BWW REVIEWS: No Wrong Notes in Orfeo's 'LOVE SONG'

Love Song

A play by John Kolvenbach, Directed by Risher Reddick; Peter Bayne, Composer/Sound Design; Jen Rock, Lighting Design; Katherine O'Neill, Costume Design; Cristina Todesco, Scenic Design; Ryan A. Anderson, Production Stage Manager

CAST: Gabriel Kuttner (Beane), Liz Hayes (Joan), Daniel Berger-Jones (Harry), Georgia Lyman (Molly)

Performances Thurs-Sun through August 27 by Orfeo Group at Charlestown Working Theater, 442 Bunker Hill Street, Charlestown, MA; Box Office 866-811-4111 or www.orfeogroup.org (NOTE: Thursdays FREE with reservation, all other performances $20)

The bad news is that Orfeo Group does only one production each year. The good news is that this summer's show is the Boston premiere of John Kolvenbach's 2007 Olivier-nominated Love Song, a smart and funny feel-good play that underscores the importance of human connection and the magical powers of falling in love. In the intimate space of the Charlestown Working Theater, the audience flanks the stage on two sides, watching each other watching the actors, bearing witness to the magical human experience played out before them.

It is unusual to have half of the audience in your field of vision when you're at a play, but it adds to the personal impact of Love Song to know that others are sharing some of the same feelings and reactions to the story when you are able to see them laugh or look surprised at a plot twist. Kolvenbach linguistically builds to a climactic peak and Orfeo Group visually sears that moment into our awareness, thanks to Lighting Designer Jen Rock's subtle artistry and intense emoting by Gabriel Kuttner and Georgia Lyman, the lovers of the title. As Beane and Molly, they recite some of the playwright's most poetic and romantic dialogue, creating a virtual magnetic field in the small distance that separates them from each other. I get goose bumps remembering it.

Love Song is goose bump-inducing in many ways, particularly in the fine performances from the quartet of Orfeo Group regulars Daniel Berger-Jones, Liz Hayes, Kuttner, and Lyman. Founding core member and current Artistic Director Risher Reddick directs, and infuses the play with a   comfortable, casual manner, making every scene feel like we just happened into the middle of someone's conversation. Berger-Jones (Harry) and Hayes (Joan) are totally in sync as the upwardly mobile professional couple whose every discussion is an excuse for a debate. She is a type A who bemoans the inept interns she employs and he goads her at every turn, coming to the defense of an unpaid "child" unable to meet the stringent expectations of his wife. However, they seem content in their upscale, contemporary black and white surroundings with their smart phones and goblets of wine.

At the opposite end of the economic spectrum (and Cristina Todesco's elongated set), Joan's brother Beane exists in a minimalist room with little furniture (a lawn chair, a floor lamp with a torn shade, and an old milk can cum end table) and few personal possessions. When we meet him, he is standing motionless in his dimly lit room, listening to a series of disturbing sounds which eventually drive him to curl up on the floor in a fetal position. This is our first clue that Beane marches to a different drummer. When he visits Joan and Harry, his expressionless face and pattern of limited speech offer a stark contrast between the siblings, but they have an underlying affection for each other. This scene lays the foundation for Beane's character and sets up the disparity evident in his personality at his next meeting with Joan for lunch at a café. What transpires in the meantime is Beane's first encounter with Molly when she breaks into his home, taking all of his belongings and, ultimately, stealing his heart.    

Beane's transformation is the focal point of the play and Kuttner is up to the task, going from the hangdog affect of one who sleepwalks through life, to an animated and excitable man fully engaged with everyone and everything that he encounters. "I'm brand new!" he exclaims to Harry and Joan, as if that explains his 180 degree turnaround. Whether or not they understand the change in Beane, the couple finds his attitude infectious and begins to appreciate each other anew. The scene in which they decide to play hooky (to stay home for some nookie) and call their respective workplaces is played deliciously by Hays and Berger-Jones.

Molly is also irrevocably altered as she and Beane become intimately acquainted and discover that, despite their obvious differences, they are truly soul mates. He sees the world through a wider lens with Molly in his life and finds himself wanting to take risks he has always avoided. Lyman starts out like gangbusters as the tough, take charge burglar, but is equally adept when Molly finds herself falling for Beane and softens into a tender relationship with him. These two former loners connect on a cellular level; they learn who they are by coming together and Kuttner and Lyman are totally convincing in their bond.

Reddick prescribes a jaunty pace for the ten scenes which make up Love Song, and has composer/sound designer Peter Bayne's interesting music fill the air during scene changes. Aided by sound and light effects, Todesco is able to make Beane's room feel closed in and Harry and Joan's space feel open and airy. Costume designer Katherine O'Neill dresses Joan in a variety of stylish outfits and Beane in a dark parka and nondescript uniform, devoid of personality. Kolvenbach writes of possibilities, and this design team constructs a playground for his images to take shape.

The playwright has a gift for creating characters who appear quirky or weird at first, but who later turn out to be salt of the earth types who we're glad we got to know. When they discover their shortcomings and start to figure out how to get what they want out of life, we are right there with them, thanks to the talents of the Orfeo Group cast and crew.  Their virtuoso performances make Love Song sing, and it's a splendid tune.

 

Photo credit: Mark S. Howard (Gabriel Kuttner, Liz Hayes, Daniel Berger-Jones)