Lisa Rafferty, Pam Ahl, and Jane McGovern. (photo credit: David Lockwood)

South Shore Woman has introduced to you Pam Ahl of Scituate, breast cancer survivor and cofounder of Learn, Live, Love Cancer Outreach, and Lisa Rafferty of Scituate, breast cancer survivor and co-author of the well-renowned theatrical comedies, The MOMologues and MOMologues 2: Off to School. We now introduce to you, Jane McGovern, also of Scituate and a third breast cancer survivor who has come together with Pam and Lisa to write The MOMologues: Pink Ribbon Overdose.

While The MOMologues: Pink Ribbon Overdose is a departure from Lisa’s first two comedic readings, it has the same noble intent of comic relief. Via laughter, the three women endeavor to heal, validate, and bring a sense of companionship to the shared experience and the loneliness in breast cancer. Since the topic is typically grim, their intent in this project was to “find the funny.” Though it can be much avoided, there is hilarity in the human condition; and on October 27^th, The MOMologues: Pink Ribbon Overdose gave the audience permission to laugh.

On October 27^th, I sat in the audience at the Cavern Club in Boston’s Hard Rock Café, where Susan Wornick first auctioned items including high-end jewelry, leather bags, and more. Actresses including Bianca de la Garza; Karen Holmes Ward of WCVB-TV5; Erica McDermott, film actress; and Julie Nations, Executive Director of The Ellie Fund,  then brought the production to life not only to entertain but to also -- along with proceeds from the auctioned items -- benefit The Ellie Fund, a non-profit organization that provides free transportation, childcare, housekeeping, and meals to women and families fighting breast cancer in Massachusetts.

Women with breast cancer, breast cancer survivors, friends and families of both, and those who had no connection to breast cancer comprised the audience; and, together, they thoroughly embraced this lighter look at the otherwise serious subject. The laughter continued as the actresses performed monologues and scenes written by Lisa, Pam, and Jane. They found the humor in  everything from their opinions of the artwork on waiting room walls, to the side effects of chemotherapy and how they passed the time during treatments, to a decision every person with breast cancer faces: To wear a wig, or not to wear a wig.

I asked the playwrights if, at any time during the writing process or the preparation for the staged reading of Pink Ribbon Overdose, they felt tentative or nervous about whether or not people would embrace a comedy about breast cancer. None of the three were concerned with the material itself, since they all agree as breast cancer survivors that laughter is medicinal.

Lisa had the typical anxiety of a seasoned playwright. “Writing funny prose in and of itself is a talent,’ she said, “but, regardless, that funny prose does not necessarily translate into snappy dialogue.” However, her experience gave her the advantage of knowing what is possible when talented, insightful women collaborate to elicit laughter for its own sake and as a strong coping tool.

Pam said that, after seeing The Best of the MOMologues, she became “infected with hilarity, sisterhood, and shared experience.” These sentiments carried her along with the fact that creativity is – for her – also a healing agent. She does admit, however, that since it had been five years since her last treatment, the process, at times, “peeled back layers” to expose wounds she thought had been healed.

Jane’s experience was somewhat different as she wrote during – as she says – “real time.” She wrote as she was actually undergoing breast cancer treatment. When the ladies decided the play should include more about radiation but were not sure what more it should specifically include, Jane was able to say, “OK, then, I’ll keep my eyes and ears open for material while I’m on the radiation table tomorrow.” And she was able to write with raw affection for the nurses who tended to her and looked forward to watching videos with her during chemotherapy treatments, adding to the production’s authenticity.

I also asked the three writers what they hoped to do for their audiences. Pam and Jane agreed when Lisa said, “Even for women like us, who are truly blessed . . . truly, truly blessed . . . with amazing support systems made up of family and friends, there are still a lot of lonely moments in cancer. If this show helps another woman who is going through breast cancer treatment find humor as a companion to a lonely moment, then I will be happy.”

Lisa, Pam, and Jane lament the number of women with breast cancer who do not have strong support systems, which is why they work to benefit the important organizations like The Ellie Fund and Pam’s own Learn Live Love.

The next presentation of The MOMologues: Pink Ribbon Overdose is at the Company Theatre in Norwell, Wednesday, February 9^th.  For more information, please go to www.companytheatre.com. Proceeds will benefit Learn, Live, Love Cancer Outreach. Information about this organization is detailed in the Feb. 2009 issue of South Shore Woman (southshorewoman.com).

By Erin Heffernan

Erin Heffernan is a photographer in Scituate. Her Wink South series, "Shutter to Think", explains how looking at life from a different angle, even if it's via the viewfinder, can offer valuable lessons (and sometimes comic relief!).