All New People review, Duke of York's

Strung theory

Becoming a poacher turned gamekeeper requires chutzpah as well as talent, especially in a world where pratfalls happen in the full glare of the spotlight. Zach Braff, JD in the cult US TV series, Scrubs, has already shown he can write a script with his first film, Garden State. All New People is his first play. For a piece that starts with an attempted suicide, it bristles with life.

Peter DuBois directs a tight team headed by Braff as suicidal Charlie and a glowing Eve Myles as realtor, Emma, a woman with more than a smidgeon of the Kirsty Allsop about her. The play opens with Emma entering a client's empty property to find Charlie about to hang himself. A blackly hilarious fifteen minutes  of slapstick follows, part of it with Charlie swinging on his noose.

The palpable chemistry between the leads holds things together when the arrival of the drug-dealing local firefighter, Myron - Paul Hilton on supberb form - changes the tone too quickly, creating a bit of a puddle.  Braff can't resist chasing a joke - the Willie Nelson one liner is a cracker - but this results in a few puddles where plot and pace congeal. Fortunately he has a  knack for getting things back on course before they need CPR. As Myron sniffs glue, the group is joined by hooker, Kim (Susannah Fielding), a birthday present to Charlie from his best friend. Now the party begins. What fuels Charlie's unhappiness, and can the visitors, who have secrets of their own, change his mind about life?

In conclusion: All New People is surprisingly good and, unsurprisingly, funny. Braff takes on a character quite different to JD, shaking in corners while Eve Myles shimmers. The drugs stuff is overdone, but fuels a lively 90 minutes.

References
Michael Coveney review in What's On Stage