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A review by saareman
One Man, Two Guvnors by Richard Bean, Carlo Goldoni
4.0
A Laugh Riot
Review of the Dramatists Play Services Inc. paperback (January 2013) of the Oberon Plays (National Theatre) original (2011) adapted from the original Italian comedy of Carlo Goldoni's [b:Il Servitore Di Due Padroni|233899|Il Servitore Di Due Padroni|Carlo Goldoni|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1450312503l/233899._SY75_.jpg|1014537] (The Servant of Two Masters) (1745).
I went to a recent live performance of One Man, Two Guvnors at Canada's Shaw Festival in Niagara-On-The-Lake this past weekend and it was the most hilarious and entertaining play of the several that I saw. Much of that has to do with the often outrageous performances by the cast and several clever improvisations and interactions with the audience. Saying more about the latter would be a huge spoiler though.
Reading the play and the source material afterwards shows that almost all of it was on the written page and had its basis in the Italian original. The setting becomes 1963 in Brighton, England rather than 1745 in Venice, Italy. This allows for various early Beatles and skiffle band references and performances. On the page, some of it will probably read flat and some of the jokes (esp. some inside-baseball British circumstances) might fly over your head. In a live performance though, a talented cast can pull it all off with a manic energy which will keep an audience roaring throughout.
Poster for Canada's Shaw Festival 2024 production of "One Man, Two Guvnors" featuring Peter Fernandes in the role of Francis Henshall. Image sourced from Shaw Festival.
In the Shaw Festival production I only noticed one major change from the playscript. Several disparaging references about moving to Australia in the original were changed to moving to Canada in order to allow some self-deprecatory humour by the Canuck actors.
A 4 star rating for the script, which can easily become a 5 star on the stage with a cast that can pull it off. In the Canadian production I especially enjoyed the performance of Peter Fernandes in the lead role of Frances Henshall, recognizing him from performances early last year as Benjy the Beagle in the Crow's Theatre performances of Fifteen Dogs.
The cast of the Shaw Festival 2024 production of "One Man, Two Guvnors" take a bow at curtain call to a standing ovation. Lead actor Peter Fernandes front and centre. Source: my own photograph.
Soundtrack
The lyrics and music for the skiffle band songs written by [a:Grant Olding|4283593|Grant Olding|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png] for performance during the play do not appear in Richard Bean's playscript, except for the lyrics to the finale song "Tomorrow Looks Good From Here". You can hear the entire soundtrack of 15 songs on YouTube from a playlist which starts here or on Spotify here.
Pro-Tip
If you are seeing One Man, Two Guvnors in the theatre, the initial several songs by the skiffle band are often treated as a prologue and might begin 10 or so minutes before the announced curtain time of the play. So get there early
Review of the Dramatists Play Services Inc. paperback (January 2013) of the Oberon Plays (National Theatre) original (2011) adapted from the original Italian comedy of Carlo Goldoni's [b:Il Servitore Di Due Padroni|233899|Il Servitore Di Due Padroni|Carlo Goldoni|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1450312503l/233899._SY75_.jpg|1014537] (The Servant of Two Masters) (1745).
I went to a recent live performance of One Man, Two Guvnors at Canada's Shaw Festival in Niagara-On-The-Lake this past weekend and it was the most hilarious and entertaining play of the several that I saw. Much of that has to do with the often outrageous performances by the cast and several clever improvisations and interactions with the audience. Saying more about the latter would be a huge spoiler though.
Reading the play and the source material afterwards shows that almost all of it was on the written page and had its basis in the Italian original. The setting becomes 1963 in Brighton, England rather than 1745 in Venice, Italy. This allows for various early Beatles and skiffle band references and performances. On the page, some of it will probably read flat and some of the jokes (esp. some inside-baseball British circumstances) might fly over your head. In a live performance though, a talented cast can pull it all off with a manic energy which will keep an audience roaring throughout.
Poster for Canada's Shaw Festival 2024 production of "One Man, Two Guvnors" featuring Peter Fernandes in the role of Francis Henshall. Image sourced from Shaw Festival.
In the Shaw Festival production I only noticed one major change from the playscript. Several disparaging references about moving to Australia in the original were changed to moving to Canada in order to allow some self-deprecatory humour by the Canuck actors.
A 4 star rating for the script, which can easily become a 5 star on the stage with a cast that can pull it off. In the Canadian production I especially enjoyed the performance of Peter Fernandes in the lead role of Frances Henshall, recognizing him from performances early last year as Benjy the Beagle in the Crow's Theatre performances of Fifteen Dogs.
The cast of the Shaw Festival 2024 production of "One Man, Two Guvnors" take a bow at curtain call to a standing ovation. Lead actor Peter Fernandes front and centre. Source: my own photograph.
Soundtrack
The lyrics and music for the skiffle band songs written by [a:Grant Olding|4283593|Grant Olding|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png] for performance during the play do not appear in Richard Bean's playscript, except for the lyrics to the finale song "Tomorrow Looks Good From Here". You can hear the entire soundtrack of 15 songs on YouTube from a playlist which starts here or on Spotify here.
Pro-Tip
If you are seeing One Man, Two Guvnors in the theatre, the initial several songs by the skiffle band are often treated as a prologue and might begin 10 or so minutes before the announced curtain time of the play. So get there early