Love Bomb - An Ambitious New Work

Kicking off the Firehall's 2015-16 season is Love Bomb, an original premiere production by shameless hussy productions. Directed by Renee Iaci, this performance aims to meet the company's mandate of "telling provocative stories about women to inspire the hand that rocks the cradle to rock the world." It tells the story of a mysterious connection between a young rocker named Justine and her much older, self-proclaimed superfan Jillian. 

Book and lyrics by Meghan Gardiner with original songs by Steve Charles, Love Bomb tries to offer its viewers a rock concert and a mystery tale all in one. This ambitious effort is not entirely successful – possibly due to the repetitious structure which forces Justine to continue playing song after song for her superfan. Though we are somewhat drawn into the story, the tension is not consistently built towards a satisfying conclusion. 

Sara Vickruck as Justine offers a bravura performance – man can she sing and play guitar! And Deb Pickman as Jillian gains our sympathy – we begin to want her to succeed in her mission. However, these two actors are hampered by the script itself (which was commissioned by shameless hussy productions as a musical that addresses the issue of sex trafficking). Featuring 11 songs inspired by serious real-life events that happened nearly 20 years ago, playwright Meghan Gardiner and the creative team have definitely worked to create a piece of musical theatre that respects its serious themes. Yet maybe that respect got in the way of figuring out how to tell a story that audiences will really want to see. Check it out for yourself - the show runs until October 10 at the Firehall Arts Centre.