound design by Mike Fiedler (Fraser).
Dinner With Friends plays at the Studio Theatre located at 4743 Cass Avenue on the corner of Hancock. Performances are December 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, & 11 at 8 p.m. Tickets are $9 with a $7 discount ticket for students, seniors, Wayne State University faculty and staff, and members of the Wayne State University Alumni Association. For more information and tickets please call the theatre box office, open Tuesday through Saturday from 12-6 p.m., at (313) 577-2972.