Fool for Love

Reviewed by Holly Bartges

A new production company in Boulder, Chasm View Productions, claims to provide a framework to launch, raw, gritty, mind-expanding art. To begin their journey into the world of theatre, they chose their first production as Sam Shepard’s 1982 Obie award-winning play Fool for Love.

(Pictured left to right) Bruce Wilson (as The Old Man), Benjamin Summers (as Martin), Steven Scot Bono (as Eddie), and Mary-Laurence Bevington (as May) in Chasm View Production's inaugural production of Fool for Love.

Fool For Love confines its action in a cheap hotel room in the Mojave Desert, where May (Mary-Laurence Bevington) has taken refuge. Curled up on the floor at the end of the bed her long blond hair hiding her face, May has been confronted by an on-again, off-again boyfriend, Eddie (Steven Scot Bono) of 13 years. Yelling, screaming, waving his arms, he lets her know he has traveled over 2,000 miles to track her down. A rough, brutal cowboy-type, Eddie is determined she isn’t getting away from him again. In spite of their tumultuous relationship, it is clear a strong bond ties them. She’s had enough of being left along in a metal trailer, has made her break for a new life, and there he is.

An Old Man (Bruce Wilson) sits silently in a rocking chair on the porch observing their interaction. The Old Man is their father; both have conjured up for comfort, security, and strength. Yes, their father. After they were involved, they discover they are half brother and sister. Although the relationship is incestuous, the connection between the two of them keeps them glued. They can’t live with each other. They can’t live without each other.

May getting ready for a date to go to a movie with Martin (Benjamin Summers) wants desperately for Eddie to disappear. His rough, tumble cowboy demeanor is certain to scare off the simple, nice man. Eddie knows something doesn’t fit well with May since she calls Martin a man instead of a guy.

Touted as one of Shepard’s most beautiful plays, this production becomes more irritating than anything.

For starters, it would behoove the costume designer, Rhianna Gray, to rethink Eddie’s cowboy outfit. Having lived in the horse world for several years, no self-respecting cowboy would wear baggy jeans, attach spurs to their belt, or strap them around their jeans instead of their boots. To a bronc rider, that could spell disaster. Bono’s New York accent belies his believability as a cowboy. It wouldn’t hurt for the company to find someone who could give him a lesson in handling a rope, much less throwing one.

Young, inexperienced actors frequently give themselves away with the notion that the wider they flail their arms and scream and yell, the deeper the emotion wanting to be projected. In reality, the opposite is true. It is always astonishing to me how some actors forget they have a natural use of their arms once they get on stage. Once on the boards, the arms become stiff appendages they don’t know how to move. Both Bono and Bevington struggled with this. In the heat of emotion, Bevington’s face reflected torment, attraction and confusion. Her arms said, “What do I do now?”

As the innocent, naïve Martin, who finds himself caught in the middle, thinking he’s going to a movie with a pretty girl, for a nice night out, Benjamin Summers engulfs his part, with enchanting humor. He develops delicious empathy for his muddled involvement with these childish, squabbling, wanting to control, mismatched lovers.

Although the lighting changes when The Old Man comes to life, it could be even more developed for a dramatic effect when the two siblings conjure up his buffered support.

For a play that recognizes and explores the dark side of love with its twists and turns, compulsion and expulsion, Chasm View Productions might have bitten off more than they could chew for their first play.Directed by Cathy Henderson, the actors appear to get lost in their sense of direction, either not knowing where they are suppose to be or not sure where to move, or even if to move. The actors show their vulnerability while the characters have little room to develop. Inconsistencies and awkwardness of the actors block the view of the characters, diluting empathy, the power of their love, and consequently, the power of the play.