The art of letter writing has certainly fallen by the wayside in popular culture; immediacy is now the name of the game. Long gone are the days of anxiously waiting by the post box for the mailman to deliver the next note from your love in the next town over. That nostalgia, the good and the bad, is vividly captured in A.R. Gurney’s Love Letters. This staged-reading style performance embodies Gurney’s intent for the play, but allows the focus to be on the stunning writing itself.

Spanning five decades, Love Letters tracks the friendship of Melisa and Andrew purely through their written correspondence. Melissa hates writing letters, even when she’s younger she’d far rather paint or draw the things that make her happy to show to her friend and schoolmate Andrew. Andy, on the other hand, adores writing letters, especially to Melissa. He’s been besotted with her since they were little, and the two go through very interesting periods of being in and out of love. Through boarding schools, university, life abroad, military service, and emotional hardships, Melissa and Andy form a lifelong bond through their writings to one another.

It’s rare to find an epistolary play; generally theatre relies on the tension provided by the dialogue between the characters and gives us a slice-of-life perspective on a moment in the lives of these characters. However, with this format, we’re able to cover such a large portion of their lives without any physical action from the performers themselves. While the letters themselves are beautifully composed, each with a distinct voice and personality of the character, what’s equally as interesting is the moments between letters. There are whole years which go by with one person or the other only sending cursory greetings at Christmas or Birthdays with nothing else of substance in between. In these moments where one party is reaching out while the other remains silent creates a palpable discomfort, particularly since the parties are sitting side by side. Yet it communicates the anxiety and uncertainty which those silences bring as you await the next missive from your friend.

The staging of Love Letters was beautifully emblematic of the two writers. Melissa’s desk is paint covered, with art implements in a funky cup. Andy’s is a proper writing desk with a wood pen box and crystal ash tray. Yet even more symbolic of their personalities are the pieces of paper strung from the birdcage centre stage. Melissa’s are pieces of art, post cards, and other visually appealing pieces of paper. Andy has calendars and schedules; very much like his organized and planned out life. Before the characters even enter the stage, we have some idea of who they are and what their letters are going to be like.

David Agro and Deborah Shaw bring their undeniable chemistry to Love Letters, despite the fact that they don’t interact with one another throughout the play. Agro gives Andy a reserved yet passionate air; his personality shines through his letters and Agro embodies it fully. Shaw makes the most amazing faces as Andy regales Melissa about his life, particularly his female conquests. Her Melissa is beautifully tragic; a portrait of an artist constantly at war with herself and the demons which haunt her from her childhood. Shaw gives Melissa a vivacity which makes you know this lady is the life of any party. In the final moments, they both deliver heartbreaking performances, as the finality of their relationship is finally and irrevocably realized.

Love Letters is about a great deal more than love: it’s about friendship, about the written word, and how much those words carry us through the toughest times of our lives. Grab a pen, write a postcard to a friend, and who knows, maybe you’ll start a correspondence that’ll last a lifetime.

Love Letters runs at the Red Sandcastle Theatre until February 16. For more information and tickets, visit: https://zippysaidproductions.com

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Cover Photo: Deborah Shaw and David Agro. Photo by Neil Gibb.

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