‘And I love to be alive’ – Hera Lindsay Bird
This is a Love Song was a piece of online theatre that wasn’t afraid to dive into the messiness of love, and, by extension, of life. It took a rom-com-style narrative and drew from it a visual piece that discusses memory and emotion through fireworks and photographs: I was consistently impressed by the inventiveness of the piece, and the beauty it created.
'All you need is love' – The Beatles
This production was an impeccable example of how to incorporate music into a straight play. Scenes like the two main characters Sally and Jamie dancing to the Rolling Stones, and then later, Sally's partner contemplating suicide while the Beatles play at ear-splitting volume, meant that song was as integral to the piece as love.
‘Love is awful’ – Fleabag
The show dived headfirst into situations with no easy solution – these characters were not always kind towards each other, and some, such as George, went from difficult to root for to hugely sympathetic. With that said, perhaps there was too much complexity for a show about immediacy: cutting it back would have given the moments of real emotional intensity a lot more power.
‘I look through the windows of this love’ – Taylor Swift
For a show about the apocalypse, This is a Love Song was brought to life by its little details. References to that scene in Call Me By Your Name, fuckboys, and the Twitter account ‘Thoughts of Dog’ made it feel culturally rooted in the present, and were essential in making the end of the world feeling real.
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