Guys and Dolls, Possibly Broadway-Bound, Recoups Investment

By: Oct. 13, 2005
Get Access To Every Broadway Story

Unlock access to every one of the hundreds of articles published daily on BroadwayWorld by logging in with one click.




Existing user? Just click login.

The smash London revival of Guys and Dolls may be bound for Broadway, according to Variety.  The show recently recouped its entire $5.24 million investment in 17 weeks, and the producers are interested in trying to duplicate its success in New York.

The show is produced in London by the Ambassador Theatre Group's Howard Panter, Clear Channel Entertainment's David Ian and Arielle Tepper (who is American); they are aiming to open Guys and Dolls in a Broadway theatre in fall of 2006.  The revival would come only 14 years after the hit 1992 revival that starred Nathan Lane and Tony Award-winner Faith Prince, as well as Peter Gallagher and Josie de Guzman.

Guys and Dolls, which is playing at London's Piccadilly Theatre, owes some of its commerical success to a lustrous cast; it opened with Ewan McGregor (as Sky Masterson), Jane Krakowski (as Miss Adelaide), Jenna Russell (as Sarah Brown) and Douglas Hodge (as Nathan Detroit).  The show also received a strong critical reception. Directed by Michael Grandage and choreographed by Tony Award-winner Rob Ashford, the show is a somewhat grittier interpretation of the classic musical, which is set in a New York world of gamblers, gangsters, chorus girls and Sarah Brown, a Salvation Army girl who wants to reform all of them. Of course, Sarah also falls in love with one of the gamblers--Sky Masterson.

On December 5th, Nigel Harman ("EastEnders," Mamma Mia! and The Who's Tommy in the West End) will succeed McGregor as Sky, while Sarah Lancashire ("Coronation Street") will take over as Miss Adelaide the same day.
 
Guys and Dolls opened at the 46th Street Theatre on November 24th, 1950 and won the 1951 Tony Award for Best Musical. Running for 1,200 performances, it featured Robert Alda, Vivian Blaine, Isabel Bigley and Sam Levene as its leads. Based on the stories of Damon Runyon, Guys and Dolls features a score by Frank Loesser and a book by Abe Burrows and Jo Swerling. There have been 3 Broadway revivals, and a 1955 film starred Marlon Brando, Blaine, Frank Sinatra and Jean Simmons.

Call (0)870 060 0123 for more information on the West End production, or visit www.guysanddollsthemusical.com.




Videos