Why We Like Love Stories

In the hills above Pin Cushion, California, students go to talk of the world, flirt and yearn. It’s a place where heartbreak awaits. In a La Ronde-style chain, Chloe breaks up with her boyfriend, Crooper, devastating him. Months later, Crooper ineptly attempts to use a mathematical equation to break up with Jessica—his girlfriend of seven months. She’s furious, since she’s in the middle of declaring her love for him. Months later, a calmer Jessica rebuffs Bark, who pines for her. But then things come full circle. Bark and Chloe—outsiders both—take an awkward, fumbling-for-words walk in the hills. Chloe has a secret, and Bark’s reaction to it gives them a surprising connection that, for the moment at least, promises a future. Why We Like Love Stories is a wistful comedy about the things we learn from the people we love, even once they’ve left us. The play has four great parts—and four great two-hander scenes—for high-school actors, each written with Stephen Gregg’s signature combination of intelligence, warmth and whimsy.