Reviews:

(From Edinburgh 2018)

QUITE SIMPLY SPELLBINDING!
Before a wooden chair and a rumpled raincoat suspended from the ceiling on a hook, an angelic rendition of O Little Town of Bethlehem gives way to a harsh soundscape which transports the action from the workhouses and slavery of Victorian England to the food banks and zero-hotracts of Brexit Britain: a cacophony of car horns, jarring synthesisers and Neil Armstrong's iconic quote 'That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.'
The latter of which begs the question: how far have living standards leaped? Same shit different day would appear to be the answer, given that the gap between rich and poor has never been wider, the haves have even more and the have-nots are demonised as 'shirkers not workers'. Or in the case of immigrants (and by association refugees and asylum seekers), confronted with threatening billboard vans which ordered 'Go home or face arrest.'
I digress.
ur con Guy Masterson, under the deft direction of Nick Hennegan who has adapted Dickens' festive tale of redemption into a taut 75 minutes, is quite simply spellbinding. Dressed in casual attire, he begins his rapid but never rushed narration in his natural voice and with his body in a state of balance, but as soon as he speaks of the 'squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous, old sinner' his expansive frame clenches into a tight fist. A fitting metaphor for a miser described as ';No wind that blew was bitterer than he'.
Relying entirely on Masterson's undoubted talent as a storyteller, he never imposes himself on the material, but like a fine musician filters Dickens' dense and descriptive passages through his well-tuned vocal and physical instruments, Hennegan draws upon the simplest of theatrical techniques to powerful effect.
For example, Marley's nocturnal visitation is characterised by a stark footlight which throws an imposing shadow on the back wall which combined with a faint reverbation and an ominous rumbling by composer, Robb Williams, recreates what the second spirit calls,';A place where Miners live, who labour in the bowels of the earth'. The sure destination of Scrooge should he refuse to mend his ways.
But, as we know, an 'alteration' takes place and the man who was once described as ';hard and sharp as flint'; becomes 'as giddy as a drunken man';. As was the 'small but perfectly formed audience' who marvelled at Masterson's spellbinding performance as they reengaged with Dickens' wonderful and timeless tale of redemption. (Peter Callahan - Reviewsphere - 06/08/18)

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED - GENUINE AND ASTONISHINGLY SUCCESSFUL!
Edinburgh Legend/stalwart Guy Masterson gives a tour de force of one man show virtuosity in this faithful yet innovative, unseasonal yet oddly appropriate much loved Christmas classic.
Oh not A Christmas Carol AGAIN! It's been filmed innumerable times for TV and cinema, muppeted, adapted as a musical, updated, re-interpreted, turned into Panto, pastiched, lampooned and, perhaps most damning of all, put in the GCSE curriculum. Is there any short novella that has been more culturally exploited in history? Almost certainly not.
A dangerous decision then, for Olivier Award-winner Guy Masterson to select what many would see as a hackneyed and overworked piece and apply to it his undoubtedly impressive talents, both as writer and performer. It's a cash cow that has been ridden by many other eminent performers after all; Simon Callow and Patrick Stewart in recent years spring to mind, and Gary Sefton's magnificent adaptation in 2016.
What does Masterson bring to the already groaning A Christmas Carol table that is new? Well for a start, it's the Summer. ';Australians do it!'; is the publicity gag, but actually, it really isn't a problem.  Quite the reverse. It may be Summer, but this is Edinburgh, so the skies are leaden and grey as any midwinter day elsewhere. Less flippantly, there is something immediately refreshing about looking at a Christmas classic from the fresh perspective of the Summertime;  it's a piece that is infused with cold, with the physical privations of ice and snow and dark, and the enjoyment of merriment and togetherness that can keep the real and metaphorical dark at bay.  Being reminded of the dark days, and how to be a better person, and keep a better Christmas, seems more instructive, more actually useful, with a bit of distance in the year. Even Scrooge gets some advance warning, after all.
The second innovation is much more important. This is, truly, a one-person show. It has elements of narration and storytelling, yes,  (and Masterson's Burtonesque baritone does this beautifully), but unlike any other solo version I have seen, it is a genuine and astonishingly successful attempt by one person to people the stage with all of Dickens characters. Masterson uses the full panoply of voice, characterisation, physicality, mime, dance, sound effect and music to terrific effect, effortlessly slipping between character and place, simultaneously building word pictures of the scenes as he goes.   It is only when he pauses briefly for a drink he wishes was beer about forty minutes in that you appreciate the awesome work rate this requires.
It is a mesmerising, breathless construction,  and finally answers the question: can a one man show be truly a drama?   Turns out, yes it can, providing you have a world class actor, a tight and atmospheric script, and minimal but clever and evocative sound design.  These three things have to work doubly hard when you consider the set is a chair, a hook for a coat, and a coat. That is it; but you will have been as present at Mr Fezziwig's revels as you have ever been; as enchanted and frightened by the ghosts as you were at the age of ten, and you wilL let slip involuntary tears of pity for a Tiny Tim who is only seen in the place Masterson makes for him in your mind's eye.  
The final refreshment of this well trodden path is the adaptation.  It is muscular, spare, but full of the richness and wit of the original.  It seems remarkably faithful to the source, and there is no concession to modernity, which is a blessing to all true fans of Dickens and his wit. Making Dickens' jokes lift off the page and sing is no simple matter, but this version, in the hands of Masterson, makes you remember anew why A Christmas Carol is such a perennial favourite. Because it is wonderful. It is funny, scary, moving and uplifting, and once the encrustations of a hundred other Christmases and innumerable other versions are knocked off it, the shiny sixpence of brilliance and originality remains undimmed underneath.  
I urge you to go and rediscover something you thought you knew all too well, and join the standing ovation at the end. (David Mounfield -FringeReview - 16/08/18)

