Older‘Jay Johnson: The Two & Only’ Review
ONE-MAN SHOW :: Jay Johnson: The Two and Only is a Broadway show like no other. For starters, it really is a one-man show unlike Martin Short’s “one-man show,” Fame Becomes Me. Well, sort of. Johnson is an extremely gifted ventriloquist that brings his audience into a hilarious reality he so deftly creates. He magically brings to life about a dozen inanimate co-stars including a nutcracker, a decapitated head, a tennis ball, a vulture puppet named Nethermore, and a gorilla puppet named Darwin.
THE LOWDOWN :: Jay Johnson not only covers his own history but the nitty gritty history of ventriloquism (it does drag on for a tad too long). But believe me when I say that Johnson was born to be a ventriloquist. The show really will blow you away from start to finish, leaving you wondering, did he really just do that? The Two and Only is, for the most part, kid-appropriate fun and something for the whole family to enjoy. After the jump is a summary of what other reviewers are saying…
Jay Johnson and his gorilla puppet Darwin
on The Late Show with David Letterman
WHAT THE REVIEWERS HAD TO SAY…
CHARLES ISHERWOOD of the NEW YORK TIMES: “Strictly speaking Mr. Johnson is the sole star of this genial if flimsy 90-minute entertainment.”
CLIVE BARNES of the NEW YORK POST: “All in all, this is a surprising, and extremely funny, one-man show that has a character to it and more than a few characters in it.”
JOE DZIEMIANOWICZ of NEW YORK DAILY NEWS: “You expect to laugh during a show about a guy who makes a tennis ball speak - and a monkey curse. But you don’t anticipate to well up. You’ll do both during “Jay Johnson: The Two and Only!” - an entertaining, if overlong, celebration of ventriloquism.”
MICHAEL SOMMERS of the STAR-LEDGER: “Yet the surrender of disbelief that Johnson evokes with his personable associates reaches out and tickles the child in all of us. It’s a real pleasure to spend such quality time with Johnson and his chatty comrades in arms.”
ELYSA GARDNER of USA TODAY: “Can a seemingly well-adjusted man find his soul mate in an inanimate object? And can that relationship then fuel a consistently entertaining 90-minute program? The answer to both questions is, improbably, yes!”
ROB KENDT of NEWSDAY: “Early ventriloquists were both feared and mistrusted for their seeming ability to rouse the dead - or at least to make the dead speak. Jay Johnson, today’s preeminent practitioner of this ancient art, tries mightily, if rather meekly, to revive some moribund entertainment traditions.”
ROBERT FELDBERG of THE RECORD: “Johnson, though, rates a salute, not only for his ability to make people laugh but as a good-natured crusader for a skill that’s also his passion.”
FRANK SCHECK of HOLLYWOOD REPORTER: “Johnson is a highly likable performer who is as engaging as he is skilled in his craft. His easygoing presence, and his ability to wrest serious laughs using inanimate objects, should give “The Two and Only!” a chance for a decent Broadway run.”
DAVID ROONEY of VARIETY: “Feels more like superior club entertainment than a Broadway vehicle — a nostalgic nod to a once-popular variety-show staple rather than a convincing claim for its ongoing vitality.”
4 Comments
WOW! I always wondered where he went to. I remember him from “back in the day”. He really is funny. Wish I lived closer to NYC
I loved that clip. The show really looks interesting. I think I’ll pick up tickets the next time I’m in the city.
:D :( :) :O >:( r:)
So which one is the dummy?
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