21:13

The Paris-based Jacques Lecoq theatre school boasts worldwide acclaim for its rich teachings in physical expression, and counts among its alumni the founders of the Theatre de Complicite and the prolific screen actor and playwright Steven Berkoff who leads this year’s hotly tipped production of On the Waterfront. Thomas Eccleshare and Valentina Ceschi are two young, recent graduates of the same dramatic powerhouse who here bring us a characteristically whimsical show powered by the expressive body and childlike imagination.

21:13 is a series of sketches based on a brief encounter between an English boy and an Italian girl at a desolate European train station at the titular time. Without the luxury of a common language, the two minds can only meet with the full support of their bodies, and the possibilities of this are explored through sweet vignettes incorporating mime, language games and buffoonery.

The pair’s purpose on stage is to examine the ways in which humans try to overcome language barriers, spanning the daft to the nifty. What we get is a gently enchanting experience in a world like de Chirico’s where the ordinary takes on delightful new significance. You may not laugh at all the comic elements, many of which deserve to be polished up a little more, but their candid charm will force a lingering smile on your face. A mild tonic for the misanthrope.