Guys and Dolls

Guys and Dolls is one of the classic 20th Century Musicals.  Based on "The Idyll of Miss Sarah Brown" and "Blood Pressure" by Damon Runyon it premiered on Broadway in 1950 as well being translated into a 1955 film adaptation starring Marlon Brando, Jean Simmons, Frank Sinatra and Vivian Blaine.

The show therefore has a very illustrious pedigree which is hard for any community theatre company to  live up to but the team at Mansfield Operatic “knocked it out of the park” with this production.

It’s hard to single out individuals as this was such a strong all-round production.  Great staging, lighting and sound provided the framework for the show’s success and it was the strength of the acting, characterisation and a cast clearly working for each other that made it such as success.  All of these were clearly due to the hard work the production team had put in over the months and Pam, Paul, Cassey and Roger should be suitably proud of what they have created.

At the centre of the on-stage action were Dave Egan as Sky Masterson and Sarah Brown as Helen Mumby. Great vocal performances from both Dave and Helen were the heartbeat of the production and coupled with strong acting performances with great pace and character arc was one of the critical factors in the success of this production.

Sean Curtis was excellent as Nathan Detroit and Carolyn Frith simply delivered the best Miss Adelaide I have see in a production of Guys & Dolls, bringing the comedy and kookyness to the part without going over the top and moving into farce.

The four leads were very ably supported by the ensemble cast who, in every case, managed to develop their individual characters.  Nicely Nicely, Benny Southstreet, Harry the Horse, Rusty Charlie, Big Jule, Joey Biltmore, Angie the Ox, Liver Lips Louie, Smoking Joe were all unique characters which made the crew fun to watch develop.   The Salvation Army team also delivered strong performances to a man and woman so Wayne, Matthew, Jamie, Garry, Simon, Theresa, Stuart, Ann, Paul, Martyn, Andrew and Steve – take a bow!

The Mission Band, Dancers, Chorus and Children all added to the impact of the production and ensured that the action flowed seamlessly between scenes.

Shows like this do not happen by accident, they are the result of a significant amount of hard work and attention to detail by cast, crew, production team, staging, lighting sound and technical team alike.  Many congratulations to all for a great production and I look forward to seeing you in Singin in the Rain next year.

Martin Holtom

 

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