Guys and Dolls JR

Musical

Writers: Abe Burrows Jo Swerling Frank Loesser

Overview

Show Information

Lyrics
Category
Musical
Number of Acts
1
Genres
Comedy, Romance
Settings
Multiple Settings
Time & Place
Manhattan, New York, 1950’s
Cast Size
medium
Orchestra Size
Recording
Dancing
Some Dance
Ideal for
Community Theatre, Elementary School, Ensemble Cast, Large Cast, Middle School, Mostly Male Cast, Star Vehicle Male, Star Vehicle Female, Theatre For Young Audiences (TYA)
Casting Notes
Mostly male cast
Includes child, late teen, early teen characters

Synopsis

Guys and Dolls is a musical romantic comedy involving the unlikeliest of Manhattan pairings: a high-rolling gambler and a puritanical missionary, a showgirl dreaming of the straight-and-narrow and a crap game manager who is anything but. Set in the Manhattan of Damon Runyon’s short stories, Guys and Dolls tells of con-man Nathan Detroit’s efforts to find new life for his illegal, but notorious, crap game. When their trusty venue is found out by the police, Nathan has to find a new home for his crap game quickly - but he doesn’t have the dough to secure the one location he finds. Enter Sky Masterson, a high-rolling gambler willing to take on any honest bet with a high enough reward attached. Nathan bets Sky that he can’t take the “doll” of Nathan’s choosing out on a date. When Sky agrees to the bet, Nathan chooses uptight Evangelist Sergeant Sarah Brown, head of Broadway’s Save-a-Soul Mission. Sky thinks he’s been duped, but he’s in for even more of a surprise when his efforts to woo Sarah are so successful that he falls in love with her himself! Guys and Dolls takes us from the bustle of Times Square to the sewers of New York City as it demonstrates the great lengths to which a guy will go when he truly falls in love with a “doll.” Guys and Dolls features some of Frank Loesser’s most memorable tunes, including the hilarious “Adelaide’s Lament,” the romantic “I’ve Never Been in Love Before,” the exuberant “If I Were a Bell,” and the classic “Luck Be a Lady.”

Lead Characters


Guys and Dolls JR guide sections