Opera Scotland

Guys and Dolls

Tours by decade

Tours by location

Music

Frank Loesser

Text

Abe Burrows and Jo Swerling (Book)

Frank Loesser (Lyrics)

Source

Story by Damon Runyon

 

Premieres

First Performance:  New York (46th Street Theatre), 24 November 1950.

First Performance in UK: London (Coliseum), 28 May 1953.

First Performance in Scotland: tbc.

 

Background

A musical fable of Broadway in two acts, Guys and Dolls is frequently considered one of the greatest, and sometimes the absolute greatest of the Broadway musicals.  There are two romantic couples.  Firstly young Sarah Brown, of the Salvation Army, tames a compulsive gambler, Sky Masterson.  Miss Adelaide, a nightclub singer, eventually tames Nathan Detroit.

In recent years a superb London staging by Richard Eyre at the National Theatre was a great success in 1982, later touring to Scotland.

 

Characters

Miss Adelaide of the Hot Box Club

Nathan Detroit

Nicely-Nicely Johnson

Benny Southstreet

Rusty Charlie

Sarah Brown

Arvide Abernethy

Sky Masterson

Big Jule

Harry the Horse

Angie the Ox

General Matilda B Cartwright