Unpleasant, sharp and surreal but what Dinner was actually about was less clear.

A philosophical theme ran through it, the concept of a dinner party as a representation of life, but many of its ideas seemed as one-dimensional as its characters.

Stephanie Beacham was stunning as acerbic, brittle host Paige, but the character of vacant 'newsbabe' Sian (Gaby Roslin) seemed undeveloped and made an unconvincing pairing with boyfriend Hal (Crispin Redman).

Beacham, resplendent in orange cocktail dress, served up such primordial soup and apocalypse of lobster with barely concealed delight at her guests' discomfort.

She set about systematically cutting down gushing, self-styled erotic artist Wynne (Louise Jameson), with whom her husband Lars is having an affair and Hal, whom she once bedded.

The sickly atmosphere is broken by Mike, a van driver and possible thief, who has broken down.

Convincingly played by Liam Smith, working-class everyman Mike appears to be intended as a mirror to show the guests their hideous, shallow personas.

The character raises interesting ideas about perception and the creation of the self but these are abandoned in the race to a melodramatic finale.

At the end, silent waiter Mark Hayford turns out to have more lurking beneath his stony exterior, as Paige finally achieves the unforgettable dinner party she aspired to give.

While the play is compelling and well acted, Buffini's plot is at times contrived and potentially strong characters become bogged down.

Nione Meakin