A.R. Gurney’s 1988 play Love Letters is essentially two characters sitting side by side reading a series of letters, notes and holiday cards they have exchanged for nearly 50 years.
It’s two actors using the written word to describe what has happened between their late-middle-aged characters since childhood without directly addressing each other—or the audience, for that matter. Productions—including Broadway, Off-Broadway, and countless regional iterations—have been a favorite of veteran actors and movie stars for years because of the simple staging and preparation required.
This weekend, June 5-7, two local actors shine in a staged reading that runs for only four performances at By the Sea Productions in Morro Bay.
Barnes and Richie make a good pairing, and their connection, like that of their characters, is a human and honest one.”
What passes between Laura Richie as Melissa and Larry Barnes as Andy is sweet and touching, from his promise to his second-grade teacher that “I will not write personal notes in class” to her description near the end of the play of the “circle of life.”
Barnes gives a reserved, almost gentlemanly performance (director Sheridan Cole even has him holding the chair for Richie when they take the stage at lights up at the start and after the intermission). He’s perfect for a character who admits to a love of writing (especially to Melissa), because he can’t reveal himself in very many other ways to his wife and children or to the world (Andy not surprisingly becomes a successful politician).
Richie gives vent right from the beginning to Melissa’s rebellious side, providing much of the humor of the material. She seems to delight in Melissa’s free spirit and wandering nature as her character writes from several U.S. locations as well as from overseas. While Andy discloses his feelings over the loss of the family dog, Melissa (who has married more than once and become an artist) merrily describes her many visits to rehab.
Cole and her creative team keep the two-hour production light, simple, and moving. Barnes and Richie make a good pairing, and their connection, like that of their characters, is a human and honest one. You will recognize the emotional bond that develops as they cover personal and professional ups and down, dreams and disappointments, marriages and divorces along the separate paths they choose in life.
I walked away from this production thinking about the choices we all make, from childhood into adulthood and from simple to complicated. And about how nobody puts pen to paper to write to anyone else any more. Maybe they should . . .