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)