CREATIVE, ENERGETIC AND PLENTY OF CHRISTMAS SPIRIT!
Summoning the ghost of A Christmas Carol, Guy Masterson's adaptation is a creative show by a talented and energetic performer.
Banish any scepticism or bah humbugs about seeing a Christmas show in August because this will have you feeling more festive than a John Lewis Christmas advert in no time.
The show is performed through spoken work, word from word from the book, but with a genuinely funny and charismatic delivery. Masterson jumps from character to character, going from old man to echoing ghost to the squeaky-voiced tiny Tim with ease, aided by effectively utilised lighting and sound effects and the flow was never disrupted or disjointed. More scaled back than big budget, this minimalist performance merges together into a ballet of festivity. Masterson performs each part well, taking advantage of the whole space in a dynamic display of skill.
Go see this play if you're a fan of Dickens, A Christmas Carol or just want to see what can be achieved with a minimal set, some imagination, and plenty of Christmas spirt. (Johnny Rhodes - EdFestMag 16/08/18)

HOLDS THE AUDIENCE RAPT FROM BEGINNING TO END!
On a bare stage there is a solitary chair, with a raincoat suspended in mid-air to one side. That's all the setting required for this one-man retelling of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol. Celebrating his 25th season on the Edinburgh Fringe with no less than four productions, Guy Masterson may not be the first person to bring a one-man Dickens to the stage, but it might be a first for this summer festival.
The familiar characters are all present and correct and Masterson slips easily from one to the other. His Scrooge sounds refreshingly robust – not unlike Ray Winstone – but this abridged adaptation is a thing of beauty, rich in descriptive detail and emotional impact. The actor brings warmth and genuine Christmas spirit to Fezziwig's party, with even a brief nod to a same-sex relationship. At the other end of the story, the Cratchits' Christmas feast is a bustling affair, busy with chatter, good cheer and of course, Tiny Tim's homespun philosophies.
To lend atmosphere, Masterson wears a radio mic, which lends volume and echo to the Spirits voices but other than some sensitive lighting, there is nowhere for the actor to hide. Masterson defiantly fills the stage however and holds the audience rapt from beginning to end. (Paul Vale - The Stage 11/08/18)

