Cast

Synopsis

A fast paced, hilarious farce, which follows the mixed fortunes of Francis Henshall. Having been fired from his skiffle band, Francis is down on his luck and permanently hungry, but suddenly finds himself employed by two bosses. The first is Roscoe Crabbe, a revered London gangster who is now in Brighton to collect £6000 from his fiancee’s father. But Roscoe is really his sister Rachel posing as her own dead brother, who has been killed by her boyfriend Stanley Stubbers. Holed up at the Cricketers’ Arms, the permanently ravenous Francis spots the chance of an extra meal ticket and takes a second job with one Stanley Stubbers, who is hiding from the police and waiting to be re-united with Rachel. To prevent discovery, Francis must keep his two guv’nors apart.

Directors Notes

It is 1963 and there is a cultural revolution coming; society is on the brink of change. But first, Francis Henshall, down on his luck and permanently hungry, must work out how to navigate having two jobs and two bosses. His first Guvnor is Roscoe Crabbe, revered London gangster who has come to Brighton to claim money owed to him by his fiancée’s father, Charlie Clench. However, it soon becomes clear that Roscoe is actually Rachel Crabbe, his twin sister in disguise. Roscoe was killed by Rachel’s boyfriend, Stanley Stubbers, and she needs the money to flee the country. Unfortunately for Francis, his second boss is Stanley who doesn’t know that Rachel is in Brighton. Stanley is in hiding from the police. To prevent discovery and earn money from both guvnors, Francis must keep Rachel and Stanley apart. Meanwhile, Roscoe’s fiancée and Charlie’s daughter, Pauline Clench, must keep Rachel’s disguise a secret, risking her own future happiness with aspiring actor, Alan Dangle. Throw into the pot a buxom bookkeeper, a loquacious lawyer, two hapless hospitality workers, and a chef who learned a thing or two in prison, and One Man, Two Guvnors is a recipe for a rollicking, riotous evening at the theatre.

Based on the play Servant of Two Masters by Carlo Goldoni, Richard Bean’s 2011 adaptation of the play became an international hit after it opened at The National Theatre before transferring into the West End, wowing audiences on Broadway, and touring the UK several times. The play has been replanted into the 1960s but retains the characteristics of the Commedia dell’Arte of the 1560s with stock characters and slapstick comedy that would become the staples of pantomime, Punch and Judy shows, silent movies and many of our favourite sit-coms.