Love
Love by Patricia Cornelius is a gritty take on love, addiction and survival. The emerging independent group, Salad Days Collective, has delivered a powerful interpretation of this raw and challenging script. The whole team at Salad Days Collective are to be commended for treating Cornelius’s script with such care and detail, bringing out its powerful relevance even after more than 20 years since it was first written.
Annie (Georgina Sawyer) and Tanya (Jasmine Prasser) are entrenched in vulnerable environments, where the instability of poverty and drug addiction permeates every aspect of their lives. Amongst the harsh realities, Annie and Tanya have each other. They cling to their relationship for survival where each I love you seems to have the weight of glue strong enough to hold everything together.
Both Sawyer and Prasser delivered strong performances throughout the whole piece. We get to be up close to these actors and there wasn’t a moment where I wasn’t drawn to their detailed expressions. The pacing of the dialogue was directed so organically, though, I felt there was room to explore more of the comedic elements in Cornelius's script through the early interactions between Annie and Tanya to make the later scenes punch harder. In saying this, there were so many moments where I wanted to just sit with these characters and hold space for their trauma, which really highlights the work of the talented pair of actors.
The narrative shifts when Tanya goes to jail, and a young man called Lorenzo moves into the shared bed with Annie. Leo Buzac delivers a cheeky yet intimidating performance and really plays with the comedic opportunities within the script. Buzac skilfully leans on physicality and cliché phrases to shape Lorenzo, giving us a strangely likeable portrayal. Buzac’s charm was such a strong presence in every scene and I was absolutely drawn to his performance. The playful approach contrasted so sharply against the abusive nature of Lorenzo and the characterisation crafted distinct discomfort for audiences.
While individual performances were strong overall, the play's emotional depth hinges on the relationships among the three characters. There was an opportunity to articulate the evolving dynamics between each pair more clearly. Capturing these complex interactions can be particularly challenging for young actors, and at times, I struggled to perceive a responsive dynamic among them. This lack of connection left me wanting a deeper sense of intimacy between the characters to highlight the dependency they had on each other. While the sense of isolation created an impactful atmosphere, tighter direction on moments of intimacy and scene transitions could have significantly enhanced the overall chemistry of the three.
I appreciated so many aspects of the technical side of this production. I love VENTspace in Brisbane/Meanjin, and I found the location highly effective for creating an immersive experience. The use of couches for audience seating added a unique, intimate touch, and even the roll of the garage door pulled us deeper into the atmosphere of the play.
The set is simple with bare wooden planks and a sheetless bed. This felt intentionally cold and amplified a desolate mood. It also provided natural acoustics that heightened movement sounds from the actors. The visual design by Ziggy Enoch was particularly striking, as the imagery swarmed across the blank surfaces and added a haunting layer to the production.
I was particularly drawn to the repeating monologues where Annie is on the edge of the set which made me adore the ending. I love the ambiguity of these scenes. This was where the directing, acting and lighting worked so well as a combined strength.
Although Love is a long one-act play, I felt we could have sat in moments like Annie’s monologues longer. Perhaps that is my personal preference for theatre that edges outside the real, but I do commend the team for being able to command such gripping moments.
I am loving the compelling work that Salad Days Collective are creating in Meanjin and am excited for their next season of work.
Love plays at VENTspace until 3rd Nov.
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