This week at Albert College audiences can dine out — in someone else’s dining room. Students are putting on The Dining Room, by A.R. Gurney. The play explores the joys and sorrows of a classic American family from the 1930s to the 80s. It stages a series of inter-related and overlapping family dinners — and stories. Follow the evolution of social and family dynamics, expertly woven together through a series of interconnected scenes, each set in the dining room of a well-off household.

The international cast come from the Quinte area as well as Hong Kong, Bermuda, China and Australia. It features four Prince Edward County-based students, Eamon Sorbara, Jack Sellors, Phoebe Griffiths and Mkhaya Karimjee.

Directed by Leslie Austin, Senior School drama teacher on her 26^th show at Albert College, the production experience for the cast and crew is about more than just acting. The students are involved in every aspect, including stage management, costuming, sound and lighting, as well as marketing elements such as press releases, radio spots and poster design.

With 18 actors and through 18 diverse and unique vignettes, the play offers a trip to the past to discover the secrets, surprises, and funny moments that can come to life at a dining room table. 

Overlapping scenes range from the sentimental to the scandalous, such as a child pleading to his grandfather for tuition money, a mother with Alzheimer’s whose three sons try to spend Thanksgiving with her, and a boy accidentally discovering his mother’s affair.

The Dining Room will be performed at Albert College February 8, 9 and 10 at 7pm. Tickets are on sale at albertcollege.ca at $15 for adults or $10 for students and seniors.