One Man, Two Guvnors

James Corden’s Vogue Interview

admin — Sat, 24 Mar 2012 22:02:36 +0000

picture from Vogue

James Corden is coming to Broadway!

Although unknown in America, to people in the United Kingdom, James Corden is ‘Smithy’ the hilarious character from the hit BBC series Gavin & Stacey. A show he incidentally co-wrote. Yet all that could change very soon when the Theatre show he is starring in One Man, Two Guvnors hits Broadway this April.

Nicholas Hytner, the director in the UK will also be directing the show on Broadway. This isn’t the first time that that director Nicholas Hytner has worked with James Corden. Hytner first directed him in the play ‘The History Boys’ which also had a run on Broadway. Hytner recalls, “He walked in, took over the room, and ten minutes later we gave him the part”

Director Nicholas Hytner says “One Man, Two Guvnors has a decidedly British sensibility that evokes the heyday of the music hall and the Carry On films”. “There’s something really low, really vulgar, and really popular about this form of comedy,” he says. “It’s refreshing not having to be sophisticated.”

Journalist Adam Green interviewed James Corden this month for Vogue magazine and photographer Ralph Mecke has produced some stunning pictures of Corden that make him look good.

Green rates all the performers in one man, two guvnors but says “Corden is something else. With his generous avoirdupois and a genial face that betrays every larcenous impulse, muddled thought, and juvenile emotion, he evokes such comic forebears as Fatty Arbuckle and Laurel and Hardy (both). A fearless physical comedian, he hurls himself backward over a chair, smashes himself in the face with a trash-can lid, and gets his tongue caught in a mousetrap while trying to extract a piece of cheese. Audiences have met the show with laughter that borders on hysteria, especially during a set piece that involves Francis’s trying to serve dinner to both his masters at the same time.”

So what are Corden’s comedic influences? Growing up Corden idolized British TV star Ronnie Barker and the comedians he saw on Saturday Night Live. “I loved how there was always a plethora of big guys on the show—John Belushi, John Candy, Will Ferrell,” he says. “If you’re growing up and you’re a bit chubby, you might get picked on, but if you see those guys on TV being funny it gives you great hope.” After his father took him to see his first West End show, he announced, “That’s what I want to do, Dad.”

Corden can’t wait for the experience of taking pratfalls, insulting audience members, and tossing off smutty innuendos on Broadway. “I didn’t grow up wanting to play Hamlet—I grew up wanting to do this,” Corden says. “I don’t know if I’ll ever have a better part. It’s an absolute joy. For two and a half hours every night, all that’s required of you is to get up in front of a lot of people and be as funny as possible.

The other big bonus of doing such a physical show is the amount of weight that Corden has lost. Apparently it’s about 70pounds! He says he would like to lose a little more weight but will never be a small guy. At Thirty three, Corden is engaged and has a one year old son. He says he’s the happiest he has ever been. One Man, Two Guvnors arrives in Broadway this April.

You can read the full Vogue article here.

One Man, Two Guvnors

Will Broadway audiences warm to the British humour of one man two guvnors

admin — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 19:26:33 +0000

Lost In Translation? | One Man, Two Guvnors

Brits are a cynical bunch. I should know I am one! In my personal opinion we have some of the greatest creative minds in the world. We love to see the underdog suceed and do well. Yet nothing seems to satisfy us more than seeing the successful fail. Nobody rejoiced more than the British press when Ricky Gervais directed a mediocre film ‘The invention of lying’ and his recent television output ‘Life’s too short’ received lower audience figures. So what does Simon Billington from the Guardian think of the chances of the West End Smash hit of 2011, One Man, Two Guvnors, succeeding in Broadway?

The conventional wisdom used to be that nothing divided the Brits and the Americans so much as their taste in comedy. Neil Simon’s plays never made the same impact here that they did in New York: indeed he once told me that he spent more on London hotel bills than he ever earned in British royalties. Similarly, Alan Ayckbourn was never as much appreciated on Broadway as he was in the West End or in Scarborough. There’s a famous story of his American producers trying to reverse the order of the second and third acts in Absurd Person Singular because they thought a play should build to a comic crescendo.

Will the British humour of One Man, Two Guvnors translate well?

