If ever there were an example of how a show, particularly a musical, is a jigsaw puzzle, it’s Stray Dog Theatre’s Guys and Dolls. The delicious score by Frank Loesser is a perfect example of American musical comedy, and Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows’ book, inspired by Damon Runyon, is full of funny. It’s great material. So that part of the puzzle – the frame, as it were – is put together firmly.
And the other pieces? Let’s look. First of all, Kevin O’Brien’s Nathan Detroit glistens, not just from the sweat he mops up when his beloved Adelaide, Sara Rae Womack, begins a serious push to end their 14-year engagement with a wedding, for heavens sake. O’Brien is a delight as as Nathan, a character that was meant to be overplayed. O’Brien does so with absolute joy. Womack’s Miss Adelaide is a fine match for Our Man Nathan, she emphasizes the necessary self-restraint when it’s time, leaps into Nathan’s arms with glee and delivers Adelaide’s nasal pitch with aplomb.
The other romantic couple in the show don’t fare as well. Jayde Mitchell is Sky Masterson. His voice is close to perfect for the score, and “My Time of Day” soars. But there’s a palpable lack of warmth in his portrayal of the character from start to finish, both physically and in his speaking voice. Our Sarah Brown, the mission doll, as the gamblers style her, is Angela Bubash. Her Sarah is closer to tough than innocent, one assumes a deliberate choice by director Gary Bell, but it’s striking to hear that in her voice when she sings, “I’ll Know”, for instance. There’s a marked lack of chemistry between these two oddly-matched characters.
As Nicely-Nicely Johnson, Mike Wells, shines. Starting out with the wonderful “Fugue for Tinhorns”, he, along with Cory Frank’s Benny Southstreet and Bryce Miller as Rusty Charlie, pretty much own it. Wells and Frank then proceed to knock it out of the park with a song-and-dance take on the title song.
Big Jule, Zachary Stefaniak, gave a straight-faced delivery of lines that worked very well, although it’s hard to imagine Big Jule following the mission’s honcho, General Cartwright around like a large Great Dane. The Hot Box Girls carry their share of the load well, looking like they were chosen from an early Busby Berkeley musical. The overall ensemble sound, however, when singing together was sometimes plagued with at least one person off-key.
Sound balance was a problem early on, the music from the large but unseen orchestra overwhelming the well-worth-enjoying lyrics, but that, and microphones that blurred the lines, cleared up fairly well in the second act opening night. Josh Smith’s set worked without needing a great deal of adjustment in the course of the show, and Lauren Smith’s costumes were period-appropriate. And isn’t it amazing how many of those awful ties from the post-war years have survived? Tyler Duenow’s lighting was, excuse the phrase, spot on.
Always a fun show, and parts of this version are absolutely delightful. There are just some pieces that don’t fit. It’s your call.
Guys and Dolls
through August 21
Stray Dog Theatre
2336 Tennessee Ave.
314-865-1995