LOVE IN UNEXPECTED PLACES

Two women, from quite different backgrounds, meet in Boston in 1968, a time and a place where ancient grudges and present-day conflicts seem sure to keep them apart. And yet, their very differences bring them together. Adriana Alvarez (Jo) and Tara Forseth (Mary) convincingly portray a transformation from friendly kindness to flirtation and love, and finally a settled relationship in Mother Mary at Boston Playwrights’ Theatre.

Mother Mary was written by KJ Moran Velz, who is originally from Boston but is now based in the DC area, where her work has been staged by Signature Theatre and Wooly Mammoth Theatre. Described as a queer rom-com, it sets this tender and often humorous love story against the context of the time—illegal abortion and ethnic hostility. Both Jo and Mary are from Roman Catholic backgrounds. But Jo, as the daughter of Puerto Rican revolutionaries has a very different perspective on the church than does Mary, whose Irish Catholic upbringing is strict and intolerant. Both performers have two roles—in addition to Jo and Mary, they play their respective mothers, always on the other end of a phone call. We experience the warmth and supportive character of Jo’s Puerto Rican mother as well as the judgmental impatience of Mary’s Irish mother.

Mary is a teacher in the Catholic school where Jo’s mother is the school nurse. Mary has a boyfriend, but he’s recently left for Vietnam. Curiosity brings the two women together, and the growth of their relationship is funny and tender. Directed by Elaine Vaan Hogue, who also directed what she calls “another car play” (How I Learned to Drive) for Actors’ Shakespeare Project, with the simplest of sets—a lot of the humor comes from Mary’s sexual naiveté and Jo’s extensive experience with a variety of women (including a nun!)

But in the end, these two women are much alike, both seeking authentic love and both fearing heartache. Ultimately, it is Mary recognizes that the alternative to denying their relationship is the limited and joyless life her mother knows and who insists on the possibility of love.

photos by Benjamin Rose Photography

Mother Mary
Boston Playwrights’ Theatre
Snodgrass Stage, 949 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston
100 minutes, no intermission
ends on October 26, 2025
for tickets ($15-$40) visit Boston Playwrights

for more shows, visit Theatre in Boston