BATH — Every year since 1993, Studio Theatre of Bath has staged “ Love Letters” on Valentine’s Day. The company will continue that tradition this year.

The production will revive for one night only, with the curtain rising at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 14 in the Curtis Room of the Chocolate Church Arts Center, 804 Washington St.

“The cast of this charming staged reading has always been two of Bath’s favorites, Thom Watson and Suzanne Rankin, both of whom have been involved with theater in Bath since 1979,” Wayne Otto, who has acted in and directed past Studio Theatre of bath productions, wrote in a release about the show. “Watson may be best remembered as the state representative for the area until 2010. In addition to being a terrific actress, Rankin is a renowned singer and appears frequently in the well-loved group, ‘Sentimental Journey.’”

“‘Love Letters’ is a truly unique and imaginative theater piece, which is ideally suited for lovers at Valentine’s Day,” Otto wrote. “There are only two characters, Andrew Makepeace Ladd III and Melissa Gardner, whose story of romance is told in the reading of letters written over a period of 50 years.

“Their relationship begins with birthday party thankyou notes and summer camp postcards. Later they become romantically attached and continue to exchange notes throughout boarding school and college — where Andy excels at Yale and law school and Melissa flunks out of a series of ‘good’ schools.

“The story follows Melissa and Andy through war, success, failure and adulthood — and all the good and bad that comes with it. It is simplistically staged but stays true to the complexities of any relationship.

“Written by A.R. Gurney, ‘Love Letters’ is an evocative, touching and frequently funny play in which what is implied is as revealing and meaningful as what is actually written down.”

Tickets will be available at the door only on a “pay what you can” basis, with a suggested donation of $10. Proceeds benefit the Studio Theatre of Bath, a nonprofit community theater that “believes that as a performance-based company, the core of our artistic process is the passion, collaboration and education of its artists.”

For more information, call 442- 8455 or visit studiotheatreofbath.com.


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