Code of Silence

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The belle of the ball, of course, was Edie Falco, who plays Carmela Soprano, the Mrs. Mob who dishes out a steady diet of cannoli and chutzpah. ''Carmela is very physical with people,'' Falco said, reflecting on her relationship with her character. ''It comes very easily to her and it doesn't with me. With the touching, hugging, grabbing -- it's an Italian thing, but I was not brought up like that.''

As the night wore on, the cast hammed it up for pictures with perfect strangers, relatives of crew members, and...the Feds? No, for real. New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani -- former U.S. prosecutor and current part time art critic -- couldn't resist the chance to catch an early glimpse of the show. And, THIS kind of art he could handle. ''I thought the two episodes tonight were great,'' the Mayor proclaimed. ''The first one was very realistic. And in the second one, they restored a lot of the humor of the first year. There was a LOT of comedy. I think it's gonna be a great season.''

Giuliani wasn't the only one moved by the second episode. The late Nancy Marchand, who played Livia Soprano, a mother that even a son couldn't love, died of cancer during the interim between the second and third seasons. This year, the producers deal with Marchand's passing in a way that is as cinematically sophisticated as it is tragically Greek. ''That was hard,'' Van Zandt told EW.com. ''There were a lot of mixed feelings because we loved Nancy and we all hated Livia. And so that's a great divide there.''

It's a show rife with great divides. On this night, Robert Iler, who plays Tony's teenage son, was right at home, surrounded by his friends. He said that this season his character will be a far cry from well adjusted. ''I'm gonna be a punk,'' he whispered over the laughter and disco music in the background. ''But my friends know all about it and they'll tell you...if you give 'em a little money.''

Bribery? In this room? We wouldn't dream of it. Much better to just move on to Jamie-Lynn Sigler. Now that Jamie's Meadow Soprano is a Columbia undergraduate living away from the fortress that was her family home, she's sure to be in for some action. Could she, uh, be more specific? ''Well,'' the actress smiled, ''Let's just say that Meadow's gonna go to college, she's gonna grow up -- A LOT.''

Sigler, who sported a look that was more club chic than Jersey Girl, had much mingling to do. But eventually she got to hit the dance floor, where she and Turturro boogied to the Sister Sledge song, ''We Are Family.'' Indeed, they are. And don't you fuhgedaboudit.