Centrestage - Entertainment Port Elizabeth

***CLICK HERE FOR YOUTUBE VIDEO LINK***

CLICK HERE FOR WEEKEND POST REVIEW

“Toast is an antidote to deep thinking”

For one night only, a special performance of Gino Fabbri’s antidote to deep thinking, Toast, will be staged by Centrestage at Uptown theatres on Friday 15th May.

Following continuous requests to do so, the show will be filmed for DVD release later this year.

Fabbri will be joined on stage by leggy diva Donna Africa.

Toast! places the focus squarely on Fabbri’s stand-up comedy characters, from the dim-witted Rugby player Elvis Kroukamp who suffers acute stage-fright while delivering an under-prepared speech on the similarities between life and rugby, to self-referencing psychologist, Reginald Snead, who is all to quick to banish the Hippocratic oath in favour of sharing a good story about one of his patients!

Taxi-owner and record producer Gotitsa Whiti defends his heritage while longing for all things American, while an over the top, pheromone laden Latin lover Minuto Peniso woos the reluctant woman in the audience.

But it is the failed Supersterre contestant and pop-star wannabe, the woefully under-endowed in the talent department, Ruan Hollywood, who steals the show. Ruan deals with his self-esteem and parental issues as he plays a buckled toaster with a pair of forks, sharing the minutia of his small-town trip down the road to fame.

Gino’s characters share an inability to accurately perceive exactly what is going on around them, all the while trying to compensate for their short-comings. In doing so, hilarious consequences ensue as Fabbri moves from naughty stand-up comedian to quirky singer.

Fabbri does not only have great comedy timing, but he is also the drummer for the popular Centrestage All-Star Band.
His likeable comedic characters have long endeared themselves to the band’s audiences, where he simultaneously performs a now traditional interval comedy spot at the Centrestage shows.

“Hiding behind the guise of a dysfunctional persona’s grants one an enormous amount of licence!”, says Fabbri.
“I regularly get to say what I have always wanted to – often exactly what everyone is thinking, but what they are too polite to say out aloud.”

Rancid Punjabi, my Indian sports-betting and Bollywood character, is particularly good at putting his foot in his mouth, as he has a habit of expressing his internal monologue without considering the social appropriateness there-of”, laughs Fabbri.

Rancid made an appearance on the Algoa Fm breakfast show last week as an owner of one of the IPL cricket sides – where he frustrated cricket purists by announcing his plans to start a 10-10 cricket tournament to combat the relatively slow form of the game which he perceives 20-20 to be!

“Toast is definitely an antidote to deep thinking”, says Fabbri.

“My characters let their flaws hang out, oblivious to the fact that we can all see them. I think its funny to audiences because they recognize their own shortcomings in these characters – and we are all secretly afraid that our own insecurities are as clearly visible for the world to see!!”


“We are having a lot of fun working on the new show, which is called NUTS (Not the Squirrel Kind), so the Toast DVD is a last opportunity to capture the first show before the new one rolls out”, says Fabbri.


“Hiding behind the guise of a dysfunctional persona’s grants one an enormous amount of licence!”, says Fabbri.
“I regularly get to say what I have always wanted to – often exactly what everyone is thinking, but what they are too polite to say out aloud. Rancid Punjabi, my Indian sports-betting and Bollywood character, is particularly good at putting his foot in his mouth, as he has a habit of expressing his internal monologue without considering the social appropriateness there-of”, laughs Fabbri. Gino is in high demand in the corporate arena as MC for functions. “The characters are a great anti-dote to formality”, says Fabbri.


“By having these crazy, larger than life personas handle the boring bits in a function, we show that we are not taking ourselves too seriously – people relax and the fun starts sooner. It is also a great way to turn function-killers like prize givings and awards ceremonies into entertainment highlights rather than obligations. I thrive on the licence this gives me to throw things out off the cuff”, he continues, “my characters are consistently growing as a result”.

“Toast is an antidote to deep thinking”, says Fabbri. “But at the same time, my characters do let their flaws hang out, oblivious to the fact that we can all see them. I think its funny to audiences because they recognize their own shortcomings in these characters – and we are all secretly afraid that our own insecurities are as clearly visible for the world to see!!”


Gino kicked off his comedy career playing Austin Powers in the Centrestage spoof For Your Thighs Only. This was followed by a series of festival shows each year, in which he teamed up with Tara-Jane Metzler and Clifford Klebb for the murder mystery spoof The Unusual Suspects and later The Libido Loco Roadshow, The Tragic Incompetence of Lejeandervonne Rensburg and Bad Sports. Last year, he teamed up with Donna Africa and Rory Mclaren to present The Anything Can Happen Show at the Grahamstown Festival.


Donna is also a regular Centrestage All-Star Band performer. She is stunning in the role of cabaret diva with her explosive stage personality and huge voice. Donna has also previously partnered with Rory McLaren in When 2 Stars Collide.


“There is no age restriction ... only a money restriction”, says Rancid Punjabi.

And now for something completely new & different!
For the first time ever - 2 of PE's Greatest comedians live & hilarious on stage!
Barry Hilton & Gino Fabbri in "Funny you should say that!" - CLICK HERE