The Kennedy Center's revival of Guys and Dolls, directed by Marc Bruni (Beautiful) and choreographed by Denis Jones (Holiday Inn, Tootsie), begins performances at the D.C. venue's Eisenhower Theater October 7. The production, part of the Broadway Center Stage series, will continue through October 16.
The new staging stars Tony winner James Monroe Iglehart as Nathan Detroit, Tony winner Jessie Mueller as Miss Adelaide, Tony nominee Phillipa Soo as Sarah Brown, and Steven Pasquale as Sky Masterson, alongside Kevin Chamberlin (Wicked) as Nicely-Nicely Johnson, 2022 Tony nominee Rachel Dratch (POTUS) as Big Jule, Jacqueline Antaramian (Dr. Zhivago) as General Cartwright, Fred Applegate (The Producers) as Arvide Abernathy, Eden Marryshow (Ink) as Lt. Brannigan, Matthew Saldivar (Bernhardt/Hamlet) as Benny Southstreet, Jimmy Smagula (Billy Elliot) as Harry the Horse, and Akron Watson (The Play that Goes Wrong) as Rusty Charlie/Hot Box MC.
Rounding out the company are Allison Blackwell as Agatha, Colin Cunliffe as Sorrowful Jones, Michael Fatica as Liverlips Louie/Calvin, Tommy Gedrich as The Greek, Julia Harnett as Allison, Nathan Lucrezio as Scranton Slim, Kristen Faith Oei as Mimi, Lizz Picini as Ferguson, Deon Ridley as Society Max, Anthony Wayne as Angie the Ox, Tanner Wilson as Brandy Bottle Bates, and Kristin Yancy as Martha/Vernon.
The production team includes music director and conductor Kevin Stites, scenic and projection designer Paul Tate de Poo III, costume designer Mara Blumenfeld, lighting designer Cory Pattak, sound designers Kai Harada and Haley Parcher, and wig designer Tom Watson. Casting is by JZ Casting, and Matthew Lacey is production stage manager. The production is using Michael Starobin's orchestrations, with dance arrangements by Mark Hummel.
Guys and Dolls features a book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows and a score by Frank Loesser. An adaptation of the stories of Damon Runyon, the musical centers on a group of NYC gamblers, gangsters, showgirls, and missionaries. Loesser's score includes such favorites as "Luck Be a Lady," "Sue Me," "Adelaide's Lament," and "I'll Know." The musical premiered on Broadway in 1950 and has become a standard of the Golden Age musical theatre canon.
The Kennedy Center's Broadway Center Stage series, executive produced by Jeffrey Finn, will continue with Sunset Boulevard, starring Stephanie J. Block, February 1–6, 2023; and John Kander, Fred Ebb, and Terrence McNally’s Kiss of the Spider Woman May 15–21, 2023, both in the Eisenhower.
