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Two Ladies: La Bella Bimba at Barons Court Theatre / Canal Cafe Theatre

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T hey sing. They dance. They clown around. They even wash clothes! Such is the story of La Bella Bimba, part of the Voila Theatre Festival, which highlights new and emerging artists. A tale of two Italian ladies who land in 1920s New York, trying to break into Broadway without speaking a word of English. It’s harmless, primarily even if a little nonsensical, and is currently playing as part of the Voila! Theatre Festival .  I caught the performance at the Barons Court Theatre , where the intimate setting created an evocative atmosphere reminiscent of dark New York alleyways. The space was almost claustrophobic with a distinct smell of rising damp, making you feel immersed in the story of two Ladies hanging around the theatre doors of Broadway. On the plus side, the theatre has some of the most comfortable seats you will find in any pub theatre in London. As the naive and hopeful singers, Co-creator Lucrezia Galeone as Carlotta and Sarah Silvestri as Cecilia are fine singers with co...

Theatre: All New People


All New People, written and starring Zach Braff is a play that takes place over 90 or so minutes in the dead of winter at a beach house on Long Beach Island New Jersey. Zach's character Charlie is staying at his friends beach house for a few days as he is having a bit of crisis at this point in his life. He is about to end it all, when a real estate agent walks in... Then follows a fireman, and then a high-class hooker his best friend arranged to cheer him up with.

The stage is set for a bizarre and off-beat set of stories and revelations from this collection of four unlikely people. There is a detailed discussion about scabies and debates about the merits of various intoxicating substances. Projections help with the back stories of the characters, but it works best when it is just some off-beat random discussions about matters of trivial importance. Or are they? Whatever the case, the action moves briskly and the laughs are fairly constant.


Along with the Scrubs and Garden State star Zach Braff is a pretty hot cast. Eve Myles (known from Torchwood) plays the mildly eccentric real estate agent, Paul Hilton is the druggy fireman and Susannah Fielding is the glamorous escort with a heart of gold and tits to die for.

Maybe there are some Torchwood fans out there, but judging by the fans that are now gathering outside the theatre every night perhaps Mr Braff has got a potential hit on his hands. Assuming they are all paying to get a ticket and not just staying at home watching repeat episodes of Scrubs on E4...

Worth a look, if you can grab a ticket... I was impressed with the box seats in the circle as they were good value, close to the action and come complete with a hooks for your coats. The restricted view was not such a big deal given most of the action takes place dead centre.

First impressions are as follows...
Preview Boo: All New People (mp3)

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