Photo by Chris Davies
A musical fable of Broadway based on a story and characters of Damon Runyon.
Set in Damon Runyon’s mythical New York City, this oddball romantic comedy – considered by many to be the perfect musical comedy – soars with the spirit of Broadway as it introduces us to a cast of vivid characters who have become legends in the canon: Sarah Brown, the upright but uptight mission doll, out to reform the evildoers of Time Square; Sky Masterson, the slick, high-rolling gambler who woos her on a bet and ends up falling in love; Adelaide, the chronically ill nightclub performer whose condition is brought on by the fact she’s been engaged to the same man for 14 years; and Nathan Detroit, her devoted fiance, desperate as always to find a spot for his infamous floating crap game.
Guys and Dolls features some of Frank Loesser’s most memorable tunes, including ‘Adelaide’s Lament’, ‘I’ve Never Been in Love Before’, ‘If I Were a Bell’ and ‘Luck Be a Lady’.
In an essay in his book Utopia and Other Places, Richard Eyre makes a number of telling points about Guys and Dolls. “I never saw a stage production until my own,” he writes, “not even the 1979 Half Moon Theatre production, whose director told me that Guys and Dolls was so good that not even a director could mess it up.”
Loesje Sanders, the Administrator with Half Moon Theatre, talks about the company’s production at Alie Street of Guys and Dolls, with just seven performers. Interviewed by Rosie Vincent.
Ché Walker‘s father, Robert Walker directed Guys and Dolls at Half Moon Theatre in Alie Street. As a young boy, Ché remembers it as a stand out production. Interviewed by Georgina Da Silva.
Actor, Maggie Steed talks about playing Miss Adelaide in Guys And Dolls at Half Moon Theatre on Alie Street in 1979. The production was done with a cast of only seven, so the male performers had to play the Hot Box Girls. Interviewed by Kavana Joyett.
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