A TOUR DE FORCE - DICKENS HIMSELF WOULD HAVE LOVED IT!
Dickens' timeless tale of redemption at Christmas is once again brought to life in this tour de force of a performance by an accomplished actor.
Using only a single chair and a raincoat, Guy Masterson manages to populate the stage with the familiar cast of characters – Bob Cratchit, Tiny Tim, Old Fezziwig and the others – with enormous energy and enthusiasm.
This tale has been told so many times and in so many ways in films, animations, musicals – and one-man shows, so it is quite extraordinary that it still retains such a powerful hold over us. We all know that Tiny Tim is not going to die, but the very idea of it is still enough to move us to tears.
As the story is so very well-known, the critical focus has to be on how well it is told, and it is told very well, with as much focus on physical agility as verbal dexterity; the dancing at Fezziwig's and the party games at Fred's are hilariously frantic. We might have expected a little more contrast between the voices of Jacob Marley, The Ghost of Christmas Past and The Ghost of Christmas Present, rather than just a mild echo effect to indicate that we were in the world of spirits.
The story moves along with great pace, rushing towards its joyful and convivial conclusion.
A Christmas Carolis a faithful and impressive re-telling of a classic. Dickens himself frequently performed, dramatised versions of his own work. He would have loved this show. (Jon Cross - Edinburgh Guide - 10/08/18)

A MASTERCLASS IN THE ART OF SOLO PERFORMANCE
A Christmas Carol may sound like an unlikely selection for the Edinburgh Fringe in August but it proves to be a perfect vehicle for Guy Masterson to deliver a masterclass in the art of solo performance.
For 75 minutes, aided by no more than a chair and coat, the actor magically creates the Victorian classic, using every skill in the acting repertoire. It helps that both the lighting and a soundscape composed by Robb Williams are well judged to enhance the performance.
Nick Hennegan directs and has skilfully adapted the novel, bringing out the beauty of Dickens's language, building the drama to a truly uplifting climax.
Even if you are sick to death of Edinburgh solos, give this one a go as it will refresh your palate for what can, in the hands of mere mortals, all too frequently seem like a jaded and over-used art form.

Reviews from the World Premiere 25/11/17

The Haystack Theatre - (25/11/17)
';God Bless us everyone!'’ cries Tiny Tim. Indeed. God Bless Guy Masterson, whose revival of Dickens’s immortal tale, A Christmas Carol, saw its first performance at the Haystack Theatre, Ford last week. Masterson is no stranger to one-man presentations. His skill in defining a multitude of characters with a turn of the head or an eyebrow raised brings echoes of his earlier triumphant shows such as ‘Animal Farm’ and ‘Under Milk Wood’. Here Dickens'’s cast, from Jacob Marley to Tiny Tim and Old Fezziwig jostle for space in a show that runs for nearly an hour and a half. There is barely a break for Scrooge to snooze, between each ghostly visitation. This one-man show is a prodigious trial of memory, but also a test of an actor’s mettle in terms of concentration and physical fitness. There is plenty of dancing too, as we move from the narrow Counting House to the jollity of Christmas Past, the making-do of Christmas Present and grim forebodings of the grave that must await us all. Subtle use of an echo mic for the Spirits’ visitation, along with some fine underscoring, underlines the shifting mood. But the actor bears the load of adding light and shade to Dickens'’s tale. Masterson has used the original text from the author’s own dramatic readings of the story. But thanks to the minimal staging - a wooden chair, a raincoat on a hook, echoes of the modern world are never far behind. Skinflint Scrooge’s journey to redemption from despair is something more than a cosy tale to wile away a winter'’s night. Ghosts of Ignorance and Want remind us of the final question ‘Are these shadows of the things that Will be, or of things that May be?'; Masterson’'s production is an understated warning and a celebration of the hope for human kind. In short, it is A Christmas Carol for our time.” (Peter Fanning - Public Review - 27/11/17)

