Centerstage Theatre is abuzz with a new, sharp take on the modern romantic comedy: “Let There Be Love,” by up and coming New York playwright Mrinalini Kamath.
“Let There Be Love” takes place in the here and now, and explores timeless concepts such as romance, deception, fame, and family through a uniquely 2020 lens. A mixed media story told through live performance and quick, TED-Talk-esque videos, the story asks us to choose our weapons in the battlefield of love. Do we want technology on our side? Do we eschew screens for a completely personal approach? Does one necessarily negate the other? Do we crave intimacy and connection, or fear it — or maybe both? And how far are we willing to go to meet The One?
“Let There Be Love” features a dynamic, focused cast and a diverse production team. Sonia Alexis leads the cast as Deedee, an intelligent, successful, (and suddenly nationally recognized), businesswoman who runs her own matchmaking agency, built on a life story that seems too romantic to be true. Alexis recently moved to Federal Way from Bellingham, and this is her first production at Centerstage.
Timothy Duval plays her son, Eric, a young man wrestling with his own sense of self and his boundaries, searching for a way to quantify his intuition. Duval was most recently seen in the critically acclaimed “The Hound of the Baskervilles” at Centerstage. Justine Davis, a prolific actor in the Seattle area whose credits span the globe, plays Sylvia, an art gallery owner longing for the connection her parents had, and pinning her hopes on Deedee’s agency.
Pratik Shah is new to Centerstage and has performed with the award-winning Pratidhwani in Seattle. Shah plays Rajesh, an evolutionary psychologist, statistician, and computer programmer who loves using algorithms to solve problems, and maybe even people. Completing the cast are Ted Gentry as The Man with a Baseball Cap, and Rebecca Maiten as Jess, a talk show host. Gentry holds a degree in theatre but took a break to pursue a career in firefighting. This is his first professional production since retiring from South King Fire and Rescue in late 2019. Maiten has appeared both at Centerstage and around the Puget Sound area in plays, musicals and operettas.
About the show
Centerstage Theatre is honored to help bring to life this beautiful, funny and generous script. “Let There Be Love” has been workshopped across the country, from NYC to Seattle. It received a coveted spot in the University of Washington’s Mellon Grant lineup in 2018, where it was workshopped by professionals and performed in play readings by UW acting majors. It is fitting and exciting to have this show’s first fully staged production right next door to where so much of its development occurred. The dialogue is snappy and highly entertaining, and the twists and upended tropes are delightful.
The show opens Friday, Jan. 31 and runs through Sunday, Feb. 23. Shows will take place on the following dates and times: Friday, Jan. 31 at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, Feb. 1 at 7:30 p.m.; Sunday, Feb. 2 at 2 p.m.; Friday, Feb. 7 at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, Feb. 8 at 7:30 p.m.; Sunday, Feb. 9 at 2 p.m.; Friday, Feb. 14.at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, Feb. 15 at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.; Sunday, Feb. 16 at 2 p.m.; Friday, Feb. 21 at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, Feb. 22 at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.; Sunday, Feb. 23 at 2 p.m.
For more information on “Let There Be Love,” call the office at 253-661-1444, or email Artistic Director Trista Duval at Trista@CenterstageTheatre.com.