So is One Man, Two Guvnors run over before an audience ever gets to see it. Billington doesn’t think so. He says:

But those days when Brits allegedly balked at American one-liners while the Americans resisted our love of irony and innuendo are long gone – if, indeed, they ever existed. One reason is that TV and the internet have now made every possible type of comedy from either side of the pond instantly available. We sit in front of our screens watching re-runs of Seinfeld, Cheers, Frasier and all the rest and keep up to date, if we so choose, with Jon Stewart and Saturday Night Live. Meanwhile Americans, who’ve always nursed a passion for Benny Hill’s non-PC comedy, can’t seem to get enough of our own current icons including Ricky Gervais and Sacha Baron Cohen. So why wouldn’t they love James Corden and One Man, Two Guvnors?

There’s yet another reason why I suspect the show will be a smash on Broadway: it appeals to that appetite for the interactive that is all around us today. I have a theory that audiences have got slightly sick of sitting in the dark for two-and-a-half hours being ignored by the actors. They crave acknowledgment and involvement. You see this in every performance at Shakespeare’s Globe. And it is certainly a big feature of One Man, Two Guvnors, where James Corden repeatedly turns to us for help and meets, with the notable exception of Max Hastings, willing volunteers.

Along with Bean’s tight script, the show retains an atmosphere of improvisatory freedom that audiences love. I still remember the aghast stare on Corden’s face when, on the show’s West End opening night, his appeal for a sandwich was met with a packet of mini pork-pies that a lady produced from her handbag and hurled at his feet. They’ll love things like that on Broadway. I just hope Bean isn’t obliged to tweak his script too much to dilute the local references: what New York wants, I suspect, is the full English rather than some watery mid-Atlantic compromise. As long as they get the real deal, I predict the show will knock ‘em dead.

Even a British journalist wishes One Man, Two Guvnors success!

So there you go. A cynical British journalist has high hopes for One Man, Two Guvnors when it comes to Broadway at the start of April. Or is it just that desire to root for the underdog kicking in again?

There are lots of reviews of the show from professional critics online but what do the public think?

One man, Two Govnors tickets are available here

One Man, Two Guvnors

The very British humour of one man, two guvnors

admin — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 14:59:48 +0000

Stage corner is a website that reviews theatre shows that come out of East Kent. This is what they wrote about one man, two guvnors. I mentioned in another article on one man, two guvnors coming to Broadway, that there will be some changes to the show when it comes to America. This review will give you a sense of some of the more British elements of the plot.

Although based on Carlo Goldoni’s 18th century play The Servant of Two Masters, the production is firmly set in Brighton in 1963 among small-time gangsters. There are jokes about Princess Margaret and Ringo Starr, an early radical feminist predicts a future first female prime minister who will bring peace and fairness to society and “a pub that serves food” is seen as a wonder. While scenes are shifted – and the south coast townscape is skilfully evoked – you are entertained by live music of various genres from skiffle through four-piece rock and shinily dressed girl group to calypso.

The plot of one man, two guvnors is as old as Plutarch, a riff on confusion of twins. James Corden is at the heart of it all as Francis Henshall, a man ready to do anything for food. If you’ve only seen him on TV as I had, this is a revelation – expert comic timing, rapport with the audience, switching easily from innocent bewilderment to high cunning and all the emotions in between. As befits a play with links to Comedia dell’Arte, there is more comic business than in a Norman Wisdom film. Around Corden is an array of stock characters – a decrepit waiter who out-Manuels Manuel, an over-romantic lover with theatrical delusions, a toff, a lawyer who impresses with Latin and so on and so on – who still manage at times to touch emotions. “I don’t understand” wails the pretty-but-thick romantic heroine at various points as the plot-lines multiply. Goldoni, I think, would be pleased, even though he might not understand the references to cricket.

The Lyttleton Theatre was filled with laughter and sometimes a little fear as audience members were coaxed onto the stage. Highly recommended. But don’t book a front row seat if you don’t want to risk becoming part of the action.

A Review by Derek Sellen from stagecorner.com

I like this review a lot. It gives a good overview of the very british humour elements in one man, two guvnors. I will be really interested to see what changes when the show comes to Broadway.

