JULY 23, 2009 ISSUE
Guys and Dolls at Lees-McRae July 30 to August 3
Production Closes Summer Theatre’s 25th Anniversary Season
Chistopher Galloway (center), playing the role of Sky Masterson, and the other gamblers in Guys and Dolls rehearse “Luck Be a Lady.”
The Lees-McRae Summer Theatre presents the final production of the 2009 season, the popular musical Guys and Dolls, Thursday through Monday, July 30 to August 3. You won’t be gambling your money away with this musical, voted by last year’s audiences as one of the “most wanted” plays to see at Summer Theatre.
“For years, Guys and Dolls emerges as one of the most popular musicals of all time,” said Janet Barton Speer, artistic director of the Summer Theatre and director of Guys and Dolls.
Show times at the Lees-McRae College Hayes Auditorium in Banner Elk are at 7:30 p.m. from Thursday to Saturday, July 30 to August 1, and on Monday, August 3. Additional 2:00 p.m. matinee showings are on Thursday, July 30, and Saturday and Sunday, August 1 and 2.
Guys and Dolls is an oddball romantic comedy based on a story and characters by Damon Runyon, with music and lyrics by Frank Loesser and book by Joe Swerling and Abe Burrows. Set in New York City, the musical is about four characters: Sarah Brown, a woman determined to reform the evildoers of Times Square; Sky Masterson, a slick, high-rolling gambler who woos her on a bet and ends up falling in love; Adelaide, a nightclub performer who’s been engaged to the same man for 14 years; and Nathan Detroit, her devoted fiancé who is always trying to find a spot for his floating craps game.
Christopher Galloway and Anna Lise Jensen play Sky Masterson and Sarah Brown in Lees-McRae Summer Theatre’s production of Guys and Dolls.
Guys and Dolls opened on Broadway in 1950, with revivals in 1965, 1976, 1992 and 2009, Speer said. A film version starring Marlon Brando and Frank Sinatra was released in 1955, “but most reviewers believe that the film didn’t do the play justice,” she said.
The original Guys and Dolls Broadway production won five Tony Awards, including Best Musical.
“If you were to say there is a particular style that says ‘American musical,’ Guys and Dolls would be that style,” Speer said. “When you think of this music, you think of footlights and colorful costumes. It is lively, funny and engaging. You can’t keep your toes from tapping when you hear it.”
The cast includes Christopher Galloway as Sky Masterson, Anna Lise Jensen as Sarah Brown, Beth McGowan Blalock as Adelaide, Bob Haas as Nathan Detroit and Timothe Biddle as gambler Nicely-Nicely.
This is Speer’s fourth production of Guys and Dolls—her first was as an actress, playing the role of Sarah at a professional theatre in Texas.
“I like the fact that there’s a laugh every few minutes,” she said. “The writing is so clever, and with the wit, the music and the wonderful dance numbers, the show seems to fly by because you are having so much fun.”
Tickets are $24 for adults and $13 for students and children. Matinee tickets are $19 for adults and $9 for students and children. For more information or to purchase tickets, call the box office at 828-898-8709 or click to www.lmc.edu/sites/SummerTheatre/.
Want To Go?
Dates: Thursday through Monday, July 30 to August 3
Times: 7:30 p.m. July 30 and 31, August 1 and 3/2:00 p.m. July 30, August 1 and 2
Location: Lees-McRae College Hayes Auditorium, Banner Elk
Cost: $24 adults/$13 students & kids evenings; $19 adults/$9 students& kids matinee
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