How much do we really know about our parents? We may get a family legend of how they met or a story about their wedding, but how many secrets do they keep or not even think to share? Integral parts of their characters can be unknown unless we dig.
When the playwright Robert Schenkkan found his parents’ letters from World War II, he began to learn much more about them and their formative time together. He shares that experience in “Bob & Jean: A Love Story” at Sag Harbor’s Bay Street Theater, and allows us to get to know them too.
Bob is 25 and shipping out to the South Pacific. Jean is 22 and in a U.S.O. tour of “Arsenic and Old Lace.” Their letters to each other cross oceans and the continental United States. We see how they fall in love, the hardships of corresponding by writing alone, and we get a glimpse into what feels like a forgotten world before technology took over.
The cast of only three has Jake Bentley Young as Bob, Mary Mattison as Jean, and Scott Wentworth as the narrator, a stand-in for the author who guides the audience throughout the play, giving context between the letters. The play lives or dies with the performances of Mr. Young and Ms. Mattison, and while I was a tad skeptical at first, the more those two took up the stage, the more I was won over. They have such a fun energy together. It feels as if you’re watching two people fall in love while also navigating the real-life difficulties of a relationship by mail.
One strength of the writing is how historical events are woven through the letters, giving the audience an approximation of time passed but also a sense of how long the two have been apart. The play successfully captures the feel of another era, almost like a musical from the mid to late 1940s, like “On the Town” or “South Pacific.” There is a certain cute schmaltziness paired with more contemporary pacing. And there is a lot of heart.
My initial skepticism was also eased the more we got to know the narrator by way of his interactions with Bob and Jean. In a way, the author gets to speak with his parents again through this onstage avatar, exemplifying the natural curiosity we all have about our parents and getting the opportunity to ask questions he never could.
As a result, all three performances feel very personal. When the two leads interact with the narrator it feels as though they age decades in milliseconds to speak to their future son. In these moments, Mr. Wentworth gets across an uneasy, burning need to know. It can be uncomfortable to dig through your parents’ history, but after they’re gone it’s one of the only pieces of them left.
After seeing a couple of plays recently that were cynical, with arguing couples, this felt like dessert. “Bob & Jean: A Love Story” is feel-good in a way that so many other plays are not, and at a time that feels cynical and harsh, having something a little sweeter is a nice reprieve.
Matt August directs, with scenic design by Stephen Gifford, costume design by Kish Finnegan, lighting design by Mike Billings, and original music and sound design by John Gromada. Kelsy Durkin is the production stage manager.
“Bob & Jean: A Love Story” runs until June 15 on Sundays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays at 7 p.m., Fridays and Saturdays at 8, with 2 p.m. matinees on Wednesday and both remaining Sundays. Tickets range from $49.99 to $164.99.