One Man, Two Guvnors

one man, two guvnors | John Morrison Review

admin — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 11:14:25 +0000

I found this brilliant review of one man, two guvnors from a blog written by John Morrison. John was very critical of one man, two guvnors writer Richard Bean’s last play the The Heretic. He says

As a satirist, he can be heavy-handed, but at his best he creates a demented sense of anarchy on stage. England People Very Nice had a wonderful scene of Orthodox Jews in late Victorian London being pelted with bacon sandwiches by Jewish revolutionaries, and that’s the kind of off-the-wall comedy that Bean does best.

So let’s see what John thinks of Beans latest play.

One Man, Two Guvnors – I love 1963

I’ve always been fascinated by 1963, so imagine my delight at finding myself surrounded by a grey-haired National Theatre matinee audience stomping, clapping and shouting their appreciation at a bunch of musicians in shiny Italian suits with razor-sharp creases who seem to have stepped straight out of that magic period. The band in one man, two guvnors have two guitars, a double bass, drums/washboard and a musical repertoire that straddles the faultline between Lonnie Donegan and the Beatles, between 1950s skiffle and the more bluesy early 1960s.

For me, as Cliff Richard and Tommy Steele gave way to Lennon and Macartney, it was the end of childhood. Like most of the afternoon audience in the Lyttleton theatre, my memories of 1963 pop music are etched as strongly as the tracks on an EP record (remember those?). Ask me about the X Factor and I score 0 out of 10, but play two bars of an early Beatles tune and my remaining grey cells get up out of their seats and start to dance around. A good start to one man, two guvnors.

Cracking tunes in one man, two guvnors

All of which is a way of saying that the musical accompaniment to one man, two guvnors, composed by Grant Olding and played by him and ’The Craze’ (pun intended, I think), would be worth the price of the ticket on its own, even if One Man, Two Guvnors wasn’t the funniest thing the National have staged since their last revival of Michael Frayn’s Noises Off. Richard Bean has reworked Carlo Goldoni’s 18th century comedy A Servant to Two Masters, setting it in the fringes of the criminal underworld in Brighton in 1963. I recall a very funny RSC production of this play, adapted by the excellent Lee Hall back in the 1990s, some time before he wrote Billy Elliot.

Tim Supple directed and Jason Watkins played Truffaldino, the servant caught between two employers. I remember bowls of spaghetti being served to patrons lucky enough to be sitting in the front row of the Young Vic, and I still have a copy of Hall’s play, which he described as an attempt to reinstate Goldoni.

One man, two guvnors revolves around Corden, who is terrific; his timing is impeccable, his physical dexterity enhanced by his bulky, Bunterish figure. Above all, his backchat with the audience when he appeals for a sandwich has a genuine air of spontaneity. When he appears for a brief moment in a fez, it’s more than just a homage to Tommy Cooper. The panto element in one man, two guvnors involves inviting members of the audience up on stage to take part in the business — something that breaks down the invisible fourth wall. There’s a scene involving Corden, two waiters, his two bosses and several platefuls of food at the end of Act One which made me laugh more than anything I’ve seen on stage since I saw Mark Rylance in Boeing-Boeing.

The rest of the cast in one man, two guvnors are also pitch-perfect, as are the 1963 costumes and the old-fashioned flats recreating Brighton. Bean’s play creaks a bit towards the end, but Hytner’s direction more than makes up for any weaknesses. What I missed in the story was a sense of real danger and jeopardy for the central character to make him afraid of being found out.

One man, two guvnors | a loose interpretation

Bean’s version of a servant to two masters is much more of a free adaptation; it’s a hybrid farce, owing something to the Whitehall/Brian Rix/Ray Cooney tradition, a little to the Victorian world of Pinero in which food becomes a substitute for sex, and a surprising amount to Joe Orton’s Loot and to the art of Christmas pantomime. Truffaldino is now Francis Henshall (James Corden), a minder to gangster’s moll Rachel Crabbe, who is impersonating her dead brother, murdered by her lover Stanley Stubbers. Francis ends up working for both Rachel and Stanley simultaneously.

In this adaptation, directed with sublime precision by Nicholas Hytner, the accent is on physical comedy and slapstick. Instead of the non-stop clockwork plotting of Feydeau, Bean creates a world of verbal anarchy where the action sometimes grinds to a halt and spirals into absurdity, drawing on the Goons and Spike Milligan. ‘First names are for girls and Norwegians,’ one character insists. There’s a series of running gags about Australia and opera, a post-modern riff about a future woman prime minister, and some excellent sight gags. Overall view of one man, two guvnors; it’s riotously funny!

you can read more of John Morrison’s fantastic blog here.

