![\"Kasey](\"https:\/\/itsnotaboutme.tv\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/One-Man-Two-Guvnors_111.jpg\")
<\/a>Kasey Mahaffy. Photo by Craig Schwartz, as is the one at the top of this review.<\/p><\/div>\n
The story is so crazy! And fun. The writing, by prolific British playwright Richard Bean, is brilliant! As is the company\u2019s star, (and Resident Artist,) Kasey Mahaffy. If you\u2019ve seen his work before, you\u2019re adding \u201cof course\u201d to that sentence.<\/p>\n
One Man, Two Guvnors<\/em> originated in England in 2011 and moved to Broadway in 2012.\u00a0 It\u2019s based on a commedia dell\u2019arte play from the 1700s! And now we Angelenos are lucky enough to see what I feel is a never-to-be-surpassed presentation of it.<\/p>\n The scenario is very hard to explain succinctly, so suffice it to say that it\u2019s a classic British farce which takes place in 1963.\u00a0 And it contains lots of physical comedy\u2026very<\/em> physical! The actors must each lose ten pounds a night!!!<\/p>\n The plot is complicated, but all you need to know is that \u201cguvnor\u201d means \u201cboss,\u201d and I guess that English employees were supposed to have just one in the \u201960s. And it goes from there.<\/p>\n Just about every line is perfection. I especially loved these two from the second act: \u201cI\u2019ve never felt worse; it felt like four o\u2019clock in the middle of winter!\u201d And, \u201cThat\u2019s what love is\u2014forgiving someone when they\u2019ve been a right dickhead.\u201d (I actually know both of those feelings myself! But haven\u2019t we all?)<\/p>\n Josey Montana McCoy. Photo by Craig Schwartz.<\/p><\/div>\n With Kasey\u2019s absolutely dazzling tour de force performance, one might think that the rest of the cast might pale beside him, but that is definitely not the case here. Every<\/em> actor works magic, but in addition to Kasey, I especially enjoyed Paul David Story as a wannabe actor who\u2019s engaged to a dimwitted girl. I can definitely hear him doing an excellent Shakespeare character. And Josey Montana McCoy, as an elderly waiter, gave me many hearty laughs with pratfalls that made Mr. X chuckle just hearing<\/em> about them! (Sadly, my bae couldn\u2019t go to the opening with me, but, if we can free up another day or night during the play\u2019s short run, I\u2019ll be happy to see it again with him.)<\/p>\n I knew next to nothing about One Man, Two Guvnors<\/em> going in, which, in my humble opinion, is how everybody<\/em> should see performances.\u00a0(Well, maybe at\u00a0least know the genre<\/em>\u2014when Mr. X and I were at a screening of Joker<\/em> a few years ago, two women sat down in front of us, and one said, \u201cI hope it\u2019s funny!\u201d We were dying to set them straight, but we let the first few minutes of the film do that. They gasped and left in a hurry!)<\/p>\n However, the night before this opening, it hit me out of the blue that it just might be a show that gave me two good moments in my life, so I looked it up, and I was correct! (If you want to know those quick little tales, they’ll be at the end of this review, immediately after the info section. And here\u2019s a hint\u2014they involve the original star, James Corden.) Actually, the day after<\/em> the opening, I was trying to find a video of James Corden doing a monologue from it on the Tonys, and I came across a montage of several of the highlights from the West End production. And guess what? I swear\u2014this Noise Within presentation is better!<\/p>\n Christie Coran and Ty Aldridge. Photo by Craig Schwartz.<\/p><\/div>\n When I watch British movies or TV shows, I always need closed captions. I could have used them here, as well, at the beginning, so I wasn\u2019t quite sure of what exactly was happening in the first five minutes or so. But I got used to their very authentic British accents pretty quickly. And you almost don\u2019t need to completely understand the narrative to get on board with the humor right away.<\/p>\n Trisha Miller and Kasey Mahaffy. Photo by Craig Schwartz.<\/p><\/div>\n My friend also went wild for it. Her brief review is, \u201cAnyone who has never seen it before will be totally amazed. It’s a wild and fun show. Really a different experience for theater. Especially when the audience is involved in the story, it’s even more unique and refreshing.\u201d<\/p>\n The Frederica Nascimento-designed sets are perfect in every way. And there are occasional giant projections in the background. At one point, they even featured part of that viral video of a dancer on one of the TV music shows in the \u201960s, doing his crazily energetic steps to The Nitty Gritty<\/em>, (but without the music here.) I was thrilled to see it because that guy is\u2026my<\/em> former jazz dance teacher, Bob Banas! I love seeing even a second of his nuttiness at all times, and it fit right in with this show. [Note: If you\u2019ve never seen the clip, you positively must research it right away!]<\/p>\n I suggest getting to your seats early because on one side of the stage is a live four-man old-fashioned skiffle band who play for about ten minutes before the show. They continue throughout the play, with a few brief songs and dances in-between the action. They also do a plethora of comedic sound effects, which are all spot-on. The timing is ridiculously accurate. I occasionally felt like I had gone back in time, (and to Merry Olde,) to see a British Music Hall comedy!<\/p>\n The great beginning set with the fun band off to the side. Photo by Karen Salkin.<\/p><\/div>\n One important admonition, though\u2014do not see One Man, Two Guvnors<\/em> hungry! The main character mentions food a lot in Act I\u2014I even thought I heard my stomach rumble because of the references. And I don\u2019t want anyone to be distracted from all the fabulousness for even one little second!<\/p>\n By the way\u2014A Noise Within is the most comfortable theatre, with nary a bad seat.<\/p>\n And one more thing I adore about this company is that the entire Opening Night audience is invited to the after-party, where they can meet and laud the artists while enjoying some good snacks. In this<\/em> case, it was perfect because we were all famished from hearing about food in the script so much!<\/p>\n Perusing A Noise Within\u2019s upcoming full season schedule, it looks like this will be their last comedy for their next handful of shows, so, if like I do, you love a good laugh, you need to see this one before their dearth of mirth begins. I promise you that it\u2019s a great one!<\/p>\n One Man, Two Guvnors<\/em>\u00a0running through September 28, 2025<\/strong><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a>
\n \u2028A Noise Within \u00a03352 E. Foothill Blvd.\u00a0 Pasadena<\/strong>
\n 626-356-3121\u00a0 www.anoisewithin.or<\/a>g<\/strong><\/p>\n