Magic from One Man and his Mac (25/11/17)
Guy Masterson is a bear of a man and a phenomenal actor. And he draws deep upon both those attributes to power his way through his latest theatrical challenge; his one-man presentation of Charles Dickens' Christmas tale.
He premiered this latest creation in a cosy barn, deep in the Shropshire countryside, before an audience who had seen sufficient Masterson shows to be full of anticipation. And their expectations were more than fulfilled.
It's a bare stage, wreathed in black drapes, from which hangs a limp, pale raincoat that becomes all manner of things including the illusion of flying.
The other weapons in Masterson's armoury are a subtle sound track, some startling lighting, and himself; his frame almost filling the space, like a human prop in a Victorian mine shaft.
The characterisations (of practically every major figure in the book) are devoid of cliché. Like all the very best actors, he does very little - but just enough - to differentiate between the kind and the cruel, and the quick and the dead.
Scrooge, for example, is played remarkably straight with barely a croak or stoop. And yet, with just one sideways stare, the cold chill of a Christmas-unobserved pours across the footlights; in sharp contrast with the wafting warmth of the Cratchit parlour. It's all done with cross-fading lights and variations of voice; and, in the case of the four spirits, with a resounding echo box. It was so intricate I was left wondering how it was done – and Masterson wasn't telling. (Someone at the back of the barn must have had very nimble fingers).
What he does tell - wonderfully well - is Dickens' classic story, with purity, poignancy and panache. Just when you thought youd seen enough Christmas Carols to guide you to your grave along comes one of the best yet; seemingly effortless, but hugely effective.' (Chris Eldon Lee – BBC Radio - 01/12/17)

REVIEWS: Adelaide Fringe Festival 2017

ABC RADIO Peter Goers Show 28/02/17
It's all in the telling and it's absolutely hilarious! Really good actors can transform themselves physically and Guy Masterson does this with all the characters - especially the evil little dog, Nelson! I just laughed uncontrollably. Just wonderful night of laughter, empathy and whether you are a dog lover or not you will empathise' culminating in a very funny graveside tale! Marvellous! (Carole Whitelock - ABC Radio - 28/02/17)

ADELAIDE ADVERTISER 22/02/17
GUY Masterson's Barking Mad! is a story about a man and his dog, well his wife's. But it's not your typical 'man's best friend' heart-warming-type story.
After meeting his German Parisian actor and model wife, Brigitta, Masterson - who still can't believe his luck 18 years on, it seems - quickly realises his dream woman comes with baggage, namely a 12-year-old Spitz named Nelson.
This is an autobiographical show which sees Masterson reflect on his love life and a dog he claims to have hated.
It's funny, of course, but it's also simply great and enthusiastic storytelling by an award-winning performer who takes his audience on a journey. Dog lovers will either love it or hate it, but it is very relatable.
Though the ending may suggest otherwise, I'm on to you Masterson, you loved all 12kg of that puff ball. (Kazia Ozog - Adelaide Advertiser - 21/02/17)

BROADWAY BABY 22/02/17 GUY MASTERSON HAS DONE IT AGAIN!
Guy Masterson has been visiting Adelaide for many years and is always worth putting at the top of your list of productions to see during the Adelaide Fringe. This year he is offering something different in Barking Mad!, an hilarious true tale that begins with him meeting a stunning French model and actress. Well, she eventually turned out to be German, but she had lived and worked in France for so long that her accent was impeccable. He was instantly captivated, and she walked past as if he was invisible, at first.
To his amazement, things changed and progressed positively, but there was a fly in this romantic ointment, or should I say a dog in the manger. He had to share her with the other man in her life, Nelson, her dog, a Spitz that he quickly re-spelled by replacing the 'p' with an 'h'. The dog's antagonism towards him was mutually returned, and a life of conflict began, worsened when he and Brigitte married and she moved to live at his home in England, bringing Nelson.
Masterson is a sensational storyteller, as we have seen many times in the past, his American Poodle was a marvellous piece of comic theatrical monologue that demanded superior skills in that area, but his personal connection to this story adds another dimension, making it his best yet. He recalls the history of his relationship with her dog, adding in the voices of Brigitte and their two daughters, and giving voice and characterisation to Nelson.
This has to be one for the top of your Fringe list this year. Everybody loves a good laugh, and this show is packed with them. Aching sides and jaws are possible side effects from this brilliantly written and told tale of ongoing woe, and there are so many incidents and anecdotes that are sure to ring a bell with any dog owners or their partners. Yes, Masterson has done it again!
Masterson is also involved with other Adelaide Fringe productions, including presenting A Regular Little Houdini and directing The Devil's Passion with the remarkable Justin Butcher, who received great acclaim for his performance in Scaramouche Jones. Make sure that these are also on your list. (Barry Lenny - Broadway Baby - 21/02/17)

