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One Man, Two Guvnors on Great Performances

  • Fred Vigeant
James Corden in ONE MAN TWO GUVNORS at The National Theatre, 2011.

 Credit: Johan Persson

James Corden in ONE MAN TWO GUVNORS at The National Theatre, 2011.

Watch One Man, Two Guvnors on Great Performances Friday, November 6 at 9:00pm on WITF. You can stream WITF TV live on our website and through the PBS Video app on Roku, Apple TV and iPhone and Android smartphones. The program is also available on-demand through the PBS Video app.

 

On Great Performances on WITF, revel in this 1960s-era comedy featuring a Tony-winning performance by James Corden. Adapted from a 1743 farce, Corden plays a musician-turned-bodyguard trying to keep his two mobster clients apart, a tricky predicament resulting in comic mayhem.

Starring CBS’ “The Late Late Show” host James Corden in his Tony Award-winning role, One Man, Two Guvnors delighted both critics and audiences during its hugely popular debut at UK’s National Theatre and its subsequent productions in London’s West End and on Broadway in 2011 and 2012.

Adapted by playwright Richard Bean from a 1743 Commedia dell’arte farce and set in the British resort town of Brighton during the Swinging ’60s, the manic plot centers on an out-of-work musician named Francis Henshall (Corden) who becomes a bodyguard-minder to Roscoe Crabbe, a petty East End crook. Little does he know that “Roscoe” is actually his own sister, Rachel, now masquerading as her dead brother, who’s been killed by her boyfriend, Stanley Stubbers.

To complicate matters even more, when the perpetually ravenous Francis sees the chance for an extra meal ticket, he takes on a second job with Stanley, who is hiding out from the police and waiting to be reunited with Rachel. To prevent discovery, Francis must keep his “two guvnors” apart, an increasingly difficult predicament resulting in comic mayhem, and providing Corden with the opportunity for a series of spectacular sight gags and pratfalls.

Watch Great Performances: One Man, Two Guvnors premiere Friday, November 6 at 9:00pm on WITF.  You can now watch WITF TV live through our new webstream available through our website and through the PBS Video app on Roku, Apple TV and iPhone and Andriod smart phones. The program is also available on-demand through the PBS Video app.

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