Finding love.com

Cynthia and Jill are modern educated women approaching the dreaded four-zero milestone, miserable with their cheating 30-year-old toy-boys from love.com, but who want their old school friend Shari to get online anyway.

They’ve met their two cads via this process and yet, because they’re so into it, they’re suggesting Shari might meet her great love that way too, writer-director Victor Kline says.

Kline says he’s fascinated with people who have one disastrous encounter after another from websites like RSVP but still bludgeon their friends into trying it too.

I think it becomes a monster unto itself, but they’re rationalising around it, saying, -˜Okay, we stuffed it up, but we learned from that, and we’ll marshal our experience to enable you to do better.’ It’s just silly, he says.

But Shari’s problems are greater than just finding a date online, with her long-time partner coming out as a transsexual and her life in turmoil -“ a relationship, Kline says, taken straight from life.

In this storyline, Kline hopes to present one of the no-win situations people find themselves in.

Her partner Jorge has got two very powerful desires that are completely irreconcilable: one is that he wants to be a woman; the other is he wants to have a love relationship with Shari. They’re mutually exclusive.

Kline drew on real examples for all his characters, including the neurotic counsellor Cynthia and the prideful actress Jill.

It’s all about women coming to terms with themselves, their friends and their young lovers. They are all pretty bloody flawed, but I’m trying to show that people can be flawed and still loveable.

Love.com plays every Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday night at the Tap Gallery Theatre Downstairs until 24 February. Bookings and information on 9439 1906.