One Man, Two Guvnors - "I laughed my socks off"

This has to be one of the funniest shows I’ve seen in years. I was quite literally gasping for breath at some points.  A classic British comedy set in Brighton involving murder, cross-dressing, mistaken identity and a good dose of innuendo. In the programme is a picture of Barbara Windsor in that classic scene from Carry on Camping, and this just about sums up the humour of One Man, Two Guvnors.  It does make you question how this humour translates to foreign audiences, as it has often been said that British humour is very unique and the show features a fair few British “in” jokes although perhaps I’m not giving our foreign audiences enough credit.

It did take me a while to get into this genre, farce is definitely not to be taken too seriously and once you realise that they will talk directly to the audience panto style and they will corpse (whether intended or not) this is British entertainment at its finest.  The truly ridiculous plot merely acts as a springboard for the character based comedy and the physical stunts.

http://www.theguardian.com/culture/2013/mar/06/one-man-two-guvnors-adelaide-festival
Box of tricks … Owain Arthur as Francis Henshall in Richard Bean's One Man, Two Guvnors. Photograph: Johan Persson

Physical comedy is one of the best elements of this show, the elderly waiter who falls down stairs, gets repeatedly smashed in the face by an opening door and bends over at a seemingly impossible angle is a treat.  Francis Henshalls (Owain Arthur) physically comedy is seemingly endless, from fighting himself to trying to lift a seemingly heavy trunk.  As well as the physical ‘stunts’ his subtle physically comedy and knowing looks at the audience created a real connection between character and audience, you left feeling like a night in the pub with Francis would be a treat.  The scene in the pub was reminiscent of Fawlty Towers, I half expected Manuel to run out of one of the doors and join in on the action with a seething Basil Fawlty chasing him.

One of my favourite bits of the show was the 60s style band who perform before the show starts and also during scene changes. I loved their style, gorgeous suits, perfect hair and a bit of Elvis leg action. The songs were pretty good too, classic 60s style rockabilly and skiffle tracks that perfectly suited the show. 

The set of Brighton was also fantastic, it was immediately obvious it was Brighton and the sea on the backdrop looked incredibly realistic.  With it’s almost panto-esque feel the set definitely added to the overall feel of the show, cartoonish yet brilliantly done.

The funniest part of last nights show was definitely the audience interaction, Francis preys on two unsuspecting men in the front row (to be avoided if you go!) who are asked to merely carry a trunk across the stage.  A simply task you would think, however the comedy value two members of the public can produce is not to be underrated at any cost, it was truly hilarious watching an old gentleman from Colorado struggle to lift a trunk in the most awkward way possible.  Another element of audience interaction, which I don’t want to spoil for anyone who has not seen the show, is shockingly hysterical with an unexpected twist!

Overall, although this show won’t stay with me on the same level that some shows I’ve seen recently have, I thoroughly enjoyed my evening, it was entertainment as it should be and a chance to become immersed in a mad world. I feel refreshed from laughing so hysterically, it should be a form of therapy to see this show and just laugh until you can’t laugh anymore.