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Rosalind, Trina Beck’s facial ex-pressions and body language aptlyconveyed that she knew she was ontreacherous ground in her Uncle’scourt. Hers was not the usual pluckyRosalind but one more cautious inspirit, her inner turmoil reflected inher eyes as she let her heart o’ertakeher mind. Lovely.

Likewise, James Bartelle’s eyescan express hurt or love with thefinest of silent screen actors. Andhaving a black actor as Orlandoadded another layer of complexityto his having been deprived of his

birthright.Yet Shakespeare’s words do not fall trippingly from Bartelle’s

tongue; he too often sounded like he had marbles in his mouth.And if there were few sparks between Beck and Bartelle theydid well despite this, seeming well-suited for each other;perhaps because I had just returned from a visit to Oregon,they reminded me of happy couples I had seen in crunchygranola Portland.

Matthew Mickal did not overplay Oliver’s arrogance &meanness, making his conversion at the end that muchmore believable. As Mickal expands from musical comedyinto Shakespeare I look forward to future roles of his as hecontinues to stretch his talents.

With Ashley Ricord’s to the manner born Celia still fresh inmy mind, Jennifer Mefford’s was a forgettable collection ofsuperficial line readings.

Nancy Hartman White, an actress new to NOLA, brought

trodding the boards ...from M-25

panache to the usually throwaway role of Le Beau.J. Patrick McNamara evinced subtle menace as theusurping Duke Frederick.

There was nothing subtle about Lorenzo Gonzalez’Touchstone. With the intensity of a sailor using sema-phores, he acted out all of the clown’s witticisms whichhad the effect of undercutting their impact. Touchstonecertainly has a dirty mind but it was given only half reignhere as Gonzalez seems incapable of giving a modu-lated performance.

Conversely, Morrey McElroy was a natural inthe small role of Corin. With her ability to connectdeeply with Shakespeare’s words, when will some-one give her a lead like Beatrice in Much Ado?

Lara Grice was suitably full of herself as Jaques.Yet despite her being one of NOLA’s finest actresses,capable of comedy and drama, and the genderbending nature of her casting, her Jaques, andparticularly the famed Seven Ages of Man speech,did not make much of an impression.

The uncredited fight choreography for the bigwrestling scene did.

Uncle Vanyaat the Backyard Ballroom

Completing the triumvirate of classic drama inNew Orleans in the summer (who knew?)was Four Humours’ Uncle Vanya, Chekhov’s

portrait of thwarted lives and a family in turmoil. With itstalk of a disappearing environment, this play is asrelevant as it ever was.

Using Paul Schmidt’s good translation (though I didhear “Yeah, ya right” once or twice) Director KathrynTalbot did a fine job of moving her actors around on thecramped confines of the Backyard Ballroom’s stage.More importantly, she captured the humor essential toChekhov and elicited honest performances from even herless experienced cast members.

I’m pleased to report that this Vanya heralded thearrival of a major new actress here. As Yelena, wife ofVanya’s brother-in-law, Jennifer Growden gave a lumi-nous performance of sublime depth. With her unassum-ing, cultivated elegance, she invested Yelena with atouching humanity instead of playing her like an icy bitchas is too often done. Even when Growden flubbed a line,slightly, she made it seem entirely natural.

Michael Martin endowed his Vanya with a tough-ness not always seen, even making him a bit over-wrought, whiny and egotistical. This is certainly a validapproach—Vanya doesn’t have to be a saint—but Martinmissed some of the pathos inherent in the role by beingtoo hard-edged and bitter from the start. Still he achieveda real emotional connection with the audience and hisfellow actors in the climactic third act.

Playing the husband of his real life daughter (callingDr. Freud!), Ron Growden made for a crotchety, self-centered Professor in a satisfying performance. As thealcoholic Dr. Astrov, Frederick Mead had a tendency to“act” too much with his face like an overworking silentfilm actor; he was best when he kept his delivery simpleand to the point.

Only Any Woodruff seemed out of place. Much toobrittle for the gentle Sonya, she seemed to have only onetone of voice.

Overall, a worthy attempt at a difficult play. I mightquestion, though, the necessity of keeping the play setin 19th century Russia. With much talk of and actualdrinking, it would seem entirely appropriate to resetUncle Vanya in the New Orleans of today.

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New OrleansRestaurant Guide

Buffa's, 1001 Esplanade at Bur-gundy, serves breakfast 8am-4pm dailyfeaturing homemade biscuits and sau-sage gravy, and real hash browns alongwith bacon, sausage, ham, eggs oromelettes. Lunch and dinner is alsoavailable here. Call 949.0038 for info.

Bywater Restaurant, Deli & BBQ,3162 Dauphine St., is noted for itsgumbo, barbeque, pizza, sandwichesand specials. Hours are 11am-9pm Mon.-Fri., and 9am-9pm Sat. & Sun. ClosedWed. Call 944.4445 for additional info.MasterCard/Visa accepted.

Cafe Amelie, 912 Royal St., offersromantic courtyard or indoor dining alongwith both eclectic culinary creationsand drinks. Serving lunch and dinner,Wed.-Sun. 11am-9pm, Sat. breakfast10am-3pm and Sun., brunch 10am-3pm. Call 412.8965 for reservations oradditional information.

Clover Grill, 900 Bourbon St., isopen 7 days and features breakfastincluding build your own omelettes. Butlet’s not forget their fab burgers grilledright under a hub cap and then there’sall those sandwiches, sides, dessertsand shakes. Call 598.1010 or visitCloverGrill.COM.

