We know what to expect from The Production Company. There will not be hundreds of thousands to spend on special effects nor a creative imagination that pushes boundaries. There will be good singing, crisp dancing and a nostalgic journey into an old-fashioned world where men were, well, guys, and women were dolls.
Guys and Dolls delivers exactly what we expect. The staging is, frankly, dull but the singing is pitch perfect. Verity Hunt-Ballard’s fabulous timbre is glorious. Martin Crewes is Sinatra-sexy. The ensemble has fabulous timing. Who needs flying cars or flying monkeys when Hunt-Ballard opens her mouth as Sarah Brown, the Salvation Army girl seduced for a bet, or Martin Crewes flashes his smile and begs luck to be a lady.
Chelsea Plumley as Miss Adelaide is appropriately cringeworthy and if she and Adam Murphy (Nathan Detroit) are a little too cartoon-like it’s only what we would expect from what is, after all, a thoroughly cheesy show.
Guys and Dolls is crisply directed by Gale Edwards who gets excellent work out a small but thoroughly professional ensemble, aided by clean and sometimes interesting choreography from Nathan M. Wright.
The choreography is a little hampered by an unfortunate set. In an effort to add some interest on a budget and pull the ensemble together on the large Arts Centre stage, the action is largely restricted to a triangular raised platform in the centre of the stage forcing the dancers into an unnecessarily (and occasionally perilously) cramped space. This limitation is occasionally a distraction as we found ourselves wondering what might happen if one of the dancers was to fly off the edge of the platform rather than being swept up in the pleasurable footwork of a well-rehearsed ensemble and an orchestra playing with great verve.
A little more imagination might have delivered some set interest without a big budget – and they could have saved on that awful tacky horseshoe for ‘Luck be a Lady‘.
The singing and dancing are the strengths of this production – and shouldn’t they be in a musical? Of course it is exciting to have modern productions that bring effects and imagination into production without losing musical quality – and Guys and Dolls will be hard pressed to compete with Les Miserables or Wicked, both playing concurrently in Melbourne, on this score.
But new works like King Kong sometimes put more energy into production than into music.
The Production Company’s reliable shows are a great reminder that neither a company nor an individual ticket-holder needs an enormous budget to enjoy musical theatre.
No, we won’t remember this in 10 years time (ArtsHub’s criteria for a five star review) or even think about it in 10 minutes, but we had an enjoyable time and went home smiling and humming. Isn’t that what musicals used to be about?
Rating: 3 stars out of 5
The Production Company presents
Guys and Dolls
Based on a story by and the characters of Damon Runyon
Music and Lyrics by Frank Loesser
Book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows
Directed by Gale Edwards
Musical Director: Guy Simpson
Choreographer: Nathan M. Wright
Costumes: Tim Chappel
Scenery: Shaun Gurton
Arts Centre Melbourne
19-27 July
