The remarkable actress recently stepped out in sunny Sydney with her love, Nate Myles.
The couple, who celebrated their five-year wedding anniversary in December, were the picture of happiness as they took time out of Tessa’s busy schedule.
The actress is currently fronting award-winning Australian playwright Nick Enright’s production of Blackrock
The play is centred around the rape of a young girl in a small town, based on the real life murder of 14-year-old Leigh Leigh in 1989.
“I am so exited to go on stage every night and tell the story,” she said to The Daily Telegraph of her role at Sydney’s Seymour centre.
“In a creative side it is amazing to play Rachel, I feel extremely challenged. It is a heavy subject, but these are subjects that need to be spooked about.”
Adding, “It’s struck a chord with me emotionally.”
Throwing herself back into work is her number one priority. “I’m just really happy to be doing what I love,” she said.
While she’s a household name in Australia, for the 25-year-old, her craft is all that matters.
“I don’t really feel the need to be known,” she mused. “I would just love to have consistent work.”
To think two years ago, acting may not have even been an option for her.
Tessa was just 23 years old when her life was pulled to a crashing halt.
The beloved Aussie star was trying her luck in Hollywood, when she discovered something was seriously wrong.
In September 2014, she discovered a lump above her collarbone, which turned out to be Hodgkin’s lymphoma – a cancer that affects the blood.
This was the second time cancer had hit the James’ family, after her dad had been diagnosed with Non Hodgkin’s lymphoma just two years prior.
Incredibly, after six months of chemotherapy, the Home and Away alum made it out the other side.
Reflecting on the ordeal, Tessa admitted, “I got through it because I had to get through it.”
“What was the other option? To sit and feel sorry for myself? I think I had to hit that low point, to be in so much pain and so upset and so traumatised, to then have that sense of empowerment again: I can get through this.”
And she’s doing just that.