Mayflies famously live for just a day. But before that they can spend months or years as nymphs, gestating underwater until they’re ready to fly. This lopsided lifespan is the inspiration for Gus Gowland’s new musical, which imagines a relationship that’s long in the making but quick to burn out.
Protagonists May and Fly meet through a dating app. A fumbled start turns into real connection. But instead of meeting in person, they decide to wait, leaving it almost two years before their first date. Gowland’s show moves back and forth between the couple’s tender online interactions and their final, fateful get-together, as reality struggles to live up to expectations.
