“Money doesn’t buy everything and definitely not love of one’s self” was the key factor in this wonderful ‘two-hander’. It is just a shame that it is playing in a small theatre for only a few days so go and see it if you have the chance.
We are taken on a journey of social change and behaviour across the decades spanning from a 1930s preppy Eastern Seaboard moneyed lifestyle through to World War 2 and the coming of age of the USA, ending in a sense of the 80s era as computers emerge. In a minimal set of two desks, young Alan Ladd and his childhood friend, Melissa Gardner, reveal their lives, hopes and fears in letters exchanged over the years.
Both characters introduce themselves as opposites trying to find their way to each other and constantly missing opportunities spinning them onto different paths. Alan, following the Ivy League road and expectations is fascinated by Melissa and her free spirit. Max Fernandez, a young actor, is convincing as a teenager ageing into his 50s with unrequited love hovering in his shadow and only his written letters really representing who he wants to be. No makeup was used but with body language and a range of authentic facial expressions the audience saw the youthful naivety leave as life decisions took their toll and sombreness and duty set in.
Melissa Gardiner, a free spirit from a wealthy but dysfunctional family, is drawn to the steadiness and kindness of Alan. Keeley Tennyson is very convincing as a wayward young woman trying to free herself of American conventional wealth and recognising in herself that something is missing. Extra acclaim goes to Tennyson as she only stepped into the role the week before opening night and the audience wouldn’t have guessed.
The set, lighting and costumes were muted with the focus being the writing desks and the acting.
Letters are read in turn even when there is tension and silence due to slurs, anger and missed exchanges. Then the conversation returns and life invades again. Both actors kept up the pace delivering pieces of life and responses to each other’s revelations as they represented different parts of American society and how to behave, or not. The audience laughed at times but also recognised some of the regrets along the way and the heavy silences when neither responded to impulsive decisions. Both actors made us forget their youth to focus on their monologues believing the changes during the different stages of their lives. It was a journey with an inevitable ending.
To book tickets to Love Letters, please visit https://www.trybooking.com/events/landing/1594637.
