Promise that 'Forum' won't bore 'em

Jon English tells TERI FITSELL some of the funny things that happened on the way to his latest hit musical comedy.

It has taken Jon English 30 years in showbiz to finally admit to himself that he is an entertainer.

The all-singing, all-joking star of A Funny Thing Happened On the Way To the Forum came to the realisation on his 50th birthday in March.

"Turning 50 wasn't really a milestone in the way I thought it would be," he says. "You know, half a century and all that stuff. But it did sort of make me think, 'Well that's it then, this is what I do. I won't be resorting to being a plumber if this showbiz thing doesn't work out.'"

This showbiz thing has, in fact, worked out very well, with English's career spanning the worlds of pop (his CDs have recently been re-released), television drama in Against The Wind, theatre in the play Bacchoi, and even ballet - English co-wrote a ballet called Phases.

Then there's his success in musical theatre, which started with his debut as Judas in the original Australian production of Jesus Christ Superstar. In recent years he's been associated with Simon Gallaher and Essgee Entertainment for the three-hit Gilbert and Sullivan extravaganzas, The Mikado, Pirates of Penzance and HMS Pinafore.

And now there's A Funny Thing Happened On the Way To the Forum.

English and the troupe opened Forum in Australia on New Year's Eve, toured that country, and arrived in Christchurch on July 9. Since then they've performed in Wellington and are to open in Auckland on Wednesday.

That's a lot of performances. "One hundred and seventy-five in Australia alone," says English in a voice with a surprisingly strong London accent considering he left England for Australia when he was 11.

"But because my part in the show involves a lot of improvisation and ad lib it stays fresh. I don't care where we are or how many times we do it, I just put on the frock and jump around."

Forum, a bawdy musical comedy set in Roman times, has had audiences laughing their laurels off for more than 30 years. It was written by Stephen Sondheim early in his career before he became, as English puts it, "too Sondheimy and difficult to listen to. Oh gawd, what am I saying. I'm going to lose all my gay fans."

English stars in the dual role of Prologus/Pseudolus, the conniving slave who also acts as narrator and carries the action along.

Pseudulus wants to earn his freedom and is given the chance when his master, Hero, falls for Philia, a lass from the bordello next door. If Pseudolus, aided by Hysterium (played by New Zealander Mark Hadlow), can bring the two together then Hero will set him free.

In taking on the part of Pseudolus, English is following in some very distinguished Roman sandals. Zero Mostel (The Producers) created the role on Broadway in the early 1960s and performed it in an unmemorable film in 1966. Phil Silvers (Sgt Bilko) revived it in 1972 and picked up two Tonys for his efforts. Then last year Nathan Lane (The Birdcage) donned the toga on Broadway before passing it on to Whoopi Goldberg.

"Goldberg had a huge hit with it," English says. "The fact that she's a woman clearly added a whole new dimension. And don't forget that back in the 1970s Frankie Howerd made it his own in Britain. In fact, they made a spin-off TV series from it called Up Pompeii - it must have really hacked off the writers because they nicked the idea and I don't think they paid a penny for it.

"It's not surprising it worked though, because it's a show that lends itself to wide interpretation. That's why it's stayed fresh so long, and so popular - well it's either that or the bunch of very attractive, nubile dancing girls that are in it."

English leaves Forum in September to work on some of his own projects. He is finishing Buskers and Angels, a show he wrote about the rock 'n' roll business, and he may be returning to New Zealand in October to do some gigs with his band.

His music underwent something of a revival after Turn the Page, a show he did last year in Australia.

"It was based on my career," English says, "but as seen though the eyes of a nubile young wench who wants to know how to get to the top in the music industry without taking her clothes off. So it's a pretty funny premise right there."

On top of that, he'll always have Paris, a rock opera he wrote in 1991 based on the Trojan Wars. It has yet to be staged.

"Yeah, well the problem is it's a massive project," English says. "Paris is the geezer who ran off with Helen and caused the Trojan Wars. Funny really, people talk about West Side Story and I say, 'It's a rip-off.' They talk about Romeo and Juliet and I say, 'It's a rip-off.' Helen and Paris were the first star-crossed lovers.

"I'd love to see it staged and I think it will be. But it's going to be very expensive because it's got to be rich and big or people will feel dudded."

English does not, however, think they'll feel "dudded" by Forum.

"It's a great night out. A bit naughty, a bit risque ... and it's got those nubile dancing girls."

Who: Jon English

What: A Funny Thing Happened On the Way To the Forum

Where: St James Theatre, Auckland

When: From Wednesday