One man two guvnors ticket availability

One Man, Two Guvnors

Samar’s video review of one man, two guvnors

admin — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 14:23:19 +0000

Found this video review from a girl called Samar. She’s not a professional critic or even an amateur one, she is just someone who sees the occasional show and this is her video review of one man, two guvnors.

I enjoyed this video review. I do check tend to check out critics opinions when I’m researching a show but every now and again it’s nice to watch something that’s not critical, smug or conterversial for the sake of it. This is just someone’s personal opinion of the show, one man, two guvnors. Enjoy.

One Man, Two Guvnors Tickets

One Man, Two Guvnors is coming to Broadway in April. You can read more about it here: 2 Guvnors comes to Broadway

One Man, Two Guvnors

One Man Two Guvnors projected in movie theatres

admin — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 11:01:10 +0000

One Man Two Guvnors shown in movie theatres

Before one man two guvnors comes to Broadway in April it was shown at select movie screens across America courtesy of NCM Fathom Event on 20th October 2011. The ticket prices were more than your average movie but much cheaper than travelling to London to see it live! This is what one person who attended the showing thought about it.

What was one man two guvnors like on a giant screen?

The experience included the sound of the live audience in London conversing as they waited for the production to begin. Over this we saw a slide show version of a program introducing us to the cast and artistic staff and then, right on time, one man two guvnors began with a small band performing before the act curtain. They had an early 1960s look and sound and gave a mini-concert of serveral songs. Three songs in, it was not clear what the point of this concert was, but later it was revealed that the main character, Francis (played with brilliant comic aplomb by James Corden) was fired from his skiffle band (quite a thin connection).

This band intrudes between scenes to cover set changes and gives another mini-concert to lead in the second act of one man two guvnors after an intermission, which only served to disturb the pace of an otherwise high energy and fast paced show. After the mini-concert and a first scene of exposition that introduced the players, the show really got going as Francis took on the job of serving two bosses at the same time. Both are hiding out in the pub and hotel known as the Cricketers’ Arms–popping in and out of doors and just missing each other.

One man two guvnors star turn from James Corden

The comedy arises from Francis having to constantly be in two places at once, while keeping his two bosses apart the whole time. The story is nonsense, but the situation and the colorful band of characters coming and going provided compounding laughs. James Corden’s performance is comic gold with amazing feats of physical comedy of the kind rarely seen since the reign of the silent screen comedians. His improvisation with the audience in London was a delight and his inteaction with his fellow peformers was open enough to receive the odd mishap or blunder and turn it into a fresh comic bit. Even as a recorded, projected experience, one had the feeling of seeing something that could only happen once.

This is the kind of National Theatre hit that might just make it across the pond to Broadway, but the lucky few who attended this Fathom Event showing got the best seats in the house early–as well as a back stage pass during intermission.

Review of one man two guvnors on screen by Michael D Jackson in Examiner.com

What’s interesting about this review of one man two guvnors is that the version shown was the original English version with all its quirks and quantness left in. The version that will appear on Broadway will be adapted for an American audience. I look forward to seeing how well these changes are taken.

One man two guvnors tickets

One Man, Two Guvnors

sold out tickets broker nightmare | StubHub phishing scam

admin — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 22:05:35 +0000

Shocking StubHub Email Scam | sold out tickets broker nightmare

Customers seeking sold out tickets from the eBay owned sold out tickets broker StubHub may have recently been caught out in what appears to be an email phishing scam.

StubHub discovered the scam Thursday morning and were soon inundated with phone calls.Spokesman Glen Lehrman was quoted as saying “We don’t have a sense yet of how big it is.”

What is the StubHub sold out tickets broker scam?

The phishing scam email has been sent to numerous people, not just StubHub customers seeking sold out tickets. It appears as a reciept for an order which comes to $2,766.95 for 2 boxing match tickets on November 12th in Las Vegas. The idea is that recipients see the invoice and click on the link to find out more about the reciept. If that person then enters the StubHub site, then their credit card details could potentially be stolen. So far no accounts have been charged but this situation certainly causes a lot of concern.

Phishing scams usually involve financial information being stolen by people clicking on the links in an email. The main country involved in online scams is Eastern Europe and sadly, this is where the StubHub scam seems to have originated from.

