The dead of winter, Long Beach Island, New Jersey, Charlie (Zach Braff) has hit rock bottom. Away from the rest of the world, this perfect escape is interrupted by a motley parade of misfits who show up and change his plans. A hired beauty, a fireman, and an eccentric British real estate agent desperately trying to stay in the country all suddenly find themselves tangled together in a beach house where the mood is anything but sunny.
The language is strong, dirty, and very funny; the one-liners are sharp, the acting hard to fault.
It’s a great showcase for all involved – with Braff again “one to be watched”, as though he wasn’t before – and a great examination of how community can both make us feel loved or leave us feeling desperately alone. (Hopefully you’ll come out of the theatre feeling a bit more of the former.)
While it’s clear from the cheers of the excited audience the first time they see Braff that he provided much of the impetus for the crowd to come, by the end of the 90 minutes they’ve chuckled and truly felt for the characters, and the end cheers are well deserved for all cast and crew.
Laugh out loud moments are certainly there, but from the impressive opening scene it loses its lustre and the end is rather anticlimactic.
Braff has written an enjoyable and playful piece, bolstered by a remarkable cast and an at times hilarious script. Whether or not it will stand the test of time without Braff's name on the marquee is altogether less certain.
Thanks to the good-time-gal's finale ukulele song, we're told the play is supposed to be about the emptiness of human existence; if we have friends around we'll feel less inclined to hang ourselves. But after watching 90 unbroken minutes of this unfunny, badly structured play, the noose seemed oddly inviting.
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Interview: Zach Braff, writer, director and star of All New People
Zach Braff: Medicine man has the last laugh
King's Theatre, Glasgow from Tuesday February 14, 2012, until Saturday February 18, 2012. More info: www.theambassadors.com/kings/
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