The Barn lights up “Guys and Dolls”
AUGUSTA, Mich.–The Barn first produced Guys and Dolls in 1955, the same year the film version starring Marlon Brando and Frank Sinatra was released, five years after the original Broadway production. It was their first musical, the show that “started it all in the Barn’s musical history,” said Producer Brendan
Ragotzy in his curtain speech opening night.
The current production gets it so right you’d think they’ve been working on it for 61 years.
This Tony award-winning show essentially sets the bar for musicals. The clever book, by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows, weaves together two love stories and a high-stakes illegal gambling ring with hugely likable
larger-than-life characters. The dialogue plays with the rhythm and rhyme of language inspired by the blend of street slang and formal diction of Damon Runyon’s celebrated short stories from the 1920s and 1930s.
Much of the head-bobbing, toe-tapping music and lyrics by Frank Loesser, is recognizable even to those who’ve never seen the musical, and those who see the show inevitably walk out of the theatre humming those songs for days. And all of the singing and dancing emerges organically from the scenes in a
way that seamlessly turns a craps game into a ballet and a romantic evening into a latin dance off cum cat fight.
Ultimately, it’s big and fun, a delightfully colorful summer spectacle with depth and heart. In other words, exactly what audiences have come to expect from The Barn.
Guys and Dolls kicks it old school. And this is what allows us to laugh at over-the-top machismo, a sexist world in which men are inherently sinners while women are referred to as dolls and tomatoes yet take the form of either strippers or virginal Christian soul-savers, and a guy who, unbeknownst to his date, plies her with alcohol when they realize they’re in love. Because in the end no one really gets hurt, righteousness is blurrier than anyone thinks, men and women have clear, distinct roles, and in this world no one knew there was a second wave of feminism on its way.
The Barn production runs with this vintage material and heightens its charm with terrific character actors who can really sing and dance, supported by wonderful sets, costumes, and live music that make the frenetic time and its characters even bolder.
In Director Hans Friedrichs’ all-star ensemble, every performer brings his or her A-game. Sam Massey as Benny Southstreet and Brittanie Grace as General Cartwright are just as animated and responsive in smaller roles as Patrick Hunter as Nicely-Nicely and Brooke Evans as Miss Adelaide are in their larger, more complex roles that nearly bring the house down. Hunter is an astounding tenor and his absolute commitment to goofy glutton Nicely reaches its height in goosebump-inducing revivalist satire “Sit Down, You’re Rockin’ the Boat,” a real show stopper made complete with arms-up seated wave-like choreography.
Evans’ sultry voice and depth of character take Miss Adelaide beyond the typical ditz and make her a real force in solo numbers such as “Adelaide’s Lament” as well as in big numbers like “Take Back Your Mink” in which she leads the delightful Hot Box Girls. She’s a fabulous comedienne who makes the most of overt sexual innuendo while simultaneously making it seem downright wholesome; and she has the singing and dancing chops to make this role a standout among bright shining stars.
Robin Haynes is a lively jagged-up Nathan Detroit. Hannah Eakin is a saintly Sarah Brown with a powerful clear soprano. Eric Parker’s Sky Masterson is warm, charming, and in command without being arrogant. He’s a gangster you can trust.
But everyone in this nearly 50-person cast brings life and high energy to their roles, making the relatively small stage explode with high energy that exudes 1930s Manhattan. Jamey Grisham’s choreography shines,
particularly in big athletic, jazzy numbers-and his own dancing is spectacular.
Brightly-colored costumes including plaid and checkered suits topped with fedoras as well as adorably sexy burlesque gowns and onesies by Carly Heathcote set the stage as well as Michael Wilson Morgan’s appropriately loud set with impressive moveable set pieces to indicate broad location changes.
Matt Shabala’s music direction and band make the terrific score even better with excellent live performance.
Guys and Dolls is often considered the perfect musical. It certainly looks that way at The Barn.