By Jennifer Beasley.
Mayhem, mischief and amorous misadventure visit Piano On Swan as this outstanding crew of actors and musicians perform one of the great British comedies of the twentieth century.
I’m so very glad that I accepted the invitation from J & L Entertainment, run by Johno and Lynette White, for this new take on One Man, Two Guvnors, as both my companion and I have never laughed so hard.
This is the show that set James Corden onto film and theatre glory and won him a shiny Tony Award in 2012.
Based on the Italian absurdist play, Il servitore di due padroni, or The Servant of Two Masters, written in 1743 by Carlo Gordoni, British playwright Richard Bean, who wrote this in 2011, has updated this comedy of errors to 1963 Brighton, England.
The premise involves fast talking and starving Francis Henshall, who takes up first one employment as the ‘heavy’ for Roscoe Crabbe, a small time gangster, and then, hedging his bets so that he can get a feed, with upper class twat Stanley Stubbers, who holds a dark secret and is in love with Crabbe’s twin sister, Rachel. Henshall, not wanting to lose out on the extra paycheck, separates the two employers as much as he can, despite the antics of retired mobster Charlie The Duck, whose ‘I don’t understand’ bright spark of a daughter, Pauline, wisely doesn’t want to marry gay Crabbe, who isn’t what he seems. Like all good comedies, this story is peppered with a complicated love plot between Pauline her amour, over-the-top actor Alan, his father, Harry Dangle, a solicitor that works for Charlie The Duck, and fires off Latin like a machine gun, and mob bookkeeper Dolly, who catches the eye of Henshall, who, once fed, is extremely motivated to whisk the sultry Dolly off to Majorca to explore…things.
Daragh Wills (School of Rock) maintains the frantic energy required for Henshall throughout this marvellous performance. I have to commend both the director Johno White and the setting at Piano On Swan, where such an unusual environment as an intimate bar brings the action almost on top of you. A great use of the setting and available space really transforms this play. The physicality of the actors translated in a tight-knit weave of acting units, as improv, witty repartee and Wills own commanding personality glued this production into a finely honed weapon of humour.
There’s a live skiffle band which plays the pumping soundtrack (original on Spotify), as well as audience interaction, a tap dance, a singing trio and more switch-a-roos than you can point a finger at!
Zoe Rose (Cruel Intentions) as Rachel Crabbe handles herself well, in this wild and wacky comedy, as her role was the hardest to nail down and great support by the other actors highlighted her believability. As this was opening night, I’m sure any stiffness will resolve.
Not only directing but acting too is Johno White (Mary Poppins), who vies for best performance with Wills. Playing the snobbish and deceitful Stanley Stubbins, his gormlessness gleams through at every encounter, peppering his speech with boarding school ‘joys’ and his angst about his ‘crime’. A very likeable character as he struts around like a nine pinned ninny, ordering around Wills with no care for his silly actions.
Bringing a bit of raunch to the role of Dolly is Sharon Wills (&Juliet). Supported by the low-down musical riff from Darcy Gurney and his band, and the technical prowess of Shan Kestan, this added another layer of humour with every entrance Dolly makes during the second act as she bats her eyelashes at Wills.
This is one of those shows where all the crew are so finely tuned you feel dreadful if you leave anyone out. The contained snobby performance of Alan (a brilliant Dylan Mazurek) as he monologues endlessly about buses and then does a gut wrenchingly funny body tapping in time to the music is a wonderful compliment to the vagueness of his beloved, the wide-eyed Pauline (Emily Toby from Grease).
Andrew Roberts (Into The Woods) is astoundingly good as the mobster Charlie The Duck, and his sidekick, shifty lawyer Harry Dingle is acted with cheek by Mark Monroe, a fabulous veteran of stage and screen and who I loved in Chitty, Chitty, Bang, Bang. He also did a hilarious turn as Garth the waiter, managing to steal that scene right out from under Wills.
Flowing from both the band and the floor, Lloyd, owner of The Cricketer’s Arms, where much of the story is set, is a stabilising influence on the play. Sujanthan Satkunarajah (&Juliet), bedecked in a lovely pinstriped white suit, performs in a measured and calm manner, thus allowing the mayhem to flow around him, and giving those much-needed pauses that allows the audience to take a breath. Often people overlook the importance of a calmer character, but they are integral to a performance that whirls around, through and out the door as much as this one does.
And just when you think things wouldn’t get any dafter, the delicious and dopey Tony Burge (Mamma’s Boys) as 87-year-old-thinks-he’s-86-but-has-a-supercharged-pacemaker as Alfie. Just don’t let him carry any knives and forks on plates or they’ll end up next door.
Fabulous, fabulous, fabulous. Do not miss this at all!
And if you are looking for a good feed to sustain you before this two-and-a-half-hour show then I recommend Casa Mariotti across the road, and then a drink poured by Targe at the bar at Piano On Swan. One must conserve one’s energy!
5 fat lamb chop stars! Go J & L entertainment!!!
One Man, Two Guvnors is playing at Piano on Swan, 215 Swan St Richmond, 7:00pm (Weekend 6:00pm) until 15th April 2026.
Image: Darcy K Scales
