[NoHo Arts District, CA] – A NoHo Arts theatre review of Playwrights’ Arena and The Victory Theatre Center’s Luca & Uri, directed by Jon Lawrence Rivera, produced by Maria Gobetti and Elmirah Rahim, February 13-March 15.
How many of us have relived our biggest relationships, our lost loves, our wasted moments, wishing we had said more, done more, shown more?
Luca & Uri is a story of love told through flashbacks of pivotal moments, both large and small, between two men who love each other so deeply they get a little lost because of it.
The play unfolds like a poem. A remembrance told line after line and kiss after kiss. Full of passion, Luca and Uri meet one night at a party and instantly connect. We have all met people where the spark is undeniable, and if we are lucky, they feel the same. Aren’t those the memories we return to the most? Even if they amount to nothing. Even if they end in disaster or pain. The older I get, the more I realize it is those moments where we feel the most alive, the most a part of this universe and something greater than ourselves. And that is the hope of Luca and Uri.
What begins as desire becomes their greatest of loves and then, inevitably, ends in sadness and regret. But everything in between is incandescent, glorious, and on the stage of The Victory Theatre Center, absolutely riveting. We know the ending almost as soon as the play begins, and yet we must know why. If these two gorgeous, totally compatible people, seemingly made for each other, can’t get to their happy ever after, then who can?
I particularly loved how the story is told, jumping through time, punctuated by emotions, as if they were casting their minds back and remembering things quite differently from each other, as humans always do.
The performances are utterly riveting. Each character beautifully realized, perfectly formed, wonderfully played. Believable, lovable, unmissable.
It is a love story told as a disjointed historical record but with the tenderest of motivations. Moving around in their timelines gives us the most intimate experience. Knowing what will be, we can focus on those moments that lead to it. The enormous image of a full blue moon is ever present. A symbolic and poignant memory of their first meeting. Both outside a party, where they would much rather be, looking at the moon.
The Victory Theatre Center has always been a warmly creative space, full of the very best kind of encouragement and support. It is here that so many brilliant plays have been born and continue to do so in Luca & Uri.
Tickets:
https://ci.ovationtix.com/35020/production/1262804
Where:
The Victory Theatre Center
3324 W Victory Blvd, Burbank.
When:
February 13-March 15
Fridays and Saturdays @ 8 PM
Sundays @ 4 PM
The Luca & Uri Team
Director: Jon Lawrence Rivera
Co-Produced by: Playwrights’ Arena and Victory Theatre Center
Producers: Elmira Rahim (Playwrights’ Arena) and Maria Gobetti (Victory Theatre Center)
Starring: Kurt Kanazawa and Roland Ruiz
Scenic Designer: Christopher Murillo
Lighting Designer: Azra King-Abadi
Sound Designer: Jesse Mandapat
Costume Designer: Mylette Nora
Dramaturg: Arnab Banerji
Press Representative: Kiyomi Emi
Stage Manager: Letitia Chang