Have you ever written letters? I used to, until very recently, even when they have gone out of fashion. On student exchange, while everyone else used to post photographs on fb, I used to send postcards to loved ones. I tried writing letters even after that, but people don't revert any more. So "Love Letters" represents a welcome departure in this age of Facebook and Whatsapp. What else can compare with the romance of waiting for the letter of your loved one in this modern age?
On 21st Feb, I went to see Love Letters, an epistolary play written by A.R. Gurney, and nominated for Pulitzer Prize in 1988. In the Indian theater circles, it's considered a classic and is being played for more than 20 years now by Rage Productions.
The play features Rajit Kapoor (of Byomkesh Bakshi fame) as Andrew Makepeace Ladd III, and Shernaz Patel (Guzaarish and Black) as Melissa. Theater aficianados would remember "Tumhari Amrita", a play starring Faroukh Sheikh and Shabana Azmi which stopped running after the death of Faroukh Sheikh. Tumhari Amrita was inspired by Love Letters. While in the former, the actors read the letters, here, the letters are memorized and performed.
Andrew and Melissa become friends at the age of six and their friendship lasts for more than 50 years. In this period, they exchange letters and share their experiences where they discuss everything down to the smallest detail - parents, school, college, love, sex, career, marital discord, divorce, kids etc. Both are born in rich families and lead a privileged life. But money doesn't bring happiness and both yearn for a meaningful romantic relationship all their lives. With time, their lives drift apart, but the relationship gets deeper. Many letters are lengthy, some end in a single line. As the play progresses, we feel their joys and sorrows, melancholy and laughter, and live through their victories and defeats.
The only let down was the period of their childhood where Rajit Kapoor's acting seemed a bit over the top. Shernaz Patel, however, was flawless throughout and steals the show as we live her journey from a carefree girl to a rebellious teenager to a desperate alcoholic middle aged woman.
The play uses props in a very innovative way. The boxes on which the actors sit are painted in different colours. As their life goes through different phases, the actors change the face of the box having a different colour depicting different emotions. Mostly, especially in the second half, the colour is black.
I've been friends with some girls for more than 20 years now and am still in regular touch with a few. It reminded me of the silly things we used to talk about when we were kids and how the conversations have changed over the years. At some level, I could connect with the play, which I'm sure everyone would. In the crowd, I could see plenty of old people heartily enjoying the jokes and feeling nostalgic. In these lifetime of letters, many audience were reliving their own lives. Perhaps, that is the reason for this play's longevity.