ADELAIDE INDEPENDENT 21/02/17
What would you endure for the sake of love? Would you share your beloved with another? Break the law on two continents? Contemplate the taking of a life?
When Guy Masterson, the acclaimed British actor, director, producer and writer, met Brigitta, the trilingual 'model-slash-actress', he fell hard. So hard, in fact, that he was prepared to play second fiddle to the 'other man in her life' - her dog Nelson, a 12-year-old German Spitz.
Masterson is a frequent festival visitor to Adelaide but this is his first time in the comedy section of the Fringe guide, and audiences familiar with his previous one-man shows (Under Milk Wood, Animal Farm) should come prepared for a very different experience.
The story of his desperate attempts to adapt to life with his canine nemesis is a frenetic and physical performance, with Masterson almost foaming at the mouth as he spits out a series of increasingly hysterical anecdotes.
He paces the stage, moving between two large easels that display images of the other key characters in his sorry autobiographical tale. On the left, the impossibly glamorous Brigitta - then a model in Paris, now mother of Masterson's children. On the right, the cause of all the torment - Nelson, the perky, garbage-eating, super-pooper ball of fluff.
There are high-energy characterisations of the evil dog's antics, lots of shouting, and a fair dose of self-deprecation. It's over-the-top but certainly got the laughs from the opening-night audience.
At the start of the show, Masterson took a quick 'hands-up' poll to survey our opinions on dogs versus cats. He didn't declare his own preferences but I think it's fair to say he won't be adopting a puppy to replace Nelson any time soon. (Jo Vabolis - Adelaide Independent - 21/02/17)

CLOTHESLINE 21/02/17
Guy Masterson has been a regular feature of Adelaide Fringes for many years, either as performer or director. This time round, as well as directing other shows, Masterson the performer turns his hand to comedy. Barking Mad is about a dog. It's not a tale about dogs in general, nor is it, as the show's promotion suggests, really about a transcontinental relationship. The first part of the show does touch on the early days of his relationship with his German wife, but that is just background context for the main event – the next six years of his life spent with the dog he inherited with his new wife.
Masterson is a superb character actor - one of the best there is. In Barking Mad he utilises his characterisation skills on sketching out the moods and quirks of a mutt that becomes his nemesis. The cute looks, the endless barking, the guilty tail-wagging, the jealousy inspired snapping - are all done perfectly. Anyone who has lived with a dog will recognise these stereotypical hound behaviours, and get a good laugh from them.
Masterson is a compelling stage presence and is always good to watch - there's a depth of craft in everything he does. (Michael Colghan - Clothesline - 21/02/17)

