Love Stories

Trent Dalton may have reached rock star status in his hometown. The excitement and enthusiasm in the crowd for opening night of Love Stories was electric. The audience wasn’t just at fever pitch because Brisbane is ever so proud of our local boy made good. We had at least seven more paragraphs worth of valid reasons to be so effervescent. 

Dalton’s award-winning Boy Swallows Universe has seen huge success as a novel, play, and TV series, and many have anticipated a similar fate for this production. The dynamic trio behind the stage adaptation of Boy Swallows Universe got together again for this project. Adaptor Tim McGarry referred to it as, “‘Bringing back the band’ with Sam and Trent”. This time the creative team also included the brilliant Fiona Franzmann on additional writing duties. That’s one powerfully creative foursome right there.

Surely adding to the opening night enthusiasm, audiences have already fallen for Dalton’s book of Love Stories. It’s a collection of short tales he literally sourced from people he met on a street corner in Brisbane city. Much of the dialogue in the play was verbatim from the subjects Dalton interviewed. The result was a range of intimate, exhilarating, poignant and of course, romantic tales that had us laughing, crying, ugly laugh-crying, and thinking of at least three good things. As Strong said, “Trent’s body of work has a knack for making the specific universal” and every human with a beating heart in the Playhouse last night could relate to this show.

The Love Stories audience were also surely excited to see such a stellar cast. This was the first time I’d been in an audience outside of the United States that applauded the performers just for walking on stage. Generally, Brisbane crowds like to see some acting before they deem anything worthy of a clap! This time, we were confident we were about to see something brilliant, and our premature applause was warranted.

In the leading roles we had the incredibly talented Jason Klarwein as ‘husband’ and the raw, real and vulnerable Michala Banas as ‘wife’ – characters inspired by Dalton and Franzmann’s own love story. Supporting them, the charismatic and effervescent Rashidi Edward as Jean Benoit, and a ridiculously strong ensemble. Kimie Tsukakoshi was captivating and a joy to watch. Harry Tseng brought charisma and dynamism to his work. Jeanette Cronin and Bryan Proberts showed brilliant range as they played a wide variety of characters to perfection.

Sam Strong’s vision for the direction was next level brilliance. The complexities of the blocking and integration of live video was jaw-dropping. The ways in which he included the audience in the action and made us feel such a part of the show enhanced the intimacy. He’s brought the best out in the cast and crew and delivered an unforgettable and original piece of work.

The innovative use of video cameras to shoot live footage that dominated the stage’s backdrop was so impressive. Behind the camera, Tnee Dyer was able to capture the intimate facial expressions and moments one can sometimes miss in live theatre – especially if you’re in the nosebleed section. His presence and movement integrated with the cast without detraction, instead contributing to the feeling of Brisbane City hustle and bustle. When the cameras weren’t rolling, we had Craig Wilkinson’s creative video design to set the scene.

Choreographer and movement director Dr Nerida Matthaei devised several lyrical contemporary dance pas de deux that were truly moving. Her work on the flash mob scenes was especially fun too. Ben Hughes deftly handled the complexities of lighting design for a show that included live camera, complex blocking and often fast paced crowd work. Composition and sound design by Stephen Francis supported the mood and aided our immersion. Set and costume designer Renee Mulder’s work was skilfully adaptable allowing for fuss free scene changes and quick costume pieces to let the ensemble morph from one character to the next.

A brilliant, funny, relatable, and moving collection of stories that evoke deep feelings. That’s one good thing. A ridiculously talented crew of writers and theatre professionals. That’s two good things. A talented and believable cast bringing it all to life on stage for us all to enjoy. That’s three good things.

Watching this play felt like falling in love, like sitting by the bedside of a family member as they say their last goodbyes, like a kick in the guts, like having your heart ripped out of your chest, like a warm hug from a lifelong friend, like an epiphany, and like being reminded of the important things in life. It made me feel proud of my city. It made me rush home afterwards to hug my sleeping husband as tightly as I could. It was beautiful beyond words. Love Stories is a great example of the power of theatre and stories to unite us and articulate what it is to be human.

Kitty Goodall

Photography by David Kelly