If you are interested in a play about a strange love affair then run don’t walk to Jamaica Moon Productions & The Gloria Gifford Conservatory’ production of Sam Shepard’s “Fool for Love” at T.U. Studios in the NoHo Arts District running through June 23.
The story of two lovers holed-up in a motel room on the edge of the Mojave Desert while trying to make sense of their relationship works on just about every level.
But what this play does not forget is the sadness and misery in-between the joy and pure happiness of true love. Shepard’s characteristic down-to-earth characters and setting populate this odd four-character study like chess pieces on a glass board.
May and Eddie seem cursed from the first moment of the play, one wrapped around the other’s legs not wanting to let go, but soon having to.
Shepard’s words, never easy, are expertly mined here by director Gifford as the two protagonists duel to an almost uneasy draw that once more offers-up little more than pain, suffering and a powerful secret.
To Shepard, love is a fool’s game that rarely gives a sucker a second chance. Gifford does not get in the way of the language, acting or action, but rather lets the playwright and the actors tell the story.
Zach Kilian (Martin) is innocence and naivete personified. Robert May (The Old Man) gives a powerful and turbulent turn.
Chad Doreck (Eddie) is natural and riveting. His charm and confidence are equaled only by his spontaneity and passion. This is a role he was born for, and does not disappoint.
Lauren Plaxco (May) simply steals the show with a brutal candor and honesty bordering on fearlessness. This is one of the best performances, male or female, on the boards in Los Angeles that this critic has seen this year.
Ripping the roof off this North Hollywood institution, Plaxco is genuine and authentic in leaving little behind on stage but her broken dreams and foolish love. Jamaica Moon Productions and The Gloria Gifford Conservatory should be given a world of credit for choosing a play as daunting as this one.
There are no shortcuts or detours here. Just a bullet to the heart complete with the train whistle of the past and the empty highways and byways of the present.
Let’s hope this fool resonates into the theatrical alleyways and corridors of the future.
SHOWTIMES:
Saturdays at 8 p.m. Sundays at 7:30pm ADMISSION: $25. Student and Seniors: $18. RESERVATIONS: (310) 366-5505. WHERE: T.U. Studios, 10943 Camarillo Street, North Hollywood, CA 91602
