There will be a luncheon and, starting at 6 P.M., a reception featuring food prepared by female chefs in the Boston area.

It culminates in a reception featuring a tasting of the signature dishes of more than 30 of the James Beard Foundation's very best chefs.

Audiences are invited to meet the artists at receptions featuring food "designed to complement the musical style of each program."

After an indifferent reception to his solo show in London, featuring mostly his nocturnes, Whistler abruptly decided he had had enough of London.

The white-tie evening begins at 8 with a reception featuring Austrian champagnes and wines, with dinner and dancing to follow at 9:30.

Afterward there will be a reception featuring French cheeses, Italian antipasto and Austrian wine.

A reception featuring temperance punch will follow.

Colgate and many others hold a dozen or more receptions in cities around the country, featuring alumni, admissions officers and at least one current undergraduate, for accepted students who cannot go to the campus.

One villager brought his personal copy of a Ptolemaic printed map from 1541, and several others were inspired to put on a reception featuring medieval food and drink a few weeks later.

The corporate presence was also felt after the close of business each day, as companies paid for social events like a glitzy opening-night reception featuring the singer Dionne Warwick.