Review – How long do you think is gonna take?

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By Andreea Helen David

What a fine pairing

Got the chance to be present at the opening night for “How long do you think is gonna take?” a comedy written by Covadonga Gamblor and Alessandro De Cominato and directed by Anca Vaida and I had a blast.

I absolutely love Covadonga on stage. She has that perfect mix of witty and naive, of funny and tragic and of clever and yet relatable. And with  “How long do you think is gonna take?” she proves that she can not only write insane and ridiculous stuff and make them make sense but she can also play them with warmth and candour and of course perfect comedic timing.  But for this one it took two to tango and along comes Alessandro De Cominato, a seemingly great writing and stage partner.  Alessandro is an actor and a musician and an occasional writer perhaps, I did enjoy his physicality. 

 “How long do you think is gonna take?” is a show about 3 couples, one more surprising than the other, situated in parallel universes and Gamblor and De Cominato play all three.  2 are bipeds 1 not so much…  I absolutely loved the transformation between the characters done with precision and skill not only by the actors, De Cominato I thought left no doubt whatsoever, but also by the, now a signature of Anca Vaida’s style, transitions. These ones were hilarious.  

The three storylines are all great stories on their own, some have left me with questions but 

none more puzzling than this one : Zombies?  The rest of the show has nothing to do with zombies, through all of the comedy, surprises, craziness, what dominates is love and this is my take away. 

Covadonga and Alessandro are indeed a fine pairing, I thought, great chemistry that was defined by something completely different for each couple and the physical comedy was absolutely brilliant. It’s a riot. 

Anca Vaida directs this, and I can see a style and preference developing- the use of physical theatre, the music that that also plays an important part and the absurd. She has the ability to bring the best in her actors but also to listen and allow them to offer what they have to offer.  Anca also uses the small stage at Barons Court very well and for this play where the characters are offering so much, you don’t need much else.

I’d recommend you to go if you’d like laugh long after the joke expired, if you like to be surprised and if you like to see talent in action. 

At Barons Court Theatre

2- 6 of July