Review: How I Became The Love of Your Life (Fort Worth Fringe) - TheaterJones
Charles Jackson Jr., who both wrote and directed this piece, charms in his one-man love letter to women in his life, past and present. As he dresses for his wedding and struggles with writing his vows, he details his romantic trials and tribulations growing up. (Disclaimer: this reviewer was briefly one of Jackson’s loves, as I was pulled from the audience to portray his wife for the ceremony before being usurped by Jackson’s real wife. No hard feelings.) Jackson, with the help of pre-selected audience members, describes his failed attempts to serenade his first-grade crush with Michael Jackson ballads, to his doomed crush on his sixth grade math teacher, to whom he wrote daily love letters, to rediscovering his first crush in high school, but only as a friend. Jackson weaves the past and the present deftly, breaking off from his reminiscences to deal with wedding day minutiae, then continuing to describe his search for real love, fueled in part by the rejection of his biological mother as a young boy. The piece is well-paced and well-balanced, and if not the most exciting material, is both funny and deeply felt. Jackson created the space for several improvisational scenes with audience members (myself included) that showcased his quick thinking and comedic skills, and his final vows were poignant and beautifully delivered (and my opinion on that is in no way affected by having them delivered to me, directly, onstage, while staring into Mr. Jackson’s limpid brown eyes. Ahem. I appear to be getting off track.) All in all, a minor, but promising piece from a rising playwright.
-Reviewed by Jill Sweeney