"Food for Thought," the lunch-time play reading series which began last fall with the new Tony Kushner play, East Coast Ode to Howard Jarvis, will continue this winter with seldom heard works by Arthur Miller, Richard Wesley and John Guare; monologues drawn from the work of short story writer Grace Paley and poet Williams Carlos Williams; and new works by Tom Topor, Cliff Robertson and Susan Charlotte.

All the readings will take place at 1 PM, Jan. 22-March 29, 2001, at the National Arts Club off Gramercy Park. The events include a discussion with the playwright and actors, as well as a gourmet box lunch. The cost is $27. Susan Charlotte, Harold Thau, Barry Minsky and Kenneth Martin in association with the National Arts Club produce.

The plays well be read by an acting company featuring Mary Alice, Blair Brown, Kate Burton, Barbara Feldon, Helen Gallagher, Marcia Gay Harden, Jared Harris, Earle Hyman, Judith Ivey, Judith Light, Robert LuPone, Daniel McDonald, Rita Moreno, Donna Murphy, Cliff Robertson, John Shea and Maria Tucci.

Actor Robertson will perform his own play, called V.I.P., on Jan. 29, Feb. 15 and March 8. Long absent from the stage, Robertson has been seen in such films as "Charley," "Star 80" and "Three Days of the Condor."

Other plays to be read include Miller's Danger: Memory!; Paley's An Interest in Life; Susan Charlotte's Come On!; Williams' The Use of Force; Guare's The Loveliest Afternoon of the Year; Wesley's Gettin' It Together; and Topor's Boundary County, Idaho. Different actors will read the plays on different dates. Call for an exact schedule and casting. Tickets for "Food For Thought: Lunch Hour Theatre" are available by calling (212) 362-2560 or consult www.showbusinessweekly.com/foodforthought/.

—By Robert Simonson