The modern musical hasn't ever tackled the ubiquitous phenomenon that is reality television, maybe because the two worlds seem like they'd be incompatible. But Nobody Loves You, which just opened at ACT Wednesday, proves they can be a match made in Broadway heaven.

First conceived over a decade ago, Nobody Loves You is a wickedly funny and incisive sendup of reality dating-competition shows like The Bachelor and Love Island. Playwright Itmar Moses, best known for the Tony-winning musical The Band's Visit and last year's The Ally, has continued to revise and update the show in the years since it first premiered at San Diego's Old Globe Theater in 2012. And it's good that he has, given that the The Bachelor was merely in Season 15 at that point, Love Island still didn't exist, and other similar shows like Love Is Blind and 90-Day Fiancé also had not entered the zeitgeist.

We now live in a world in which reality television, Real Housewives, Drag Race and all, occupies an enormous market share of American culture, and it's about time we had a modern musical that both skewers and mines it for emotional depth.

Along with composer and lyricist Gaby Alter, in 2023 Moses brought Nobody Loves You to ACT Artistic Director Pam MacKinnon, who has directed several other of Moses's plays, to talk about producing it in San Francisco. And a new workshop of the show ended up producing two new songs, and the snappy, very smart version of the show that's now playing here.

The show centers on Jeff (AJ Holmes), an ornery, self-important philosophy grad student who gets dumped by his reality-television-loving girlfriend, in part because they have little in common. She sets off to audition for Nobody Loves You, her favorite show, and after we're introduced to the show's producer Nina (Ashley D. Kelley) and its smarmy host Byron (Jason Veasey), we find that it's Jeff, and not his ex, who gets cast on the show — in a sort of casting stunt, to play the curmudgeon who hates the show and its concept but who still might find love.

And, of course, he does, but not with fellow cast members Megan (Molly Hager), Christian (Seth Hanson), Dominic (John-Michael Lyles), or Samantha (Ana Yi Puig). He spends time skulking backstage and in the control room, and develops a thing for assistant producer Jenny (Kuhoo Verma).

Jeff becomes a big hit with the TV audience, but his and Jenny's mutual disdain for the reality-dating format means that they instinctually want to fight the romance mold they're being pushed into, and some hilarity ensues.

Also, Jeff has the insight early on in the script that "People can perform, or they can connect; they can't do both at the same time," and those are certainly wise words for everyone seeking genuine connection — if there even are any anymore — on a TV show.

Left to right: Molly Hager, John-Michael Lyles, Ana Yi Puig, and Seth Hanson in 'Nobody Loves You,' performing at A.C.T.’s Toni Rembe Theater now through March 30, 2025. Photo credit: Kevin Berne

It's impossible to call out any one member of this tight and highly talented ensemble without calling out all of them. There isn't a single weak link, and each gets moments to shine, both comically and musically — and they each display terrific singing and comedy talents throughout. Additionally, everyone besides Holmes and Verma has to play double, triple, and in the case of Kelley, quadruple duty, throwing on wigs and hats to play incidental characters — these reality competition shows, as you know, typically start out with a dozen or more contestants after all.

MacKinnon's direction is as sharp as the material, highlighting every beat and punching every joke, and keeping up a breakneck pace in this intermission-less show.

Jason Ardizzone-West's phenomenal, neon-bright set design is also a star of this production, allowing for amusing "zoom" and TV-like framing effects at a number of moments — and highlighting the ticky-tacky cheapness of reality TV sets as well.

Alter's pop-inflected score is catchy and delightful, with at least a dozen great melodies, particularly with songs like "You're Incredibly Real" and "Come On In." And the score stands out as among the most memorable from a new musical in several years — I only wish there was a recording somewhere to hear more of it again, which there is not.

ACT's somewhat abbreviated season has several cool shows still upcoming this spring, but Nobody Loves You marks a great start to this new year of SF theater.

'Nobody Loves You' plays through March 30. Find tickets here.