SJ Rep's "The Last Romance"

DH and I saw "The Last Romance" at the San Jose Rep last night.  Having a conflict with kids' social calendar forced us to reschedule our usual preview night tickets.

The show's plot about an older couple (Ralph and Carol) and their romantic liaison later in life was an interesting counterpoint to last month's "Spring Awakening" (link to my post here).  This show was less exuberant, of course, but the romance was sweet.  Interesting to consider the added complications of trying to get together in old age.  In youth, we are eager to cut all our bonds, and willing to throw all other obligations out of the way.  No obstacle seems too high to overcome.

Older couples have families they can't ignore, and the future holds more restrictions as health or wealth may peter out, as opposed to the limitless possibilities that the future may hold for a teen.

Joshua Jeremiah sang the operatic bits with full voice and sweet face.  And Sharon Lockwood as "Rose" (pictured at right below), channeled DH's late mother, resembling her with the white forelock and East Coast accent.

Will Marchetti and  Kitty Winn played the main couple beautifully, enabling us to feel their hopes and fears.  One older gentleman in the front row, enjoying the dialog with an electronic booster of some kind, exclaimed loudly in response to many of the clever repartee.  The audience, whose median age jumped a generation from last month's teen anthem show, gave them a standing ovation at the end.  It may have taken many of them a tad longer to get up on their feet though.  The link to the San Jose Rep scrapbook is here.

One repeated gag in the play was Ralph and his sister, Rose, each trying to guess Carol's age.  She was not flattered by their responses.  This reminded me of a time I got in trouble with my paternal grandmother, Nana.

I was young, maybe 9 years old?  As a kid, I was no judge of age in grown-ups, they were ALL "old" as far as I was concerned. I somehow was trapped in the kitchen with my somewhat vain Nana asking me point blank, "How old do I look, honey?"   Being a logical child, I knew at the time that my older brothers were in their twenties, and my parents must have been at least in their twenties when they were born, since my mother was a teacher and had finished college.  Add another score years to that for my father's mother, as I also knew he was one of her younger children, and the answer I told Nana was "70".  Purely mathematical, just like my youngest son would have calculated it.  Boy, was my Nana mad at me for that!  I remember being shushed and bodily removed from the kitchen, though I also had the feeling the other adults in the room had been amused.  When my mother asked me where I got the number from, I explained my logic to her.  She just smiled.