It might look like Christmas on stage—tinsel, Christmas trees , and festive knitwear—but don’t be fooled. We’re not in a cosy front room; we’re in the Creston Detention Facility Visiting Centre. Merry Christmas 2014, and Laurie is here to visit her one true love –  Evan – currently locked up in a maximum security prison.

Over the next hour, Laurie takes us on a breathless, brutally honest ride through her obsessive, all-consuming love affair with a man who is definitely not on Santa’s good behaviour list. She’s funny, frantic, and fearless as she lays it all bare—her teenage dreams, her wild romantic fantasies, and yes, the very physical side of her passion for Evan. No filters here, just full-on emotion and jaw-dropping confessions.

Using a mix of storytelling and projected visuals from her past, Laurie paints a vivid picture of how she fell (and kept falling) for someone most people would run a mile from. And as her treasured letters from Evan reveal, he’s no Prince Charming—but Laurie just can’t let go.

It’s messy, moving, and surprisingly hilarious in all the right ways. Laurie Magers is a such a warm presence on stage, the audience will always forgive her blind obsession, and root for her future happiness

Reviewed by Rona