Guy Masterson

Guy Masterson
Born	Guy Alexander Masterson (1961-08-10) August 10, 1961 Hampstead, North London
Occupations	Actor Writer Theatre Director Producer Playwright
Spouse	Brigitta Scholz ​ (m. 1999)​
Children	2

Guy Alexander Masterson (Mastroianni; born August 10, 1961) is a British actor, writer, theatre director, producer, and playwright known for his solo theater performances of Under Milk Wood, Animal Farm, and Shylock by Gareth Armstrong.

His other works include on the annual Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Twelve Angry Men in 2003, The Odd Couple in 2005, Morecambe in 2009, and The Shark Is Broken in 2019. Morecambe transferred to the London's West End and received a Laurence Olivier Award nomination for Best Entertainment. The Shark is Broken also transferred to London's West End and was nominated for a Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Comedy. It opened on Broadway on August 10, 2023, for an 18-week run.

Personal life

Masterson was born in Hampstead, North London, to Carlo Libinick Mastroianni and Marian Mastroianni (née James). He attended Hadley Wood Primary School, Christ's Hospital School, Horsham, and Cardiff University, where he earned a joint honors degree in biochemistry and chemistry. After graduating in 1982, he moved to Los Angeles, California, where he began working in hotel and restaurant management with Hilton Hotels. He returned to the United Kingdom in 1989 and continued his career after a year of study at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA).

In October 1998, he met Brigitta Scholz, a German actress and model who was living in Paris, and married her in January 1999. Their first child was born in September 1999, and their second in June 2005. The family resides in London.

Professional life

In 1984, his great-uncle, actor Richard Burton, died, and Masterson (then Mastroianni) was encouraged to attend an acting class in Hollywood. He enrolled in the UCLA's Extension Drama Programme for two semesters before winning his first leading role in the Equity Waiver musical The Wonderful World of Waiver!. His first professional job was understudying the roles of Mick and Aston in The Caretaker at the LA Theatre Center, directed by Alan Mandell, for which he received his Equity Card.

After performing in several plays in Los Angeles, including The Elephant Man by Bernard Pomerance, A Yorkshire Tragedy by Thomas Middleton, City Gents by Ron Hart, and The Private Ear & The Public Eye by Peter Shaffer, he returned to London to study at The London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA) on the Postgraduate Course, graduating in 1990.

After some projects fell through, he self-produced his first solo work, The Boy's Own Story, by Peter Flannery in 1991. He toured various schools and small arts venues around the UK, including the Chelsea Centre Theatre. There, he was seen by a casting director who cast him in Cyrano de Bergerac with Robert Lindsay and Julian Glover. It played at the Theatre Royal, Haymarket in London's West End for nine months, during which Masterson memorized Under Milk Wood by Dylan Thomas for his second solo performance. Under Milk Wood officially premiered at The Traverse Theatre in Edinburgh in February 1994 and was critically successful at the Assembly Festival during the 1994 Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

During this period, he also directed a one-man show about the life of Richard Burton – Playing Burton by Mark Jenkins starring the Welsh actor Josh Richards. Both Under Milk Wood and Playing Burton were critically successful and transferred to Riverside Studios London, and from there, both shows toured around the UK for several years.

The success of Masterson's solo performance of Under Milk Wood led to his adapting another British classic for solo performance, Animal Farm by George Orwell, which premiered at the Traverse Theatre on Burns Night in 1995. It was later shown in the Assembly Rooms at the 1995 Edinburgh Fringe Festival, where the entire run sold out prior to opening. Both Animal Farm and Under Milk Wood then toured for several years, including major tours in India (1996) and New Zealand (1997).

In 1996, Masterson directed a production of The House of Correction by Norman Lock for the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and presented it at the Pleasance, where Beth Fitzgerald received a Stage Award for Best Actress.

In 1997, he presented his first international work, a Kiwi production The Ballad of Jimmy Costello with Tim Balme, at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival where he also presented Playing Burton, Bye By Blackbird by Willard Simms and Shylock by Gareth Armstrong. The shows were critically successful and received several Stage Award nominations for Best Actor and Best Actress.

His early years at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival were followed by subsequent appearances & presentations over 29 consecutive festivals. Through his company, Theatre Tours International, he presented 150 more shows, mostly at the Assembly Rooms, but also at The Pleasance and the Traverse Theatre. Many of these productions were co-presentations with international companies.

