Valentine’s Day is just around the corner and the Beaufort Theatre Company has a special treat for you and yours with the play Love Letters on Tuesday, February 12 at 6:30 p.m. When A.R. Gurney wrote “Love Letters,” he created so much more than a story about a collection of letters exchanged between lifelong friends. Over 23 years after its debut performance, his Pulitzer Prize-nominated play is still connecting with audiences all over the world as the two characters in his play share their hopes and ambitions, dreams and disappointments, and victories and defeats throughout their separated but shared lives.
Melissa Gardner and Andrew Makepeace Ladd, III, grew up together in upper-class comfort in the Northeast region of the country, always friends but never boyfriend-girlfriend. It is not until the end that they understand how their gifts of love for each other had profoundly affected them both. On stage, Melissa and Andy read their exchanged letters written over their 50-year relationship, beginning in the second grade when Andy sends Melissa a valentine and progressing through boarding schools, colleges, romances, marriages, and into late adulthood.
Melissa, portrayed by Andrea Drake, is the irreverent “wild child” who struggles against the constraints of polite society from an early age. Andrew, played by Larry Hill, is the disciplined and ambitious Andy, who excels in law school, joins the Navy, marries, enters politics and ends his career as a member of the U.S. Senate.
“Love Letters” is a real valentine of a play that appeals to men and women alike with laugh-out-loud lines and an ending that will squeeze tears out of all but the stoniest hearts. So come celebrate Valentine’s Day with your significant other at USCB Center for the Arts on Tuesday night, Feb. 12, for a “Sweets for the Sweet” reception at 6 p.m. and the show at 6:30 p.m.
All tickets are $15 in advance and at the door. Call the Box Office at 843-521-4145 for more information.
