Friday, March 10, 2000
Prom-goers get taste of etiquette
BY JANE PRENDERGAST
The Cincinnati Enquirer
FORT MITCHELL — The scene: Kids in dress clothes at a country club, socializing gracefully, eating with proper table manners.
You might know the whole thing was their parents' idea.
The Parents Club at Villa Madonna Academy decided their children needed a little help in the manners and behavior department. Not because they're particularly bad, but because they'll soon be going out into the world and facing things like job interview lunches.
With prom night approaching, the school's 37 seniors practiced Thursday at the Fort Mitchell Country Club over a white-tablecloth, four-course lunch.
Etiquette expert Marja Barrett peppered the instruction with tips:
“Don't mop up gravy with a hunk of bread.”
“Don't dump ketchup on top of french fries.”
“Don't stab at your meat.”
She also instructed the students on some fine culinary arts they might never need, like how to eat from a whole artichoke.
Vaughn Helmer held the artichoke piece between his teeth, as Ms. Barrett dictated, and squeezed out the vegetable into his mouth. He didn't think it tasted like much.
One student asked about proper sneezing-at-the-table etiquette. Though Ms. Bar rett had told them not to use their napkin as a handkerchief, she said using it to shield the rest of the table is a good idea. But go to the restroom, she said, “if you really have to blow.”
Christy Gordon, 18, is now better informed, if she ever hosts a dinner party.
“I didn't know a lot about how the host initiated things and ended things,” she said.
Ms. Barrett explained that a guest should look to his or her host for certain cues. For example, the host indicates the end of a course by laying his or her silverware, at an angle, on the plate.
The etiquette lesson, an annual event for seniors, is part of a bigger plan to teach respect to all Villa Madonna students, said parent Sara Kieffner.
“They're all going to go out in the world,” she said. “We just want them to be comfortable.”
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