Guys and Dolls: the survival of the revivals
A funny thing happened on my way to New York City…at the "Gateway Theatre":https://www.gatewaytheatre.com/ in Richmond. On my list of must-see Broadway shows for a brief visit to NYC was "South Pacific":http://www.lct.org/showMain.htm?id=174; a revival that has garnered enough awards to make you go cross-eyed.
As a proud musical theatre nut, I grew up singing and dancing to the 1958 film version of the Rogers and Hammerstein classic which features tunes like “I’m Gonna Wash that Man Right Outa my Hair”. Much to my dismay, I had never seen a staged production. The same was true of another revival being staged closer to home, Guys and Dolls at the Gateway. Here was another musical turned into a popular film by MGM (this time in 1955) featuring a star-studded cast that includes Marlon Brando, Jean Simmons, Frank Sinatra and Vivian Blaine. Back in the day, my mother was hesitant to let me watch the film because it centres on gambling and features gangsters and scantily clad women who dance in nightclubs. But now, having myself performed in a Broadway Jazz, burlesque-influenced dance company in venues like the one featured in Guys and Dolls, I figured mom would be okay with me seeing the show.
I thus ventured on a pre-trip getaway to a matinee performance of the familiar tuned favourite. I was curious with the revivals in both Richmond and New York; would I savour the experience or find that time has turned the old, sweet hits stale? Would the content and conflict in these musicals translate to the modern stage? Would the old be given a new spin? In the case of Gateway’s Guys and Dolls, director Sarah Rodgers had no intention of mucking around.
Making a valuable observation in her program notes, Rodgers states “It is all here in the book”. I was also thrilled to see listed in the program an orchestra with 10 musicians. Together they create a full-bodied sound that compliments but doesn’t overpower the singers. This tasteful balance is thanks to musical direction by Allen Stiles.
The notion of keeping it authentic translates into the production itself, which ends 2008 at the Gateway with a bang! The show itself certainly opens with one. The energetic cast fill the stage with an acrobatic and colourfully choreographed goose chase, pursuing scoundrels through the streets of New York and demonstrates Choreographer Shelley Stewart Hunt determination to provide us with movement that is continuously courageous. Transporting us from the glitzy Hotbox nightclub to a sewer, Karyn McCallum’s cartoonish set fits together like a puzzle, cleverly giving the impression of structures tightly squeezed together NY fashion. We are placed in the middle of a world of fast talking gamblers who roll dice professionally and bet on horse races in the opening trio “Fugue for Tinhorns”.
At the centre of this world is a long-time running, floating craps game organized by Nathan Detroit (Kevin K. James). This craps game is problematic in several ways – Detroit has no place to run the game and no money to rent space. Plus, amidst all this scrambling, local Lieutenant Brannigan (Steve Pelton) is eyeing the action, suspicious of any funny business. Finally, Detroit’s commitment to gambling prevents him from marrying his girlfriend of 14 years, the wonderfully woebegone showgirl Miss Adelaide, played right on the nose by a sneezing and ever humorous Sara-Jeanne Hosie.
Convinced by her boyfriend’s promises that he has given up gambling and is soon to elope with her, Adelaide sings the irresistible, farm themed “Bushel and a Peck”, backed up by her Bronx-accented beauties, the Hotbox Girls who, for this number, are clad as eggs. These quirky costumes and other enjoyable getups were designed by Jenifer Darbellay. Right on the money was the portrayal of Detroit’s notorious friend, Sky Masterson (Peter Jorgenssen), the smooth talking, street savvy gambler who is also lucky with ladies. Masterson’s luck is challenged by Detroit in a $1000 bet that he can get any doll to have dinner with him.
Detroit selects an unlikely candidate: local religious zealot, Sergeant Sarah Brown (Tracy Neff) of the Save-A-Soul mission. We have previously seen her standing on a soap box singing with a voice like a bell, attempting to save gamblers and sinners from hell. But in a bet of her own, she ends up accepting the offer of a dinner date to Sky’s favourite spot – in Havana. Neff’s performance is sweet. She drinks creamy cocktails from coconut shells, unaware of the alcoholic content, and suggests that it would be a good way to get children to drink their milk! The next moment she’s sassier, singing (and swaying slightly) about her newfound romance in the memorable “If I Were a Bell”.
Guys and Dolls is really the typical setup: guy meets girl, guy loses girl, guy gets girl back. When their romance is on the rocks, one need only look at the program to forecast “The Happy Ending” (the title of the final song). While the story might be slightly predictable, it’s still done in a manner that’s one of a kind and ceaselessly entertaining. This production plays its cards (or rolls its dice) right.
True to her marker, Rodgers delivers the straight goods – good, classic musical theatre at its best. It’s all there on stage with energetic performance bursting fourth from each of the talented cast of 25! Both on-stage and in the audience, the Richmond production seemed more crowded than the noticeably sparse streets and theatres of real-life, contemporary New York.
In these economically uncertain times, the big city is apparently suffering a big tourist shortage. While one can hope that theatre itself does not become obsolete, there is no doubt that the show at the Gateway will not. The South Pacific revival on Broadway was another case entirely. Although it also employs a similar structure, the tried and true “Yes! No! But Wait!”, the central struggle of the leading “dame” seems dated. Nellie Forbush rejects widower Emile de Becque because of his bi-racial children from a previously relationship.
This conflict may have been more relevant in its day but despite high production values in this revival, to me the show simply seems to be past its prime. And so, in just a few short days I had been to Broadway and back again to beautiful British Columbia. While the snow was not so delightful for simple traveling, it makes me proud to report that, in all honesty, Gateway’s revival is much more fit for survival.