Jonathan Sayer

Last updated

Jonathan Sayer
Born
Jonathan David Burke

(1988-09-08) 8 September 1988 (age 35)
Education London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art
Occupation
  • Actor
Years active2008–present

Jonathan Sayer is a British actor and playwright. He co-founded Mischief Theatre, responsible for The Play That Goes Wrong , Peter Pan Goes Wrong , The Comedy About a Bank Robbery , Groan Ups , Magic Goes Wrong and The Goes Wrong Show .

Contents

Career

Magic Goes Wrong, Apollo Theatre, February 2022 Apollo Theatre, February 2022, Magic Goes Wrong.jpg
Magic Goes Wrong, Apollo Theatre, February 2022

In 2008, Sayer, Henry Lewis, and Henry Shields co-founded Mischief Theatre while they were studying a drama foundation course at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. [1]

In 2012, Sayer co-wrote with Lewis and Shields The Play That Goes Wrong , [2] which premiered later that year at The Old Red Lion, Islington. [3] Sayer played Dennis Tyde in both the original London cast [4] and the original Broadway cast. [5] In 2013, another Lewis, Sayer and Shields production, Peter Pan Goes Wrong , premiered at The Pleasance Theatre. [6] with Sayer amongst its original cast, playing Dennis. [7]

In 2016, Lewis', Sayer's and Shields' play The Comedy About a Bank Robbery opened at the Criterion Theatre; Sayer was amongst its original cast, and played Warren Slax. [8] In August 2019, Magic Goes Wrong , a play written by Lewis, Sayer, Shields, Penn and Teller, premiered at the Quays Theatre; Sayer played Mikey, [9] and subsequently took him on tour. [10] [11] In September 2019, the next Lewis, Sayer and Shields play, Groan Ups , premiered at Vaudeville Theatre, as part of a projected year-long residency at the theatre (later curtailed due to COVID-19 restrictions [12] ), [13] with Sayer playing Simon. [14]

In 2016, a production of Peter Pan Goes Wrong was aired by BBC1, with Sayer playing Dennis. [15] The following year, they aired A Christmas Carol Goes Wrong , with Sayer playing Dennis. [16] BBC1 aired twelve episodes of The Goes Wrong Show [17] between December 2019 [18] and November 2021. [19]

Awards and nominations

YearAwardCategoryWorkResult
2014 WhatsOnStage Award Best New Comedy The Play That Goes Wrong Won
2015 Laurence Olivier Award Won
2016 Peter Pan Goes Wrong Nominated
2017 The Comedy About a Bank Robbery Nominated
Drama League Award Best Play The Play That Goes Wrong Nominated
2020 Laurence Olivier Award Best New Comedy Magic Goes Wrong Nominated

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<i>The Play That Goes Wrong</i> British comedy play

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mischief Theatre</span> British theatre company

Mischief Theatre is a British theatre company that was founded in 2008 by a group of students from the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art in West London, and directed by Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer, and Henry Shields. The group originally began by doing improvised comedy shows, but by 2012 they expanded into comedic theatrical performances that includes choreographed routines, jokes, and stunts.

<i>The Comedy About a Bank Robbery</i>

The Comedy About a Bank Robbery is a comedy play written by Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer and Henry Shields of Mischief Theatre.

<i>Peter Pan Goes Wrong</i> Play by Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer, and Henry Shields

Peter Pan Goes Wrong is a comedy play by Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer, and Henry Shields of the Mischief Theatre company, creators of The Play That Goes Wrong (2012).

Henry Shields is an English playwright and actor. Shields grew up in Hastings and his family still live there. He initially studied nursing at university but dropped out after a year and auditioned for drama school, gaining a place at LAMDA. It was while there that he met the collaborators with whom he would go on to form Mischief Theatre company. He is best known for starring in the plays The Play That Goes Wrong, Peter Pan Goes Wrong, and The Comedy About a Bank Robbery, which he also co-wrote along with Henry Lewis and Jonathan Sayer, as well as the TV adaptation The Goes Wrong Show. He has been nominated for three Olivier Awards for Best New Comedy, winning in 2015 for The Play That Goes Wrong.

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Henry William Lewis is a British actor and playwright. He co-founded Mischief Theatre, responsible for The Play That Goes Wrong, Peter Pan Goes Wrong, The Comedy About a Bank Robbery, Groan Ups, Magic Goes Wrong and The Goes Wrong Show, and co-hosts Riddiculous, an ITV daytime game show.

Groan Ups is a comedy play by Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer and Henry Shields of Mischief Theatre.

<i>Magic Goes Wrong</i>

Magic Goes Wrong is a comedy play by Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer, Henry Shields and Penn & Teller. It follows the series of Mischief's Goes Wrong series of plays following The Play That Goes Wrong and Peter Pan Goes Wrong.

<i>The Goes Wrong Show</i> BBC television comedy

The Goes Wrong Show is a British comedy series created by Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer and Henry Shields, and produced by Mischief Screen and Big Talk Productions, in association with Lionsgate UK, for the BBC. The programme stars the ensemble members of the Mischief Theatre company, who reprise their roles as the members of the fictitious theatre company, "Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society", as they conduct a "live" televised stage play, which tends to go wrong due to mistakes, accidents and other issues that hamper the company's efforts. The concept was devised by Lewis, Sayer and Shields following two television Christmas specials for the BBC, with the series premiering on BBC One on 23 December 2019. In 2020, the group conducted a second series, but under strict guidelines due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom, which aired on 27 September 2021.

Cora Kirk is a British stage and film actress. She starred in the film Your Christmas or Mine? (2022) and its sequel (2023).

References

  1. "About Us". Mischief Theatre. Retrieved 7 July 2015.
  2. Walker, Tim (18 September 2014). "The Play That Goes Wrong, Duchess Theatre, review: 'delightful'" . Telegraph.co.uk . Retrieved 28 November 2022.
  3. "The Play That Goes Wrong proves right for West End". The Guardian . 17 October 2014. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
  4. "The Play That Goes Wrong". Theatre Record : 916. 10–23 September 2014.
  5. "The Play That Goes Wrong Original Broadway Play Cast 2017". BroadwayWorld . Retrieved 10 May 2022.
  6. "REVIEW: Peter Pan Goes Wrong at The Alexandra". Black Country Radio. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
  7. "Henry Lewis". British Comedy Guide . Retrieved 9 November 2022.
  8. "Theatre review: The Comedy About a Bank Robbery at Criterion Theatre". British Theatre Guide. 31 March 2016. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
  9. "Magic Goes Wrong on stage in London from 21 October 2021". Thisistheatre.com. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
  10. "Mind Mangler review – Magic Goes Wrong spin-off is all fun and mind games". The Guardian . 13 August 2022. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
  11. "Mind Mangler: Member of the Tragic Circle review". The Stage . Retrieved 9 November 2022.
  12. "Mischief's Magic Goes Wrong, The Play That Goes Wrong, and Groan Ups Will Tour U.K." Playbill .
  13. "A Look at Mischief Theatre's Groan Ups in the West End". Playbill .
  14. "'Groan Ups' review". Time Out. 11 October 2019. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
  15. "Peter Pan Goes Wrong". BBC1 . Retrieved 9 November 2022.
  16. "A Christmas Carol Goes Wrong". BBC . Retrieved 9 November 2022.
  17. "The Goes Wrong Show". BBC . Retrieved 9 November 2022.
  18. "The Spirit of Christmas". BBC . Retrieved 9 November 2022.
  19. "The Cornley Drama Festival Part 2". BBC . Retrieved 9 November 2022.