CHICAGO—"Guys and Dolls,” about colorful gamblers and underworld characters, is such a frothy, lighthearted musical comedy that few would have believed Frank Loesser’s 1950 Broadway show would run for 1,200 performances and win the Tony Award for Best Musical. But it did in 1951.
Now, the fun-loving show, which hasn’t been seen in Chicago in many years, has been revived by Drury Lane Theatre in Oakbrook Terrace, Illinois, in a exhilarating production.
With a book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows, the musical is based on Damon Runyon’s (1880–1946) short stories about the small-time gamblers and gangsters in 1920s–1930s New York City. The Drury Lane revival, masterfully directed and choreographed by Dan Knechtges, is wonderfully faithful to the original Broadway production.
The story begins when Nathan Detroit, who runs the oldest floating crap game in New York City, finds himself desperate for money. When big gambler Sky Masterson arrives in town and brags that he can have any woman he wants, Detroit sees his chance. He bets Masterson that he can’t have any woman he wants, pointing to Sister Sarah of the Salvation Army. At the same time, Detroit is being hounded by his girlfriend Adelaide, who after a 14-year engagement, is determined to get married.
The colorful neon-lit set, provided by scenic designer Angie Weber Miller, gives the show a glamorous, glitzy look, and Lee Fiskness’s sharp lighting design creates a dazzling nightlife environment. Furthermore, there’s a cute and funny embellishment in the musical when a porter carries a model airplane across the stage. It provides a transition between the streets of New York City and a nightclub in Havana, Cuba.
The show not only has a charming, joyous spirit, but plenty of hilarious dialogue where the wise-guy characters mix formal language with street-wise slang. It takes some fine acting and vocal prowess to make the characters believable, and the performers do a great job of convincing us.
Pepe Nufrio is a handsome Sky Masterson, who with a velvety smooth voice delivers a compelling “Luck Be a Lady,” “I’ll Know,” and “My Time of Day.” Mr. Nufrio is well-matched with Erica Stephan as Sarah Brown, the idealistic and religious woman on a mission to save souls. Her superb soprano is a highlight, especially when she sings “I’ve Never Been in Love Before,” and “If I Were a Bell.”
Another delightful duo is Jackson Evans, a riot as Nathan Detroit, and Alanna Lovely as the Hot Box dancer Miss Adelaide. Mr. Evans has terrific comic timing and is a hoot singing “Sue Me,” and is riveting as he tries to keep his 14-year engagement to Adelaide intact. Ms. Lovely, as Adelaide, believes she keeps catching colds because she’s still single, and almost stops the show singing “Adelaide’s Lament.”
Other wonderful comic contributions include Jordan Anthony Arredondo as Harry the Horse, Nkrumah Gatling as Nicely-Nicely Johnson, and KC McNeil as Big Jule. Besides the main love songs, there are more wonderful musical numbers that are perfectly orchestrated by co-music directors Roberta Duchak and Chris Sargent.
When today’s musicals are heralded if they have one or two good songs, “Guys and Dolls” overflows with more great tunes such as “A Bushel and a Peck,” “More I Cannot Wish You,” “Guys and Dolls,” and “Fugue for Tinhorns.”
In addition, the show features some spirited choreography by Knechtges, such as the rollicking “The Crapshooters’ Dance,” the sensual “Take Back Your Mink” and “Sit Down, You’re Rockin’ the Boat” at the Save-a-Soul Mission revival meeting.
There’s no earth-shattering message to “Guys and Dolls,” just a nostalgic, escapist, and laugh-filled entertainment that will have you dancing in the aisles and humming its delicious tunes by show’s end.