Reviews from Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2016

GUY MASTERSON IS A GREAT GIFT TO THE STAGE! - EDINBURGH49+3 18/08/16
When Guy Masterson punched above his weight and married the beautiful Paris-based model Brigitta, he forgot the first rule of life: no person is an island. Brigitta's personal little slice of Alcatraz comes in the form of her oh-so-cute German Spitz: Nelson. Never in the course of human history has one man fought so hard against one dog for the heart of a beautiful woman.
In this show, Masterston relates the autobiographical story of how first he met his (now) wife Brigitta and her 'other man', Nelson. Only one of the matches here are made in heaven. Masterson uses the entirety of the small stage to reveal the darkest recesses of this epic battle of wills between man and dog. Plots are hatched. Fantasies are spun. Opportunities taken. It is a sign of character that Nelson is able to rise above these foolish webs laid at his feet by a mere human. Nelson is channelled through his rival, with Masterson performing every snarl, growl and sniff of contempt. In suitable tones, he explains Nelson's stratagems: exploring the options that could lead to victory over the new would-be Alpha male.
As an award-winning actor and story teller, Masterson is a great gift to the stage. Extensive experience of one-man shows means that the audience is in the hands of a consummate professional. That is, once the story gets going. I think the preamble, where he explains the genesis of the show, while 'enjoying' a cold jacuzzi in a bargain four star spa retreat with his wife, does not work so well. Hearing Masterson relating Brigitta's question 'Why can't you be more funny? led me to think, at that time, she may have a point mate. Fortunately once the main course is delivered, it is no dog's dinner. The story is taut: Masterson's exasperation palpable as failure is piled upon defeat.
The delivery is flawless but Masterson is an honest man. This is his first foray into standup and I suspect he has stuck too closely to the truth and, in doing so, has sacrificed some laughs for the sake of integrity. A more experienced comic may well have hanged truth from the nearest lamppost and had the audience rolling in the aisles.
A certain truth is this: Masterson has a problem. He thinks it is all over but it isn't. Guy Masterson is suffering from PTPS: post traumatic pet syndrome. (Martin Veart - Edinburgh 49+3 18/08/16)

WITTY & VERY ENTERTAINING! - LOTHIAN LIFE 11/08/16
What happens when you fall for a gorgeous German model with a manipulative uber-intelligent rabbit-hunting dog? Guy Masterson (pictured) can tell you, and does in his one man show Love and Canine Integration.
In this autobiographical confession, Masterson takes us through the many intricacies of his life with Brigitta and her hellhound Nelson, a patch-eyed cutie who bit, fought, and outmanoeuvred Masterson at every stage of his early days with Brigitta, and continued to blight his marriage.
Masterson is a master of delivery, and can impersonate Nelson to a canine T. We can actually see the little shite as he claims his rightful place as the number one man in Brigitta's life. Even the birth of the Masterson first child did not shake Nelson's certainty - he knew who his progeny was.
This is an amusing and entertaining hour. Masterson has a good grip on his script and carries his audience with him. It's good fun, witty and very entertaining. (Ros Mackenzie - Lothian Life 11/08/16)

AN ENTERTAINING RAMBLE! - UK THEATREWEB 18/08/16
Guy Masterson has several shows at the Fringe and is a prolific writer, performer, producer and director. This one is personal, looking as it does at how he and his wife came together and how his wife's little dog nearly tore them apart.
An enertaining ramble through Guy's relationship with ';Ze bastard';, as he renamed the dog, and a nice break for those on a theatre binge at the fringe. (Anon - UK Theatre Web - 18/08/16)

A SUPERB STORYTELLER! -22/08/16
After some of the Fringe's eclectic fare what a relief it is to sit down and enjoy an hour of a Guy Masterson show, safe in the knowledge ones seeing a consummate professional at work. This year he's bravely offering a comic monologue based on his own experiences of courting his beautiful wife Brigitta and discovering, to his horror, that she has another all-important man in her life, her German Spitz Nelson. Once he starts relating the main story we accelerate into overdrive and all proceeds at a cracking pace.
Masterson knows he has won the lottery of life in finding Brigitta and such luck brings inevitable sacrifice, in this case much of his sanity over the ensuing years. As relayed by Masterson Nelson is no ordinary dog. An animal who can defecate at random and has an uncanny ability to predict Masterson's actions, an epic battle of wills commences with the dog invariably triumphant.
Hatching plots that would credit any criminal mastermind (like sneaking Nelson surreptitiously into Britain via hovercraft) Masterson does his level best to try and maintain his equilibrium which is a challenge in the face of Brigitta's adoration for her pooch and his thinly veiled contempt which often escalates into all-out war.
Masterson is a superb storyteller and he brings Nelson to life so vividly one can see the dog in all his glory, every snarl, sniff and gesture of canine disdain conjured with absolute veracity. A treat for dog-lovers and naysayers everywhere. (Amanda Hodges - Essential Surrey- 22/08/16)