Starlight Theatre Presents GUYS AND DOLLS, 7/12-27

Bustling with gamblers, gangsters and the "dolls" who love them, the national tour of Guys and Dolls rolls the dice at Starlight Theatre for six performances on July 12-17. All shows start at 8 p.m. on Starlight's Jeannette and Jerome Cohen Community Stage.

This production of Guys and Dolls, which will visit five cities this summer, celebrates what many consider the greatest score ever written for a Broadway musical. Frank Loesser's music is paired with the masterfully witty book and lyrics by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows. Together, they bring to life Damon Runyon's comic book world of a seedy 1940s New York City replete with wise-cracking gamblers, showgirls, sinners and saviors.

A romantic musical comedy, Guys and Dolls is appropriate for all ages. The show introduces audiences to a legendary cast of vivid characters: Sarah Brown, the upright and uptight "mission doll" out to reform the evildoers of Times Square; Sky Masterson, the slick, high-rolling gambler who woos her, on a bet, to Cuba and ends up falling in love; Miss Adelaide, the chronically ill nightclub performer whose condition is brought on by the fact that she's been engaged to the same man for 14 years; and Nathan Detroit, her devoted fiancé, desperate as always to find a spot for his infamous floating game of craps.

Starring in those signature roles in this summer's tour is a quartet of talented performers, all with Broadway credits on their resumés. They are Ben Crawford as Sky, Erin Davie as Sarah, Megan Sikora as Adelaide and Steve Rosen as Nathan. Crawford's Broadway credits include Shrek The Musical and Les Misérables. Davie has appeared on Broadway in the revival of A Little Night Music, Curtains and Grey Gardens, for which she received a Theatre World Award for Outstanding Broadway Debut for her portrayal of Young Little Edie. Sikora returns to Starlight after having appeared here in the 2009 production of Anything Goes; among her Broadway credits are roles in the original companies of Promises, Promises, Curtains, Dracula, Wonderful Town, Thoroughly Modern Millie and 42nd Street. Rosen appeared in Broadway's original cast of Monty Python's Spamalot, as well as in Guys and Dolls and The Farnsworth Invention.

Guys and Dolls wowed Broadway in 1951 when it was honored with five Tony Awards®, including Best Musical, Best Choreography and Best Director. During the past six decades, the show has been re-created around the world in many memorable versions. It has been revived on Broadway three times - in 1976, 1992 and 2009. A movie version was released in 1953 starring Marlon Brando as Sky Masterson and Frank Sinatra as Nathan Detroit. Loesser's beloved musical score features such favorites as "Luck Be a Lady," "Adelaide's Lament," "My Time of Day," "Sit Down You're Rockin' the Boat" and many more.

"I'm thrilled to bring Guys and Dolls, one of my personal favorites, to Starlight this summer," said Denton Yockey, Starlight president and executive producer. "It has been 15 seasons since Starlight audiences have been entertained with the antics of Sarah, Sky, Adelaide and Nathan. It's high time we all took a gamble on love and laughs with this musical classic!"

Gordon Greenberg directs the new touring production with choreography by Patti Columbo. The show is produced by Big League Productions, Inc. of New York City. Touring Broadway musicals and attractions worldwide since 1991, Big League's credits include Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Miss Saigon, Meredith Willson's The Music Man, The Who's Tommy and How the Grinch Stole Christmas.

Tickets for Guys and Dolls at Starlight Theatre are on sale now for $10 to $85. Tickets are available online at www.kcstarlight.com, by calling 816.363.STAR (7827) or at the Starlight box office at 4600 Starlight Road, Kansas City, MO 64132. All performances begin at 8 p.m.

Discount prices for groups of 15 or more are available. A group happy hour special will be offered on Wednesday, July 13; for just $30, buyers receive a Side Plaza ticket to the show, pre-show drinks and appetizers (a $60+ value). For information about group pricing and/or the July 13 happy hour promotion, contact group sales manager Felicia Goodison at 816.997.1137 or felicia.goodison@kcstarlight.com.

Starlight Theatre
Presenting Broadway entertainment since 1951, the non-profit Starlight Theatre Association is Kansas City's oldest and largest performing arts organization. The Association operates, programs and maintains the largest stage in the United States, as well as the 16-acre Starlight Theatre complex. While assuming all annual operating costs for the complex, the Association also raises funds for capital improvements and a variety of programs, including national Broadway musical performances, concerts, community outreach and education. Since 2000, the Association has contributed more than $25 million of privately funded improvements to the Kansas City, Mo.-owned Starlight Theatre. Each Broadway season, Starlight donates more than 11,000 tickets to its performances to regional non-profit organizations serving the disadvantaged.

In 2010, Starlight Theatre was selected as the "Favorite Performing Arts Venue" and the "Favorite Concert/Live Music Venue" in the Kansas City Convention & Visitors Association's Visitors' Choice Awards program. Starlight also received a Gold Award for "Best Performing Arts Venue" and Silver Award for "Best Theater" in Ingram's 2010 Best of Business Kansas City Awards, as well as the award for "Best Live Theater Venue" in the KC Magazine City's Best 2010 competition.

Starlight Theatre seats approximately 8,000 and is located in Swope Park.

 

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