Sara Marsh and James Rodriguez Photo by Rich Ryan

Fool for Love begins, fittingly, smack in the middle of a situation. May is sitting on the corner of a bed in the low-rent motel room on the border of the Mojave Desert, facing away and trying to avoid any contact with Eddie, a broad-faced cowboy who seems to be trying to dial back his natural menacing nature. We gather that May and Eddie have a history together—15 years, it turns out—and, that over those years, Eddie has often disappeared, then show up, expecting to be warmly welcomed back. But May isn't having it. When Eddie points out that this time is different, that he's not going to leave again, May points out that he says that every time. And maybe May is ready to really hold firm this time. Since Eddie's last visit, she tells him, she has gotten a job and has started seeing another man.

Despite her remonstrations, it is clear that May doesn't completely have Eddie out of her system. He obviously still holds some power over her. We are given clues: they are siblings, or they are lovers, or both. There is reference to an unspecified pact. Eddie accuses May of making up her new boyfriend just to get him jealous, and we wonder if Eddie is right. Through all this, another character, called The Old Man, is seen in the motel room. Obviously, not really present, but having some part in May and Eddie's history, as well as having a history of his own, we see and hear from him some of what must be keeping May and Eddie in each other's orbit. Meanwhile, Eddie has an ex-flame who shows up to add to the havoc. The ex is of great or no consequence, depending on whether you believe May or Eddie.

Sara Marsh is ideal as this kind of woman, valiantly striving to be strong willed and independent, knowing all too well her tendency to cave under pressure. She speaks volumes with a glance upward and tightened jaw, working to the bone to keep from looking at Eddie while he enjoins her to let him back in her life, or more accurately, that she knows in her heart that he has never really left, in spite of his absence. When she strips down to her underwear to change from soft, folksy peasant style blouse and skirt into a skimpy red dress, she is sexy, but also strong, challenging Eddie to stare at her sensual self and not be able to have it.

James Rodriguez plays Eddie, not as much of a rattlesnake as Eddie is sometimes depicted, but as a lizard, scaly outside, with a fierce looking visage, but without the ability to keep himself warm in the cold desert night. He is confident, smug in his belief that May will not be able to resist him, yet he cannot conceal his genuine need for her as well. Eddie is controlled by his need to control May. In a way, Rodriguez makes Eddie less a villain (though hardly a "good guy") than a victim—like May, made a fool of by love.

Peter Coyle plays the old man, grizzled and more than a bit confused—by drink, by the ravages of life, or both. His interjections begin as disconnected thoughts and foggy memories, but begin to form a picture, in concert with May and with Eddie's accounts of their past, of what might be the truth. When that truth is hard to bear, Coyle's intense anger and denial come as a shock, as love has made a fool of him as well. The fourth character is Martin, May's suitor, played by Antonio Cook, who is perhaps presents Martin as meeker in his role than one might expect, as if to ensure that there is no real contest, no chance that an intense woman like May would choose Martin over Eddie. In fact, Cook's Martin draws out the heel in Eddie more than May does.

Director Mel Day has frequently collaborated with Sara Marsh, and her direction does place May at the center of the story, drawing more of the room's energy than any other character, including Eddie. One could conceive of Eddie and May as equal forces, or one can be more dominant, as May is in this mounting. That may be Day's intent, or perhaps a combination of Marsh's charisma as an actor and Day's affinity for working with her. In any case, any of those equations—a stronger May, a stronger Eddie, or balanced forces—can be the right equation, each telling a somewhat different story about the fools in love. At the same time, Day ensures that every moment of the play is clear and visible, never lost in haze or obscured by enigma.

Dark & Stormy's flexible performance space has the audience seated in just two rows encircling the motel room where the 70-minute play takes place, so there is tremendous intimacy between actors and audience. There is minimal scenery, but the costumes designed by Lisa Jones go a long way in creating characters, with special credit going to Eddie's cowboy boots and hat, corked at both ends by emblems of masculinity. Mary Shabatura's lighting and Aaron Newman's sound design add to the tone of the piece. Fight director Annie Enneking guides the physical encounters between characters vividly to life. No doubt a part in this play earns its actors a fair number of bruises.

Sam Shepard had one of the most celebrated careers among American playwrights of the past fifty years, before his death just last month. Fool for Love is certainly among the best regarded of his works, which include such modern classics as Buried Child, True West, and A Lie of the Mind. Fool for Love is a short piece, but just the right length to create a full-blooded May and Eddie, a haunted Old Man, and the mysterious ties that bind them. There is nothing left out.

If you have never seen Fool for Love, this production makes a case for the play's strength and ability to crawl beneath the skin. Even if you have seen it (or the film, with a screenplay by Shepard, who played the part of Eddie) you are still advised not to miss Dark & Stormy's production, for its insights into the dynamic between May and Eddie, and for the excellent performances, especially—once again—by Sara Marsh.

Fool for Love continues through September 16, 2017, presented by Dark & Stormy Productions in partnership with ArtsSpace at the Grain Belt Warehouse, 77 13th Avenue N.E, Studio 201, Minneapolis, Tickets: $39.00, under age 30 tickets: $15.00. For tickets call 612-401-4506 or go to darkstormy.org.

Written by Sam Shepard; Director: Mel Day; Costume Design: Lisa Jones; Lighting Design: Mary Shabatura; Sound Design: Aaron Newman; Properties Designer: Katie Phillips; Fight Director: Annie Enneking; Stage Manager and Lasso Expert: Megan West; Assistant Stage Manager: Alec Lambert; Technical and Design Consultant: Michael James; Assistant Director: Emily England

Cast: Patrick Doyle (The Old Man), Antonio Duke (Martin), Sara Marsh (May), James Rodríguez (Eddie).