FringeNYC 2013: I (honestly) Love You

Review by Jo Ann Rosen · August 16, 2013

Damon Lockwood has a smart little comedy in I (honestly) Love You. The dialog snaps, the plot moves crisply, and there are enough inventive moments to keep the play unpredictable and funny. Lockwood is playwright, director, actor and producer - a set-up that often proves disappointing. However, in this case, Lockwood manages to see the whole picture while tending to all the important details that make this an entertaining 50 minutes. That includes an eye for talent. His cast is wonderful.

The play is fairly straight forward. A young woman, Belle, picks up her complicated latte order at a Starbucks-like cafe. A young man, Lloyd, believes it to be his. They argue, realize they are attracted to one another, then set a date to go out. When each tells a friend, Aaron and Alicia, they admit their tentativeness, because each has discovered that the other suffers from the same truth-telling disease – an affliction that has not done much for either of them among the opposite sex. Aaron and Alicia are introduced, and also become a couple. The two pairs illustrate the difference between truth-tellers and courteous … liars. We follow the original couple as they hook up, meet parents and friends, breakup, and reunite. Lockwood manages this familiar material in fresh and amusing ways, interjecting playful elements to keep the show lively.

For instance, Lloyd and Aaron, artfully played by Paul Goddard and Lockwood, are shooting pool when Lloyd relates his encounter with Belle, an engaging Ms. George Gayler. Gayler and Talei Howell-Price, who shines in multiple roles, are off in the shadows subtly vocalizing the sound effects of the balls ricocheting off the sides of the pool table. This is unexpected and funny. But Lockwood knows that he must not overdo a good thing. Instead, he reaches for other ways to tell his story and surprise his audience simultaneously. At one point, six of the characters played by the four actors are on stage at one time - a brief and unexpected bit of slapstick. On occasion, the actors break the fourth wall to fine effect. I usually don’t care for audience participation, but Lockwood employs it skillfully here. The actors are a talented bunch, and work well as an ensemble.

Cherie Hewson gets a resounding round of applause for her set, props and costumes. For the set, three large screens sprawl across the stage representing the months May, June and July. On certain days of the months are written: ‘hook up’, ‘meet parents’, ‘catch up with friends’ – in other words, the scenes we are about to see. Hewson shows her wit when she incorporates the same printed fabric as an evening gown, a bed sheet, a table cloth, a priest’s mitered hat, a kite, and a patch pocket. She also uses the cast as amusing props, such as the counter at the café and a hat rack - all adding to humor.

I (honestly) Love You is an entertaining show. It showcases lively talent. Catch it if you can.