Storytelling At Its Best

Dear Jack, Dear Louise – Northlight Theatre

Handwritten letters. Does anyone remember these blasts from the past? Nowadays, we read a person’s thoughts in Twitter comments, short texts or possibly email missives—all electronically produced. But Goethe once wrote that handwritten letters are among the most significant memorial a person can leave behind them. For Ken Ludwig, the much-acclaimed prolific playwright of such popular comedies as “Lend Me a Tenor,” “Moon Over Buffalo,” and the George Gershwin musical “Crazy For You,” this sentiment is a  perfect description of his latest comic drama. It’s storytelling at its best, all told through the hundreds of imagined letters written by his parents, Jack and Louise Ludwig. And the result is a warm, very funny and often gripping true life story that’s also a heartfelt tribute to two wonderful, real life people.

This two-hander could have easily become a static production, staged with the actors standing at two podiums, much like A. R. Gurney’s beautiful play, “Love Letters.” But Northlight’s production is thoughtfully shaped and staged with economy and creative imagination by talented Director Jessica Fisch, whose production of “Athena” was a recent hit at Writers Theatre. She’s brought this heartwarming love story to life in the most inventive manner. Here, the past isn’t a dusty and old-fashioned piece of nostalgia; it’s a place filled with real people who actually lived and have a story to tell. The result is a very human, empathetic tale that immediately draws us in and never lets go until the end.

 Ludwig’s memorial to his parents came about in an unusual way. His grandparents, Jack and Louise’s parents, became lifelong friends when they met at Ellis Island, both having immigrated from the old country. Later, during a chance meeting, they each shared photos of their grownup children and decided that they really should meet each other. The two couples exchanged addresses and, at their urging, Jack began their correspondence when he was drafted into the Army during WWII. Louise was intrigued and she immediately wrote back. Although the two young people never met in person for many years, they began a relationship that began as pen pals and eventually evolved into something much more meaningful.

Jack was an Army Captain and a doctor, stationed in Medford, Oregon; Louise was a dancer and an aspiring actress in New York City. He was a little reticent and pretty modest about his accomplishments in life. She was spunky and spirited, passionately driven to achieve her dreams as a Broadway star. Although living miles apart on opposite sides of the country, through their volumes of letters, we watch their friendly correspondence develop and blossom into love.

What the audience will find even more fascinating about this play is that, while these letters come across as dialogue, often cut together so we’re not just hearing monologues between the two young adults, the words are pure fiction. Ludwig confesses that he never read the actual letters, because his mother destroyed them for some reason before her death. So the epistolary play that we are experiencing is entirely fabricated through Ludwig’s brilliant creativity. These love letters are the words and sentiments that the playwright imagines might’ve been exchanged between his parents—and the sentences and sentiments ring so true. The highs and lows of their individual lives unfold in real time within each letter. Hundreds of auditions finally allow Louise to live in her dream as the star of a National Broadway Tour. Jack learns that, following the horrific attack on Pearl Harbor, he’s to be deployed to San Antonio for combat training, and then on to Europe, as a doctor of combat casualties. It seems as if the War is determined to keep these two star-crossed lovers from ever meeting in person, but in the play’s final, heartwarming scene, love finally conquers all.

Both actors in this two-hander are making their debut at Northlight Theatre in this production. Sarah Price, who has dazzled audiences in such productions as “The Wolves,” at the Goodman, and “Earthquakes in London,” at Steep Theatre, is brilliant as Louise. She brings to mind actress/comedian Sarah Silverman in the dry delivery of her comic, witty repartee. But Ms Price can also bring tears to our eyes as loneliness and uncertainty haunts her character, wondering if her many unanswered letters to Jack means that he’s missing in action, or worse. Casey Hoekstra, a versatile actor of many talents, who’s work has been enjoyed at Chicago Shakespeare, Writers Theatre, Drury Lane, as well as other theatres around the country, is simply superb as Jack. He brings total honesty to this role, while creating a likable, vulnerable, real-life character who grabs at our heartstrings and makes us truly care about him. Together these two actors share a chemistry that’s so believable that audiences will forget they’re not watching Mr. Ludwig’s actual parents relating their story.

In addition to Jessica Fisch’s expert direction, Yeaji Kim’s expressionistic scenic design establishes stage left as Louise’s Broadway boarding house and stage right as Jack’s domain, even though the boundaries often blur. But the highlight is the remarkable backdrop she’s created that is a deluge of hundreds of letters that flow down onto the stage, an accumulate like piles of leaves. It’s a perfect metaphor for this play. The incredibly talented costumer designer Izumi Inaba has clothed her two actors in an array of period pieces that both evoke the military, the 1940’s, and add color and style to these two characters. Jackie Fox lights the stage and her actors with depth, texture and focus, while Eric Backus’ intricate sound design paints this production with the music of the era mixed with the shattering bombardments of the War.

This is a not-to-be-missed production. Not only does this comic drama mark another hit for talented playwright Ken Ludwig, it will take audiences out of their own troubles and concerns and focus on a heartwarming, personal history. It’s a story that’s never schmaltzy or dated, because its characters are real people and their story is filled with enough humor to balance the dramatic moments. The story both demonstrates the power of the written word and how love can ultimately conquer all. It radiates with affection and allegiance, positivity and playfulness, and is an example of how great storytelling can transform us. The letters that Ludwig has imagined are, indeed, a loving memorial to two incredible people.              

Highly Recommended

Reviewed by Colin Douglas

Presented July 7-August 7 by Northlight Theatre at the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts, 9501 Skokie Blvd., Skokie, IL.

Tickets are available in person at the theatre box office, by calling 847-673-6300, or by going to www.northlight.org.

Additional information about this and other area productions can be found by visiting www.theatreinchicago.com.