(* – 2025 co-production with Echo Theater Company)

Neglected and deeply misunderstood, a clown conjures her favorite female radicals from history in order to make sense of her own absurdity, landing Bella in her present confinement behind bars. Theatre Ghosts presents the revival of Echo Theatre Company’s A Bella Incarceration, a new solo play by veteran Los Angeles playwright and performer Ann Noble.

Bella Ventricle is a lady. She is also a clown. And while she has always had very strong opinions, she has never done anything about them… until now. Until she felt she had no choice but to engage in an act of civil disobedience in order to stand up for those who could not stand up for themselves. But, being arrested is a bit more than she can handle; so, to comfort herself — and, perhaps, to understand a bit more about why she did what she did — she calls upon the beings of her favorite female radicals from history. Women who, Bella feels, would do, and indeed did, the most courageous things for love.

PENNY …  Ann Noble

written &n directed by Ann Noble

ARTISTS

WORD:

“A masterclass in clowning, movement, and characterization that would make Anna Deavere Smith proud. Ann Noble knocks it out of the park.”

“Without a doubt one of the most moving pieces of live theater I have ever seen.”

“Brilliant!”

“Gorgeously and sharply written, astoundingly creative, and beautifully acted. It provokes so many beautiful and complex emotions.”

“…As Bella, Noble brings her wistful protagonist to life with her expressive eyes, her animated and bubbly voice and graceful gestures. The accomplished actor brings both an element of vulnerability as well as strength and resilience to a role that is both captivating and heartbreaking. She has a sweet personality throughout most of this short (one hour) play, with oblique hints that she might be slightly deranged due to some possible abuse at the hands of her mother when she was little.” – ArtsBeatLA (full review)

“…This unadorned Bella has no wig, no nose, no blue scrubs, and no high-pitched voice. She finally tells the truth about herself and apparently wins her own freedom in that way, dancing around to an instrumental version of “The Sound of Silence” as she sheds the role she’d been forcing upon herself. This is the best, most intriguing version of Bella, though the audience unfortunately sees very little of it. Nevertheless, the show succeeds in being a refreshingly offbeat, charming showcase for Noble’s undeniable talents.” – Stage Raw (full review)

“If I can’t dance, it’s not my revolution” – Emma Goldman

“The greatest challenge of the day is how to bring about a revolution of the heart” – Dorothy Day

“I have never written a word that did not come from my heart” – Nellie Bly

“One must understand that one gains certain perspectives after having certain experiences” – Bella Ventricle

A BELLA INCARCERATION / HFF REVIEWS