Country Club Restaurant, 634Louisa St. Under the direction of newChef Miles Prescott, you will find de-lightful menus offering French bistrocuisine including appetizers, soups,flatbreads, salads, sandwiches, wraps,entrees and desserts. Serving Mon-day, Wednesday & Thursday 11am–10pm, Friday & Saturday 11am–12mid-night, Sunday 10am–10pm, SundayBrunch 10am–3pm, closed Tuesday.Call 945.0742 for additional informationor visitTheCountryClubNewOrleans.COM.

Krystal, 116 Bourbon at Canal,

Open 24 hours, it's one of the best stopsfor fast food with tasty burgers, hot dogsand breakfast. Call 523.4030 for moreinfo.Magazine Perks, 4332 Magazine,serves gourmet coffee, sandwiches,pastries, danish and cakes. Open 7days 7am-10pm. Call 899.2911 or visitMagazinePerks.COM.

Marigny Perks, 2401 Burgundy,serves gourmet coffee, sandwiches,pastries, danish and cakes. Open 7days 7am-10pm. Call 948.7401 or visitwww.marignyperks.com.

Meauxbar Bistro, 942 N. Ram-part St., serves classic contemporarybistro fare in the Quarter on the edge.Serving dinner and drinks Tues.-Sat, 6-10pm. Call 569.9979 for reservations orinformation.

Mona Lisa Restaurant, 1212 RoyalSt., features Italian specialties includ-ing salads, pizzas, sandwiches andboth lunch and dinner entrees. Lunch11am-5pm Thurs.-Mon., Dinner 5pm-10pm 7 days. Call 522.6746 for info.

Petunias, A Restaurant, 817 St.Louis, is open daily 8am-10pm servingbreakfast, brunch, lunch, crepes, po-boys, salads, gumbo, Cajun/Creole spe-cialties and dinner. Call 522.6440 formore info.

Quartermaster: The Nellie Deli,1100 Bourbon St., was voted Restau-rant/Deli of the Year once again and isopen 24 hours 7 days. Serving break-fast, lunch and dinner, the deli offers freedelivery. Call 529.1416 to order.

Tomatillo's Restaurant, 437 Es-planade Ave., is open Tues., Wed. 11am-10pm; Thurs.-Sun. 11am-11pm. The res-taurant refers to itself as "A MexicanJoint" featuring appetizers, soups, sal-ads, make your own combination plates,house specialties, burritos, desserts,and of course, specialty margaritas.Call 945.9997 for reservations.

by Rip & Marsha Naquin-Delainwww.ripandmarsha.com

E-mail: info@ambushmag.com

chop chopby Donnie JayE-mail: auntiedeej@hotmail.comPhoto©GrahamStudioOne.COM

cookin' with auntie dee

A New Spinon an Old Favorite

One of my favorite dinnersgrowing up was alwaysspaghetti and meatballs,

and in fact it still is, now a days howeverit has to be whole wheat pasta and low-fat extra lean meatballs. Alas diabeteshas sent my favorite meal the way of thedo-do bird. However, in researching thisweek’s menu I stumbled upon this recipefor white spaghetti and meatballs, whichputs a whole new spin on an old favoriteand I thought I would pass it on, andbuild a whole meal around it. Enjoy!

BAGUETTES(Make these fresh loafs of bread

the day before. Serve them with hotolive oil for dipping. Flavor the oil withfresh basil leaves.)

2 (1/4-ounce) envelopes rapid-riseyeast

2 tablespoons sugar2 ½ cups warm water1 tablespoon salt1 tablespoon butter, softened6 ½ to 7 cups all-purpose flour2 egg whites2 tablespoons cold water

Stir together the first three ingredi-ents in a four cup liquid measuring cup.Allow to stand five minutes. Stir to-gether the yeast mixture, salt, andbutter in a large bowl. Gradually stir inenough flour to make a soft dough.Place into a well greased bowl. Turningto grease top. Cover and let rise in awarm place (85 degrees), free fromdrafts, forty minutes or until doubled insize. Punch dough down, turn out on toa lightly floured surface, and kneadlightly four or five times. Divide doughinto four pieces. Roll each portion withrolling pin to remove air bubbles. Shape

into a fifteen inch rope. Place each intoa greased baguette pan or on a largebaking sheet. Make deep 2-inch cuts intop of loaf using a razor blade. Let risein a warm place without drafts, thirtyminutes or until doubles in size. Bake ina 400 degree oven for fifteen minutes.Stir together egg whites and cold water;brush over bread. Bake five minutesmore or until golden. Cool on wire racks.

EASY SPINACH SALAD1 (10-ounce) package fresh spin-

ach1 medium size red onion, thinly

sliced2 hard-cooked eggs, chopped

coarsely1 cup garlic-seasoned croutons2 tablespoons grated Parmesan

cheese

Toss first three ingredients in alarge bowl. Serve with dressing. Topwith croutons and sprinkle with cheese.

Orange-Raspberry Vinaigrette½ cup orange marmalade¼ cup raspberry vinegar2 tablespoons finely chopped

cilantro2 tablespoons olive oil

Combine all ingredients in a smallbowl; whisk together. Yield: one cup

WHITE SPAGHETTI ANDMEATBALLS

1 ½ pounds skinned and bonedchicken breasts, cut into chunks

1 large clove garlic1 large egg10 saltine crackers, finely crushed1 teaspoon Italian seasoningVegetable cooking spray1 (8-ounce) package sliced fresh

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