Maybe You Could Love Me at Theater Mu

 I saw Theater Mu’s world premiere of Maybe You Could Love Me on September 13 at 7:30, and the play was an emotional rollercoaster. The first half was chaste and innocent between the two characters as young adults, and then the second half was painful and emotionally charged. I even heard a male in the audience crying. I felt the set could have changed more in between scenes as the play went back in time to when the characters were younger, but overall the two actors had such great chemistry that I couldn’t help thinking of myself in their shoes. Although there were moments where Sajida’s lines could have landed with more emotion, the dialogue exchanges carried weight and kept the audience deeply invested. The opening night crowd filled the theater, and even the snacks afterward carried a sense of celebration and community.

Written by Samah Meghjee and directed by Katie Bradley, Maybe You Could Love Me follows Sajida (played by Broadway actor Sushma Saha) and Noor (Ashembaga “Ashe” Jaafaru) as they grow up together, bound by friendship, cultural traditions, and the pressure of entering adulthood. What I appreciated most was how the play showed the tension between collectivism and individuality: the push and pull of family expectations versus personal identity. As Mu’s artistic director Francesca de Leon has noted, the story asks, “Can you hold on to your family’s value of collectivism while simultaneously exploring your own individuality?” That question hung in the air throughout the show.

The production team clearly worked to make the story authentic. Cultural consultants Aamera Siddiqui and Filsan Said contributed their insights to Sajida’s South Asian household and Noor’s Black Muslim household, grounding the play in lived experience. This attention to detail made the characters’ struggles feel even more relatable, especially in moments of conflict and quiet tenderness.

Still, the show’s greatest strength was the dynamic between Saha and Jaafaru. Their performances carried a natural chemistry, making the shifts from laughter to heartbreak believable. At times, I wished for more variation in the staging to highlight those emotional turns, but the raw sincerity between the actors made up for it.

Maybe You Could Love Me is a strong start to Theater Mu’s 35th season. It’s not only a story of two friends coming of age, but also a meditation on what we risk, lose, and sometimes gain when we choose our own path. The play resonates well beyond its cultural specificity, striking a universal chord about love, faith, and identity.

Ticket Info: Maybe You Could Love Me runs through September 28 at Mixed Blood Theatre. Theater Mu offers Pay As You Are (PAYA) pricing, so audiences can choose what they pay—sometimes as low as $10. 

Sunday Post

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LOOKING FORWARD TO september

Hi Everyone 

I'm back. I took a little break from blogging to enjoy the summer and to focus on myself a bit.  I hope all are well.  

I've been still doing improv and I'm looking forward to being in a improv Mystery Dinner show in October.  I have also got involved with another improv group and we've been meeting in person.

My language learning in Spanish is still going good.  I had a recent meetup in person and nothing gives me more of a reality check of what level I am in spanish until i meet people in person vs online.  Let's just say I probably know about 200-300 words.

Otherwise, I wanted to talk about a few shows I've watched recently.  The first one is "The Cook of Castamar" Its set in early 18th-century Madrid, the plot follows the love story between an agoraphobic cook and a widowed nobleman.  This is a great movie and the drama is so intense. It's a little spicy though, but I loved thinking about what life as a noble felt like and status and all that. The other show is "Virgin River" which I had postponed watching forever, thinking I may not like the small town vibe but I got latched onto the characters and the main character's transition from being an LA nurse to a nurse in a small town like Virgin River.

That's my week. Tell me about yours in the comments below.

ON THE BLOG

Reading

I fell for my secret pen pal believing we would never meet but now.. he's my husband.Grant Bergeron is Orleans University's playboy first baseman.He's charming, kind... and a tad arrogant. 

I thought this book would mostly be about baseball and I'm not one for sports romances' but I was surprised that the story revolved mostly around the heroine who is struggling to keep her family bakery. The back and forth texting between these two characters and what the mystery of not knowing who each other were, really drew me in. They may have done better by putting both the bakery imagery and baseball on the cover.

Sunday Post

 

LOOKING FORWARD TO June

Happy June.  I took my son yesterday to do a garden clean up at Randolph school and we also went to the Water Festival at Phalen Park. My son got to fish and create huge bubbles and drink fantastic berry lemonade.  There were a ton of people. In the past we went there to learn how to Kayak and it was nspiring to me and I've been kayaking by myself several times since. I think I've been really getting in tune with things that I've enjoyed on my own recently like baking and holiday shows and jumping on the treadmill at Home and going to spontaneous events.

That's my week. Tell me about yours in the comments below.

ON THE BLOG

watching

I love this detective series.  The MC Elsbeth is so eccentric and dynamic.  They way she catches on to the murderer's secrets is so fun.

Sunday Post

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LOOKING FORWARD TO MAY

Pretty great week for me.  I started a new improv team for a murder mystery show so we began rehearsals.  I did some improv online.  I took my son to the park yesterday and we ate some Tres Leche while there.

I've been trying to change routines a bit because I've done so much work online, it kinda felt like I was getting lost in that world so I have signed up for more classes in-person to keep me grounded. It does take a great deal more planning to make sure my son has a babysitter and that meals are packed and exercise has been committed to on those days.

Last Sunday I also went to see "Whose Line is it Anyway?" they have a touring show that is different than their typical game show.  They had two members from the audience come up to the stage and tell their marriage story and the actors redone that story in a comedic fashion. Some of these actors in this troupe have been performing improv together for twenty years and it was interesting to think about that.

That's my week. Tell me about yours in the comments below.

ON THE BLOG

Reading

Meghan Quinn's "Runaway Groomsman contains dynamite dialogue. I began to enjoy this novel when the protagonist recognizes the man at the bar in his groomsman clothes and realizes that she has dated this man in the past.