Though she had an overall idea of the show's concept from watching episodes on US cable TV, Alessandra admits she didn't know just how massive MAFS was over here in Australia.
"I had no idea what you guys were doing here in Australia and how you’d supersized it and turned it into this huge show!" she laughs, explaining that she spent a lot of her 2020 lockdown period in Argentina binge-watching past seasons.
"I understand how it really grips you and takes your attention and I’m really excited with the possibility that it gives to really explore the relationships in depth. When you supersize it the way that you guys have done here then you can go in a lot more detail of what’s actually happening."
Alessandra has also described the reality TV experiment as "a wonderful vehicle to show the public what really goes on in relationships" and that she's hoping the conversations the couples have on screen will trickle down into conversations at home about their own relationships.
"That’s really exciting for me as a professional to have a platform that is so massive where you can give out information that will reach people who may be there for the fun part of it but will inevitably hear what you have to say," she says.
"To be able to bring up the topics of sexuality and really highlight them as one of the pillars of what makes a good, lasting relationship in the long haul I thought was very important so I see a lot of value in the possibilities that MAFS gives me as a professional to talk to the public."
She may not be stepping into Dr Trisha's shoes but Alessandra did find it really interesting to work with her fellow experts, Mel Schilling and John Aiken.
"I’ve never felt like it’s just me bringing what I bring in – Melanie, John and I just really work well off each other," she says.
"I’m also a marriage and family therapist not only a clinical sexologist so there is a lot of overlapping in our views and what we’re doing."
She laughs: "I would never dare to want to step into someone else’s shoes - I think I have a big enough foot where I can make my own space! I think we work really well with each other and we have very good working chemistry for the show and we bring what we bring. The energy is the one that we’ve created the three of us together."
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