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Blood: A Voodoo Love Story

Reviewed by Lovell Estell III

Theatre/Theater

Through April 26

RECOMMENDED:

Michael Phillip Edwards’s two-hander is something of a cautionary tale about the wages of unrestrained lust. A man and a woman (Phrederic Semaj, Marie Tomas) sit opposite each other in bewildered, momentary silence, gradually realizing that they have an as yet unknown connection. The tableau screams of a wild night out; she erotically fills out a stylish evening dress; he is barefooted in disheveled formal attire with a cravat draped around his shoulders. As the play progresses, we learn that this odd pair is actually husband and wife, and in the fragmented, dreamy world they inhabit, they’ve spent a lot of time in different places pawing at each other, and screwing around.

But it’s the night they spent in Jamaica, where they encountered a voodoo priestess who performed a bizarre wedding ceremony that seals their fate, and places them under the spell of a malevolent succubus who feeds on lust and sexual fantasies. This is an oddly enthralling tale that’s well packaged in gritty, sensual writing that explores themes of sexuality, racism, and love, both erotic and spiritual.

Edwards’s script could use some snips here and there, but it’s an entertaining and humorous blend of light- and dark-heartedness. The performances are both resonant and convincing under Edwards’s direction.

Theatre/Theater, 5041 Pico Blvd., LA. call for schedule; through April 26, 5 pm. www.brownpapertickets.com