MATT Laurent and Alessandra Ferrari play Quasimodo and Esmeralda in the musical Notre Dame de Paris where there is no happy-ever-after for them but off-stage, there's no separating the two. They have grown so comfortable with each other that they practically finish each other's sentences during an interview with BT earlier this week.

Ferrari says that she has become fast friends with Laurent and that the chemistry they have developed is crucial to the acting. "If you pretend, it won't work; we trust each other a lot," says the 23-year-old, who has previously worked on the French and Italian versions of the musical over the last four years.

The Italian actress has spent two of those starring opposite Laurent, who has also made a name for himself on the show and is a Notre Dame de Paris veteran, having been in it for the last 15 years. "Initially, I thought I was only going to do 30 shows but I've done about 700 now," laughs the Canadian native, 46.