Advice for avoiding sold out tickets scams

When asked for his opinion Steve J Bernas, president and CEO of the Better Business Bereau for Chigago and northern Illinois said:

“Consumers should always investigate emails they receive that claim they are going to be charged for sold out tickets, goods and/or services, Go directly to the company for information and never enter your personal information including passwords and billing information as it may be a scam.”

If you want to help then, get word out on social media sites. Feel free to like this comment on Facebook, Google+ or tweet the message out. If you have received the email then it is very strongly suggested that you contact the Internet Compaint Center at www.ic3.gov or www.ftc.gov. IC3 is a partnership between the National White Collar Crime Center and the FBI.

StubHub have released the following statement on their website.

In October 2011 spammed e-mails went out purporting to be notices of impending purchases of expensive sold out tickets to a boxing match through the StubHub ticket reseller site. The notices were part of a phishing scam intended to capture personal information from alarmed recipients who attempted to use the phony links embedded in the messages to log in to their accounts and cancel charges for what appeared to be mistaken or unauthorized purchases.

We are aware that some people have received an email regarding order number 47223311, which they did not place. The email is a phishing email, and was NOT sent by StubHub or any affiliate. Your credit cards have not been charged. Please DO NOT click on any link in the email. If you have logged in to your account via one of the links in the email, you should log into your StubHub account immediately (.stubhub.com/account) to change your StubHub password. If you have not clicked on any of the links contained in the email, you can safely delete it.

A copy of the email is displayed below so that you can see what it looks like, minus the dodgy links. If you ever receive anything like this in your email then let the IC3 know immediately.

* Example of sold out tickets phishing scam only *

Email from StubHub Orders re: Order Placed – Ticket Order #47223311

Thanks for your order! We’ve instructed the seller to confirm your order within the next 48 hours. After the seller confirms your order, you can expect your tickets to be delivered by the date below.

Expected delivery date: Monday, 10/31/2011 (based on seller estimate)

Note: Your card has been authorized for the amount of your order but has NOT YET BEEN CHARGED. You will be charged when the seller confirms your order.

Please review the information below. Thanks for shopping at StubHub!

Login to StubHub! to view your order confirmation.
Order info
Order #: 47223311 | Order date: 10/27/2011
Manny Pacquiao vs Juan Manuel Marquez Boxing Tickets at MGM Grand Garden
Arena, Las Vegas, NV
Saturday, 11/12/2011 03:00 p.m. (PST) (Event time subject to change – Check local listings)
Quantity: 2 tickets
Section: Lower 17
Row: S | Seats: 16, 17
Shipping info
This shipment will be sent to:
A Smith
5953 S Denker Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90047
US
Shipping method: FedEx Standard Overnight
We don’t have a FedEx tracking number for you yet. We’ll send it with your order confirmation email.
Billing info
Price per ticket: $1250.00
Quantity: x 2
Subtotal: $2500.00
Service fee: + $250.00
Delivery services: + $16.95
Order total: $2766.95

Credit card:
The credit or debit card has been authorized but has not yet been charged.
Your card will be charged within the next 48 hours.

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One Man, Two Guvnors

One Man, Two Guvnors

James Corden’s Vogue Interview

James Corden is coming to Broadway!

Will Broadway audiences warm to the British humour of one man two guvnors

Lost In Translation? | One Man, Two Guvnors

Will the British humour of One Man, Two Guvnors translate well?

Even a British journalist wishes One Man, Two Guvnors success!

The very British humour of one man, two guvnors

one man, two guvnors | John Morrison Review

One Man, Two Guvnors – I love 1963

Cracking tunes in one man, two guvnors

One man, two guvnors | a loose interpretation

One man two guvnors ticket availability

Samar’s video review of one man, two guvnors

One Man Two Guvnors projected in movie theatres

One Man Two Guvnors shown in movie theatres

What was one man two guvnors like on a giant screen?

One man two guvnors star turn from James Corden

One man two guvnors tickets

sold out tickets broker nightmare | StubHub phishing scam

Shocking StubHub Email Scam | sold out tickets broker nightmare

What is the StubHub sold out tickets broker scam?

Advice for avoiding sold out tickets scams

*** Example of sold out tickets phishing scam only ***

* Example of sold out tickets phishing scam only *