Guys and Dolls - Bridge Theatre

[Marwood]

There was no scrum, and no pushing and shoving: as long as you’re aware of what’s going on around you, you’ll be fine (the ground staff were dressed as police so if you see one moving near you, you’ll know it’s time to get ready to move)

[Jon]

How is Daniel Mays as Nathan Detroit?

[ceebee]

Mar 3, 2023 23:55:59 GMT emmy said:

Great to see early positive reports! Is it the sort of show where you can stand right at the edge of the pit, leaning against the wall and avoid the worst of the scrum (as in Julius Caesar)? Don’t need the best view, just want to see and not be pushed

Yes, plenty of people stuck to the perimeter probably to avoid feeling hemmed in. I was above the band - fantastic sound and views. I'd struggle to justify stalls prices when this show is so visually appealing. You kind of want to take it all in. Though in the pit properly looked like they were having fun. Sit down your rocking the boat just became one big party and the theatre was buzzing.

[ctas]

Had an amazing time tonight. Pit was fairly relaxed, amazing atmosphere and people mostly moving sensibly and lots of space if you wanted to get around. Somehow found myself next to the tallest person there because I am cursed but it was so good that didn’t dent my enthusiasm! I thought there were some great acting choices from all of the leads, very good use of the space especially for dance moments and loved the design of it. Hats off to that incredible stage management team and I’m so glad they get their own applause at the finale, they really deserve it.

[ceebee]

Mar 4, 2023 0:34:37 GMT Jon said:

How is Daniel Mays as Nathan Detroit?

Excellent. Comic timing is perfect and he plays the part to a tee. The casting for this is superb - I can't believe the show is so slick already. You can feel its just going to grow into itself in coming weeks.

[mattnyc]

Praying for a cast recording for this one.

[mkb]

I wasn't pleased to discover on arrival that my booking for the fifth preview had, without notice, become the first preview. I prepared myself for lots of technical hitches.

In the event, it all seemed to pass remarkably smoothly for a first public performance of a very complex operation. The stage floor level barely stopped moving up and down in various configurations, each replete with manually changed sets and props, with promenaders shepherded back from rising floors by NYC cops.

I generally enjoy immersion into a production, but Julius Caesar at this venue was an exception. At that, standing added little, and I noticed that the lower seated rows had by far the better view. It didn't help that at one point, when I was standing at the back so as not to get in the way of the set shifters, an actor in a minor role unexpectedly needed to be in my spot, and suddenly marched towards me, violently shoving me out of his way. I had bruises to show for it.

So for Guys and Dolls I chose to be seated and did not regret it. A72 offered an excellent front-row view from the lower tier, and I would recommend this over standing, even for people like me who usually prefer the latter.

The even better aisle seat, A70, had been reserved for what I presume was Nicholas Hytner (in which case he looks nothing like his online photos) making notes throughout, and at one stage urgently passing a piece of paper down to someone below, and next to him in A71 a female colleague tapping away on a tablet.

The concave nature of the badly designed, slatted, wooden fence in front of me meant that, while my knees had plenty of room, my toes were uncomfortably held back.

For this production, The Bridge have decided that the basement foyer, which is already overly congested during an interval, needs to be made smaller still by the installation of a temporary bar.

The audience was very hyped up. Some clearly decided they were at a gig not the theatre and behaved accordingly. A group of four directly in front of me frequently had loud conversations. One lady collapsed and had to be escorted out. The general hubbub from chatter and the sound of the set changes meant I missed some of the dialogue. I would have preferred the audio to be much louder to drown out this background noise.

The show itself went down a storm and was received very enthusiastically, with a partial ovation from those seated. I was less keen. Some of the choices didn't work for me, and this was the least good of the various versions of Guys and Dolls I've seen. It's still an entertaining show, and will no doubt improve by press night.

Daniel Mays as Nathan Detroit and Celinde Schoenmaker as Sarah Brown were the stand-outs. Andrew Richardson is convincing as Sky Masterson but

SPOILER: Click to show

Hytner has him visit Havana for gay affairs, and Brown, judging by the look she pulls, is so disgusted, she physically attacks his admirers and drags Masterson away for herself. In this comic musical, we're not meant to dislike Brown, but Hytner achieves that.

Cedric Neal did not wow me with his rendition of Sit Down, You're Rockin' the Boat, and I can't fully put my finger on why. This number has always worked for me before. His Nicely-Nicely Johnson is described as a "big fat water buffalo", but he's not big or fat; the floor space doesn't allow much room for any serious choreography, and there was just not enough oomph from the music.

My biggest problem was Miss Adelaide. Marisha Wallace does a reasonable job, but Hytner has transformed the character from a ditzy, dumb broad played for comedy, to someone altogether more earnest and human. In the context of this piece, that does not work.

I loved the evocative production design and snazzy costumes, and the band, along one side of the middle tier, showcased with strip lighting, create a gorgeous soundtrack.

Four stars.

