On Wednesday, Ali MacGraw and Ryan O’Neal took to the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts stage for Love Letters. The play is written by A.R. Gurney, directed by Tony-winning director Gregory Mosher, and stars the two reunited Love Story vets in another touching drama. The applause began when MacGraw and O’Neal walked onstage … holding hands. They then sat at a desk and read their parts which follow the lives of two friends as told through their correspondence between the ages of 7 and 70. I couldn’t take my eyes off them. The standing O commenced as they finished the last letter…both crying. They ended the performance with a kiss.
I didn’t know what to expect, but I wasn’t expecting to be so absurdly happy to see the two actors together again. MacGraw hasn’t performed in over twenty years (and was terrific), and we last saw O’Neal in a reality show with his daughter, Tatum. This performance at the Wallis begins a multi-city tour of the play that will last through June. The run in Beverly Hills is a short one, and ends October 25. Get tickets here.