A clever piece of storytelling that’s often silly, sometimes tender and surprisingly heart-breaking, says Megan Amato.
★★★★
‘Have I just unwittingly walked into a introvert’s nightmare?’ were my first thoughts when I walked into the venue and saw that I might be in for a more interactive show than I had anticipated at 9:20 pm.
Despite my apprehension, I was soon engrossed in the story of a bar where the only entrance requirement is that you must be in love. The scene opened with our protagonists Ludus and Pragma, a young couple on the threshold of love – but it’s not Ludus’s first time visiting.
We are then introduced to the full cast: Eros, the sultry bartender and voice of reason; Mania & Fisima, eccentric lovers sharing one body – literally; Cindy a.k.a. Cinderella, the tightly wound princess in denial of Prince Charming’s long-running affair with bar owner, Love; Agape, a freckly faced nine-year-old being taught nonsense under Cindy’s tutelage; Storge & Philia, impuslive new lovers who can barely keep their tongue out of each other’s mouths; Liriope, the asexual scientist researching love who cannot keep a secret; and Harmonia, Love Concordia’s impetuous singer and ex-girlfriend of Ludus.
The interconnections between each relationship are complicated and messy – possibly because everyone seems to live in the bar. There is a lot of cheating involved – dramatically vocalised behind a closed door – with characters who are easily swayed by their desires.
But what could we expect from a bar that preaches love when Love themself is having an affair?
Despite the fun and silliness during the first half, there were some stand-out moments of acting and every single cast member showed beautiful moments of vulnerability.
Watching the walls of Valeria Napoli’s Cindy crack as her already faulty emotional regulation breaks down was a breath-taking experience. Olivia Amicangioli’s Harmonia hurt a lot of people to get what she wanted but her shaky moments were truly heart rendering.
Ariana Pérez as Pragma was believably naïve, and I felt a lot of sympathy for her character who was gaslit and abandoned.
A surprising performance was from Marjorie Murillo as Agape, transforming from a clueless girl to an old haggard woman – how time moves inside this bar is unclear.
When her wizened character breaks down that she is sick of being in love with Love, I felt her wail to my very bones. It was hard to find a dry eye during her phenomenal performance.
My one critique was that, by the end, the character’s hadn’t learned anything despite the visible – in one case, a visibly rounded belly – consequences.
Their regret felt temporary despite the harm they caused each other, emphasised by Liriope stating that integral to polyamory is the consent of all involved.
A clever piece of storytelling that’s often silly, sometimes tender and surprisingly heart-breaking. Love’s Concordia Bar is definitely worth a watch, but I suggest going in a group to truly enjoy the dance and song numbers in this sexy performance.
C ARTS | C venues | C aquila – studio
Aug 4-11, 13-25.
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