Most Innovative Integration of Food and Theater in New York. Or perhaps, the Universe.

August 16, 5:53 PMManhattan Food ExaminerMarlo Hunter

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Alright, so it’s a bold title for an inaugural post, but I stand behind it.  Because it’s true.  And because it’s about my own company.

A culinary treat, a cultural fix, and a supper-club social, Eating Their Words offers attendees the World Premiere of three new plays written explicitly for their evening, coupled with the inherent theatricality of a one-of-a-kind meal inspired by the writers' work. The event's forum is the chef's restaurant.  The intimate evening delivers these World Premieres, set at a dinner table, an arm’s length away from audience members.  Attendees surround the performance table, voyeuristically overhearing a “conversation” at a neighboring table.  Following each play, set over a meal, the audience indulges in the course they just watched the actors experience.  The events take place at restaurants of note around Manhattan, monthly.

Where can I buy tickets for such an intriguing, one-of-a-kind culinary experience, you ask?   Through the Eating Their Words website.  And when is the next event?  A recent press release states:

“NEW YORK, NY  August 13, 2008  Eating Their Words, reinventing the concept of “dinner theater” by wedding a seasoned chef with prominent playwrights for an integrated evening of new cuisine and new plays, will next stage World Premieres by award-winning playwrights Neil LaBute, Brooke Berman and Steven Levenson September 16^th at the Michelin-starred Country restaurant.  The innovative company  launched in March of 2008 at The Tasting Room, and followed with a June event at the iconic Peacock Alley, located in the Waldorf = Astoria.  It is the only theatrical or culinary event of its kind.

The Country Event piques the palate on Tuesday, September 16th, at 7pm.  Under the theme "Lawless Cuisine", the evening will be staged on a candlelit private balcony in Country's exquisite dining room.  The unique evening features Executive Chef Willis Loughhead’s original food and wine pairing, inspired by the work of collaborating playwrights Neil LaBute (In the Company of Men, Reasons to Be Pretty), Brooke Berman (A Perfect Couple, Hunting and Gathering), and Steven Levenson (The Language of Trees at The Roundabout Underground this fall). The evening features performances by Tony Award nominee Pablo Schreiber (Awake and Sing!, Reasons to be Pretty), Drama Desk Award winner Marylouise Burke (Fuddy Meers, Sideways), Maria Dizzia (Eurydice), and Victor Slezak (The Graduate, Suddenly Last Summer).  Artistic Director and Eating Their Words founder, Marlo Hunter (Williamstown, Long Wharf, Ensemble Studio Theatre), directs.” 

As the Eating Their Words website will reiterate, the evening is not “interactive”, so you won’t be asked to become one of Tony or Tina’s wedding guests. 

Tickets are $295 and include the food and wine pairing, tax, gratuity, and the performance as a whole.  Eating Their Words also creates private events.