ART OF THE MEAL-James Beard Cooks For Atlanta

~Doc Lawrence

Beard on the Telephone

ATLANTA-The set was a kitchen so brilliantly designed that it could be envied by a top TV celebrity chef. The grand appearance of James Beard, described by Julia Child as “the quintessential American cook, was breathtaking, the stuff of PT Barnum at his best. The big man who was America’s first TV cooking host, who introduced television audiences to cooking as entertainment, made his Atlanta debut complete with conversations with Julia, appearances by a cow named Elsie and revelations like the onion’s sacred position in ancient Egypt.  

Theatrical Outfit’s I Love to Eat starring the accomplished actor William S. Murphey as the man whose name is on the award coveted like no other by restaurants and chefs, has been described as a love story with food. 

I found it to be much more.

Several days before enjoying the play, I dined at one of the South’s top culinary shrines, Atlanta’s Restaurant Eugene, and admired their well-deserved James Beard Foundation Awards, tributes to their excellence. Inspired to know more about the man whose name has become synonymous with fine dining and elevated lifestyles, the many stories and tributes I found about Beard are fascinating. Any person who earned high praise from Julia Child, I thought, would have to be more than a great cook. Entertainer, teacher, raconteur and decent person would be characteristics that would endear him to Julia the Great.

And Murphey, as James Beard, delivers these to perfection. The telephone rings and rings. Requests for recipe advice come to his Greenwich Village home from faraway Kansas. Calls are made to others in France. In between, there is time for scrambled eggs and a few fingers of whiskey in a cocktail glass. This very lonely man found comfort in the telephone and the bottle.

What endears James Beard are much the same aspects of Julia Child’s connections with the hearts of Americans: a certain irreverence, admirable humility, a bit of mainstream Americana (Julia loved the french fries at McDonald’s) and magnetism on the TV set.

Beard was the Consummate Teacher

Playwright James Still brings the Atlanta audience into Beard’s New York home where the living room is but an extension of a glorious kitchen adorned with pots, pans, colanders, blenders, spoons, ladles, knives, dishes, glasses, wine bottles and heaven knows what else. His phone number was listed and calls come from strangers, particularly middle-American housewives who television historians claim made up the bulk of his viewers. The evolution of the TV chef and the establishment of American cuisine began with Beard, according to no less an authority than Julia Child.

The Portland, Oregon native was well-educated and well-traveled during his eighty-two years. A big man, over six feet tall, with a big belly, and huge hands, who, by all accounts was an endearing person who loved people, loved his work, loved gossip, loved to eat and loved a good time. Through the talented Mr. Murphey, these all radiate from the stage.

Beard’s insights and wisdom are firmly embedded in our culinary landscape: “There really are not recipes,” he said, “only millions of variations sparked by someone’s imagination and desire to be a little creative and different. American cooking is built, after all, on variations of old recipes from around the world.”

“Be simple. Be honest. Don't overcook and don't undercook, but it's better to undercook than overcook.”

For those seated near the stage, there is the possibility of being served an amuse bouche with a glass of wine. Clifton Guterman’s brilliant direction incorporates some delightfully surprising interaction.

The play instructs. We learn the sacred place of the onion with it’s layers of concentric circles was ancient Egypt’s Holy Grail. No wonder, we are reminded, that it remains indispensable in today’s recipes.

James Beard’s moment in history was just before the massive industrialization of food in America. His era honored fresh, local products. His offered timeless advice like “good food cannot be made of inferior ingredients masked with high flavor. Use the best ingredients possible and waste nothing.”

There is a scene where Beard announces he is going to walk to a local market and see if the seasonal tomatoes are available. He finds poignancy in the short time they are at peak and can be enjoyed. Life is much like that.

“Like the theater,” observed Beard, “offering food and hospitality to people is a matter of showmanship, and no matter how simple the performance, unless you do it well, with love and originality, you have a flop on your hands.”

I Love To Eat” is theater at its best: It is relevant, celebrating our love of food, drink, place and people. Quientessially American, here is a play about America. William S. Murphey flawlessly delivers the showmanship, bringing this giant of our culinary heritage back for a feast of laughs and a celebration of everyday pleasures found at the dinner table.

Through May 5.

(678) 528.1500

www.theatricaloutfit.org 
Photos: Greg Mooney