Salina Central High School will will open its 2021-22 mainstage season with a fast-paced slapstick comedy.
Richard Bean's One Man, Two Guvnors is scheduled for 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2:30 p.m. Oct. 31. Tickets are on sale for $10 general admission and $5 for students and can be purchased in advance on the Central Theatre website or at the door. Audience will be able to pick their own seats in the auditorium and there will be no assigned seating. Masking is required for all audience members.
Prior to the Saturday performance, the Salina Central Theatre Boosters plan to have a Bangers & Mash meal from 5-7 p.m. outside the theatre on the west side of the building (S. Front Street side). Tickets for this event are $10 if pre-purchased by cast members or from Barbara Hilt, Central theatre director, in room 1601 and are $15 for walk-ups the day of the event. To-go options will be available. Meal includes bangers n’ mash, slaw, bread pudding or other dessert and a beverage. These tickets are sold separately from the tickets for the production. All proceeds from the meal will go to support future productions including Central's upcoming musical in Januaray, Anastasia the Musical.
Synopsis of the play provided by Central Theatre
One Man, Two Guvnors is a fast-paced, hilarious farce that follows the mixed fortunes of Francis Henshall. Down on his luck and permanently hungry, Francis suddenly finds himself employed by two bosses. His first guvnor is Roscoe Crabbe, a revered London gangster who has, apparently, come to Brighton to claim money owed to him by his fiancee’s father, Charlie Clench. However it soon becomes clear that Roscoe is, in fact, his twin sister Rachel Crabbe in disguise. Roscoe was killed by Rachel’s boyfriend, Stanley Stubbers, and she wants the money to flee the country with Stanley. Unfortunately for
Francis, his second boss is Stanley, who does not know that Rachel is in Brighton. Stanley is hiding from the police, waiting to be reunited with Rachel. To prevent discovery and earn money from both guvnors, Francis must keep Rachel and Stanley apart. To aid him in his quest, Francis enlists help from the audience and frequently brings unsuspecting audience members up on to the stage to do his job for him. Meanwhile, Roscoe’s fiancee and Charlie’s daughter, Pauline Clench, must keep Rachel’s disguise a secret, risking her own future happiness with wannabe thespian, Alan Dangle. As Francis’s world plunges into further mayhem and confusion, his attempts to woo Dolly, Charlie’s bookkeeper, go awry and he must prove to her that he is a good, honest man. Believing Stanley to be dead, Rachel finally ditches her disguise but she is soon reunited with her lover. Normality is restored as Francis plans to take Dolly on holiday to Majorca, Pauline and Alan are reunited, and Rachel and Stanley decide to marry and turn themselves in to the police. One Man, Two Guvnors is a rollicking farce, which often breaks the fourth wall, as Francis enlists the aid of willing and unwilling audience members in his quest to serve two masters and finally get a good meal.
Cast and crew
The cast is comprised of: Charles Goldbach as Francis (senior), Tyler Campbell as Charlie (senior), Lillian Myers as Rachel (senior), Joshua Warner as Stanley (senior), Ethan Henry as Alan (senior), Tayge Jones as Harry (junior), Chloe Highsmith as Dolly (junior), Maddison Farthing as Pauline (senior), Israel Barlow as Lloyd (senior), Harper Johnston as Gareth (junior), Benjamin Campbell as Alfie (sophomore), Camille Morris as Cab Driver (junior), Amelia Coykendall as the Bar Man (senior), Kassidy Cottingham as Woman (senior), Q Duxler as Christine (sophomore), Will Ebel as the Police Officer (sophomore), Nathan Goldbach as Boy (freshman).
Additionally, four students will play in the band to accompany the ending song: Ben Kraft on bass (senior), Anzia Howard on piano (senior), Emma Kelly on vocals/ percussion (senior), and Caleb Morris on drums (freshman).
Student crew members who have worked on design and run the technical elements of the production: Peyton Wood (stage manager, senior), Vidhi Bhakta (assistant stage manager, senior), Jack Angell (light design and board operator, junior), Vy Le (sound board operator, junior), Charlene Arrieta (sound effects, junior). Running Crew members include: Lin Miller (sophomore), Liv Owings (freshman), Eavee Taylor (junior), Imani McFadden (junior), Annabelle LeSage (sophomore), Michelle Simmons (sophomore). Imani McFadden and Kassidy Cottingham also worked on costumes. Michelle Simmons will serve as house manager.
The production is directed by Barbara Hilt and Bill Weaver serves as scenic designer and technical director.