Review: LOVE (TO) BITS by Ioana Goga at Barons Court Theatre 7 – 25 June 2022

‘Light entertainment for anyone who doesn’t want anything heavyweight to think about’ ★★★

A charming and very light comedy drama about Cynthia and her love life which is interspersed with verbatim theatre which gives responses to the age-old question ‘what is love?’.  The two stands work surprisingly well, with the scene changes being filled with Brechtian style placards and verbatim characters (all portrayed by Beatrice Bowden). The clarity and smooth running of the entire show must, in part, be thanks to good direction from Jez Davess-Humphrey.

Tómas Howser, as Cynthia’s selfish boyfriend Van, was a delectable choice for the role.  His physicality spoke aeons and his love of computer games (although perhaps not scripted) gave him something to do which fits very nicely with Van’s self-absorption.  Ioana Goga as Cynthia seemed to have the easiest time with her character seeming to be an extension of herself, not surprisingly as she is also the writer. Whilst Beatrice Bowden (having the difficult task of playing all the other characters) was charming, her vignettes tended to skim over the top layer of the characters without giving sufficient depth.     

The play is surely very relatable to anyone who is dating, particularly the younger generation and it tries hard to leave audiences upbeat.  It is light entertainment for anyone who doesn’t want anything heavyweight to think about.

LOVE (TO) BITS by Ioana Goga

Barons Court Theatre 7 – 25 June 2022

Box Office https://app.lineupnow.com/event/love-to-bits-by-ioana-goga

Cast:

Cynthia: Ioana Goga

Van: Tómas Howser

Constance/Anna/Verbatim characters: Beatrice Bowden

Director:

Jez Davess-Humphrey

Reviewed by Heather Jeffery