The Love Addict

"I was leaving my counsellor’s semi detached cottage in Kirribilli when it happened. Loretta, my counselor, had been sitting opposite me on the warm, burgundy leather chair. She stared at me with a firm but compassionate eye. I believe Loretta was a matron before she became a counsellor. I knew she cared for me and that's why she decided to pull some punches with me, being cruel first, to be kind later. She said: I'M GOING TO BE HARD ON YOU CELESTE, BUT I THINK YOU NEED TO KNOW THIS. YOU'RE A LOVE ADDICT, AND THE RELATIONSHIP YOU'RE IN IS DRIVING YOU CRAZY."

The performance starts with a voice over, and later Celeste enters, moving to the front of the stage, where she sits on a tall stool to begin her monologue. She has a red wig on, distinct from both the slides. Beside her, on a table is a small bottle of brandy, a packet of cigarettes and a telephone, which rings occasionally. There are two slides projected on the back wall, - one is an image of a 'love addict/monster’ that lurks within her, a wasted looking woman with wild blonde hair, bags under her eyes and a fag hanging out of her mouth. The other is the image of Loretta, her counsellor, a concerned blonde (both slides are the same performer, different wigs a la Cindy Sherman).

‘The Love Addict’ was performed as part of ‘Club Bent’ at the Performance Space, Redfern, Sydney in 1995, and in 1998 Catherine toured it with other Australian, UK and New York artists for 'It's Queer up North' in Manchester, Glasgow, Warwick and London (funded by the Australia Council, and Britain’s Lottery Arts Fund).