In 1998, his co-presentation of Skin Tight by New Zealand writer Gary Henderson won a Scotsman Fringe First Award.

In 1999, after a major tour to New Zealand with Animal Farm, Under Milk Wood and A Soldier's Song,, his co-presentation of Krishnan's Dairy with the New Zealand actor/writer Jacob Rajan won a Scotsman Fringe First Award and a Stage Best Actor nomination for Rajan at the Edinburgh Fringe. Linda Marlowe also received a Stage Best Actress Award Nomination for Berkoff's Women.. Masterson also directed Pip Utton's Adolf.

In 2000, Masterson introduced the work of the New York writer/director John Clancy, a founding member of the New York International Fringe Festival, to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. There, his production of Americana Absurdum by Brian Parks won a Scotsman Fringe First Award, as did Masterson's co-production of New Zealand writer Toa Fraser's Number Two. Stage Award nominations for Best Actress were also received by Madeleine Sami (for Number Two) and Jules Leyser for All Words For Sex, which Masterson directed and which subsequently played at London's Soho Theatre.

In 2001, Masterson presented 8 shows at the Edinburgh Fringe including a new solo performance of a compilation of Dylan Thomas short stories and poems, Fern Hill & Other Dylan Thomas, for which he received the Stage Best Actor award. A nomination was also received for Pip Utton's Resolution, which Masterson directed.

In 2002, Masterson presented 10 shows at the Edinburgh fringe, co-presenting 4 with John Clancy including Horse Country by C.J. Hopkins; Cincinnati by Don Nigro; Goner by Brian Parks and The Complete Lost Works of Samuel Beckett As Found in an Envelope Marked 'Never To Be produced, Never, Ever, Ever, Or I'll Sue, I'll Sue From The Grave by Theater Oobleck and the Neo-Futurists. This program of work won two Scotsman Fringe First Awards for Horse Country & Cincinnati; The Scotsman 'Best of the Firsts' award for Horse Country; The 'Jack Tinker Spirit of the Fringe Award' for Nancy Walsh-Clancy; The Herald Angel award; 'The Stage Best Actor Award' for David Calvitto for Horse Country, and 'The Stage Award Best Actress' nomination for Nancy Walsh-Clancy for Cincinnati.

In 2003, Masterson produced 12 Angry Men by Reginald Rose - a revival with an all-comedian cast at the Assembly Rooms including Bill Bailey, Phil Nichol, Owen O'Neill, Stephen Frost and Russell Hunter during the Edinburgh Fringe Festival which broke the box office record for theatre at the Fringe. This production won 'The Strathmore Audience Award' and a nomination for 'The Stage Awards Best Ensemble'. Masterson also received a Stage Award Nomination for Best Actor for his solo Under Milk Wood, now with music added by composer Matt Clifford.

In 2004, Masterson originated a production of Dale Wasserman's One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest (play) starring Christian Slater and Mackenzie Crook, but stepped down from the production due to ill-health prior to opening. The show broke box office records at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, had two West End runs, and a Number One U.K. tour with Shane Richie taking over from Slater. Masterson's production of 12 Angry Men was invited to Perth International Arts Festival, Adelaide Festival and New Zealand Festival of the Arts where it sold out. Masterson later remounted the production with Arts Projects Australia and Adrian Bohm with an Australian cast at QPAC Brisbane, Sydney Theatre and Melbourne Athenaeum including Shane Bourne, Peter Phelps, Marcus Graham, George Kapiniaris and Henri Szeps. This production won three 2005 Melbourne Green Room Awards and was nominated for Best Play at the 5th Helpmann Awards.

In 2005, Masterson directed The Odd Couple by Neil Simon starring comedians Bill Bailey, Alan Davies, Phil Nichol, Owen O'Neill, Dave Johns, Ian Coppinger, Katherine Jakeways and Lizzie Roper. This production sold a capacity 850 seats a day at the Assembly Hall for the full run of the Festival.

In 2006, Masterson directed comedian Rich Hall's first stage play, Levelland in which Hall played a shock jock. The show played at Melbourne Comedy Festival and Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Masterson also presented his solo Under Milk Wood at Union Hall, Adelaide.

