Love, Loss and What I Wore

Love, Loss and What I Wore is relatable.

A play of vignettes and monologues, Love, Loss and What I Wore covers important issues in women’s lives. From mothers to prom dresses, to buying bras and wearing black and why we do so. Both heartfelt and hilarious, this play, written by Nora and Delia Ephron, was adapted from the book of the same name by Ilene Beckerman. Now, this show has made its debut on the stage of Tugun Theatre, under the direction of Judy Neumann.

When the lights come up, audiences are welcomed with upbeat music as the actors walk onto the stage and take their places in their respective chairs. The show begins with a monologue by Gingy, who begins the tale of her life that is tied to her favourite clothes, depicted in beautiful drawings by Trish Nissen.

The cast consists of five actors: Debbie Tanna, Emma Andrews, Cecile Campbell, Liddi Lane and Samantha McClurg. Each actress did a phenomenal job portraying the different characters on stage. Debbie Tanna especially had the audience in a chokehold with her hilarious yet inspiring performance as Gingy and Nora. Samantha Mclurg’s monologues were just brilliant, she owned the stage in every monologue, especially in her talk about shoes! The emotion from Emma Andrews was just fantastic. You could truly feel the hurt over her dress, and the complete resentment towards a certain Latin Chancellor who was apparently a fantastic kisser! Liddi Lane delivered a beautiful and moving monologue on breast cancer, one that many survivors would possibly relate to! From the nervousness about the surgery to the determination of reclaiming herself by the end of the monologue was just a joy to watch. So moving. Cecile Campbell had people laughing before she even spoke a word, with her character walks and exuberant gestures and movement. From big winks to big, smiley walks, she was a joy to watch.

Each actress brought a different accent to the character, reminding the audience that these stories come from all over the place. The decision to have the actors all wear black clothing was a brilliant idea by Trish Nissen, allowing the actors to rely on their storytelling to portray the characters they embodied, with effortless transformations between characters.

Lighting by Jasper Lee and sound by Caleb Turner was just fantastic. The sound was crisp and clear and picked up on every beautifully delivered line. As for lighting, Mr Lee executed this perfectly. The stage was lit nice and bright, and the pink lighting for the clothesline scenes was a great way to differentiate between the monologues and the one-liners. Further, Jasper expertly followed each actor’s movements across the stage with the spotlight, and was very quick in transferring the spotlight to each actor during the clotheslines. Given they were one-line sentences and very quick, he did an amazing job keeping up with the dialogue!

Based on the tightness of the clotheslines and the uniformity of this show, Judy Neumann clearly had a vision for the show and worked effortlessly to bring the actors to the high calibre they showed on stage.

A simple yet eye catching set, the backdrop of a light lilac which five chairs sit against offers the actors’ ease for their character and story transitions. With no character leaving the stage during the monologues, a brilliant choice to limit distractions and constant blackouts, the simple set design enables the audience to focus on the stories rather than be distracted by any bright colours or bulky furniture.

Furthermore, the pink pegboard with white clothes draped across it is a fitting and fun highlight of this show being about clothing and how important such pieces can be to a person and their life.

A hilarious, heartfelt and relatable show that is sure to leave you in tears in more ways than one, Love, Loss and What I Wore is a beautiful show about fashion, friends, family , and how clothes and accessories have more meaning in people’s lives than you’d initially think!

Love, Loss and What I Wore will play at Tugun Theatre until May 31st, 2025.

Marina Cerra

For more information, visit https://www.tuguntheatre.org/