‘I want that movie love,” says Anna in Anastasia Osei-Kuffour’s debut play about finding romance. But how long is she supposed to wait for it? And is there a right path to love? Love Steps goes through the ups and downs of modern dating, weaving the rush of new love with sadness and fading lust.
Told mainly in poetry and rhyming verse, the play is a series of snapshots into 34-year-old Anna’s (Sharon Rose) search for the one. She swipes through unsuitable bachelors on dating apps and gets let down by those who are intimidated by her success or want to move too fast too soon. As a black woman, she is constantly objectified and fetishised online by strangers. The pressure to settle down is drummed into her: family members ask her when it’s going to happen. Happily coupled-up friends tell her not to give up hope. And yet, she can’t help but feel defined by love’s absence. The dating game looks like a bleak, unnavigable battleground.
Enacted through Osei-Kuffour’s dream-like direction, the stages of dating are drawn through passing vignettes: each step is somewhat disconnected from what has come before. And yet, with so much stylised movement, the whole thing begins to feel like a dance – one moment two people are swirling together in unison, the next they’re out of sync.
When Anna finally finds a man she believes is the answer to her problems, the stage sings in pink. All at once her protective layer is peeled back to reveal an inner softness, as if she’s let out a held breath. Once the cocktail of initial chemistry and hope loses its intoxication though, her ideal future is shattered.
So why keep on trying? In a world of endless options and mixed signals, Love Steps shows that even if you throw yourself into dating, it can often be a long and fruitless road. “It feels like I’ve been wanting for my whole life,” Anna says hopelessly. But the desire to find a union still haunts Osei-Kuffour’s story. Even in a sea of heartache and disappointment, the potential for the perfect ending may still be worth it – one day.
• Love Steps is at the Omnibus theatre, London until 20 April