In 2007, his production of Follow Me [1] by Ross Gurney-Randall and Dave Mounfield won a Herald Angel, an Argus Angel and a Stage Award Best Actress nomination for Beth Fitzgerald.

In 2008, he directed Justin Butcher in his performance of his own Scaramouche Jones, which sold out its run at the Assembly Rooms and embarked on a national tour. He also produced and directed Suzie Miller's first U.K. play, Reasonable Doubt, also at the Assembly Rooms, Edinburgh.

In 2009, he produced and directed Morecambe by Tim Whitnall which won a Scotsman Fringe First, a Stage Award nomination for Best Solo Performance, and went on to appear at the Royal Variety Performance and open at the Duchess Theatre in London's West End. It was nominated for a What's on Stage Award for Best Play, ITC Award for Best Touring Production, and two Laurence Olivier Awards (winning Best Entertainment). The show then toured the United Kingdom for over 250 performances.

In 2011, Masterson remounted and performed his 1997 production of Shylock [2] directed by the author Gareth Armstrong. This won Masterson his 5th Stage Award nomination, this time for Best Solo Performance at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

In 2012, Masterson directed and played the role of Oscar in Neil Simon's The Odd Couple at the Theatre At The Mill with actor and comedian Dave Johns. This production played at the Hawthorne Theatre in Welwyn Garden City the following summer of 2013. Guy also directed Samsung's global product launch show, Samsung Unpacked in 2012 and 2013.

In 2014, Masterson directed a 40-actor production of his own adaptation of Animal Farm with the Tumanishvili Film Actors Theatre Company of Tbilisi (Georgia), which won The Stage Award 2014 for Best Ensemble at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. He also compiled and performed a WW1 Commemorative show Anthem For A Doomed Youth [3] which toured the UK around Remembrance Day and produced/directed Bill Clinton Hercules, a bio-play about Bill Clinton by Rachel Mariner starring Bob Paisley.

In 2015, Masterson collaborated with Hannah Ellis, granddaughter of Dylan Thomas to produce Dylan Thomas - The Man, The Myth *. He also adapted and performed a shortened 65-minute version of Under Milk Wood entitled Under Milk Wood - Semi Skimmed.

In 2016, he directed the poet Clair Whitefield on Chopping Chillies, and wrote and performed his own stand-up comedy show, Love & Canine Integration (later retitled Barking Mad!) which then toured to Australia.

In 2017, Masterson wrote, produced & directed Michael Brandon (Dempsey & Makepeace) in Off Ramps at Edinburgh Fringe Festival. For the festive season he premièred his 11th solo work, Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol, adapted and directed by Nick Hennegan.

In 2018, Masterson presented a WW1 Commemorative Season at the Adelaide Fringe Festival bannered Lest We Forget. At Edinburgh 2018 (his 25th consecutive Edinburgh Fringe Festival), Masterson also presented a play purporting to reveal the truth behind the death of Marilyn Monroe: The Marilyn Conspiracy, co-written with Vicki McKellar.

In 2019, Masterson collaborated with actor/writer Ian Shaw and writer Joseph Nixon to present and direct The Shark Is Broken - a play about the making of Jaws. The show was the hit of the 2019 Edinburgh Fringe and was subsequently picked up by Sonia Friedman Productions for a West End transfer in May 2020, but postponed due to the Covid Pandemic.

In 2021, Masterson presented a truncated season of Under Milk Wood - Semi Skimmed at Assembly Festival (his 27th EdFringe excluding 2020). In October, The Shark is Broken opened at the Ambassadors Theatre, London and played until February 2022, receiving a Laurence Olivier Award nomination for Best New Entertainment or Comedy Play.

In 2022, Masterson directed 9 Circles at Park Theatre (London) and Assembly Festival at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. The Shark Is Broken opened at the Royal Alexandra Theatre in Toronto for 7 weeks. Masterson then completed his 5th tour of A Christmas Carol.

In early 2023, Masterson directed Peter Tate in Picasso: Le Monstre Sacré by Terry D'Alfonso at The Playground Theatre, London. He then co-directed The Marvellous Elephant Man - The Musical with Christopher H F Mitchell for the Adelaide Fringe Festival, Melbourne International Comedy Festival and Sydney Fringe Festival where it received several awards. The Shark Is Broken opened on Broadway at The Golden Theatre on August 10, 2023, where it played for 18 weeks.