Act 1: 19:34-20:57
Interval act: 21:11-21:22
Act 2: 21:22-22:25

[mrbarnaby]

Last night was always the first preview.. wasn’t it? Don’t recall them cancelling any previews

[pomegranate]

Mar 4, 2023 7:31:42 GMT mrbarnaby said:

Last night was always the first preview.. wasn’t it? Don’t recall them cancelling any previews

First preview was originally going to be Feb 28th

They sent out an email to those of us with tickets back in Oct about the date change

[mrbarnaby]

Oh I see!

[karloscar]

Mar 4, 2023 2:21:03 GMT mkb said:

I wasn't pleased to discover on arrival that my booking for the fifth preview had, without notice, become the first preview. I prepared myself for lots of technical hitches.

In the event, it all seemed to pass remarkably smoothly for a first public performance of a very complex operation. The stage floor level barely stopped moving up and down in various configurations, each replete with manually changed sets and props, with promenaders shepherded back from rising floors by NYC cops.

I generally enjoy immersion into a production, but Julius Caesar at this venue was an exception. At that, standing added little, and I noticed that the lower seated rows had by far the better view. It didn't help that at one point, when I was standing at the back so as not to get in the way of the set shifters, an actor in a minor role unexpectedly needed to be in my spot, and suddenly marched towards me, violently shoving me out of his way. I had bruises to show for it.

So for Guys and Dolls I chose to be seated and did not regret it. A72 offered an excellent front-row view from the lower tier, and I would recommend this over standing, even for people like me who usually prefer the latter.

The even better aisle seat, A70, had been reserved for what I presume was Nicholas Hytner (in which case he looks nothing like his online photos) making notes throughout, and at one stage urgently passing a piece of paper down to someone below, and next to him in A71 a female colleague tapping away on a tablet.

The concave nature of the badly designed, slatted, wooden fence in front of me meant that, while my knees had plenty of room, my toes were uncomfortably held back.

For this production, The Bridge have decided that the basement foyer, which is already overly congested during an interval, needs to be made smaller still by the installation of a temporary bar.

The audience was very hyped up. Some clearly decided they were at a gig not the theatre and behaved accordingly. A group of four directly in front of me frequently had loud conversations. One lady collapsed and had to be escorted out. The general hubbub from chatter and the sound of the set changes meant I missed some of the dialogue. I would have preferred the audio to be much louder to drown out this background noise.

The show itself went down a storm and was received very enthusiastically, with a partial ovation from those seated. I was less keen. Some of the choices didn't work for me, and this was the least good of the various versions of Guys and Dolls I've seen. It's still an entertaining show, and will no doubt improve by press night.

Daniel Mays as Nathan Detroit and Celinde Schoenmaker as Sarah Brown were the stand-outs. Andrew Richardson is convincing as Sky Masterson but

SPOILER: Click to show

Hytner has him visit Havana for gay affairs, and Brown, judging by the look she pulls, is so disgusted, she physically attacks his admirers and drags Masterson away for herself. In this comic musical, we're not meant to dislike Brown, but Hytner achieves that.

Cedric Neal did not wow me with his rendition of Sit Down, You're Rockin' the Boat, and I can't fully put my finger on why. This number has always worked for me before. His Nicely-Nicely Johnson is described as a "big fat water buffalo", but he's not big or fat; the floor space doesn't allow much room for any serious choreography, and there was just not enough oomph from the music.

My biggest problem was Miss Adelaide. Marisha Wallace does a reasonable job, but Hytner has transformed the character from a ditzy, dumb broad played for comedy, to someone altogether more earnest and human. In the context of this piece, that does not work.

I loved the evocative production design and snazzy costumes, and the band, along one side of the middle tier, showcased with strip lighting, create a gorgeous soundtrack.

Four stars.

Act 1: 19:34-20:57
Interval act: 21:11-21:22
Act 2: 21:22-22:25

Every production of Guys and Dolls I've ever seen has Sarah physically attack whoever Sky is dancing with in Havana, because she's drunk for the first time, out of control and showing her true feelings, possessive jealous rage. It shouldn't make any difference whether he's dancing with a man or woman. We see her with her defences down, and it's supposed to be shocking as well as funny. 

[mkb]

Mar 4, 2023 7:39:06 GMT pomegranate said:

Mar 4, 2023 7:31:42 GMT mrbarnaby said:

Last night was always the first preview.. wasn’t it? Don’t recall them cancelling any previews

First preview was originally going to be Feb 28th

They sent out an email to those of us with tickets back in Oct about the date change

Feb 27, I believe.

[mkb]

SPOILER: Click to show

Mar 4, 2023 10:17:24 GMT karloscar said:

Every production of Guys and Dolls I've ever seen has Sarah physically attack whoever Sky is dancing with in Havana, because she's drunk for the first time, out of control and showing her true feelings, possessive jealous rage. It shouldn't make any difference whether he's dancing with a man or woman. We see her with her defences down, and it's supposed to be shocking as well as funny. 

Indeed: I should have worded that better. What I meant was that Brown's motivation for her actions has changed.

The problem is that, instead of jealousy, Brown now appears to be horrified at Masterson's homosexuality and is on a mission to save him. But, maybe I was reading too much into how it came across?

[Marwood]

Anyone else in the standing/promenade area last night: the stall with the hats and sunglasses on it, are the audience supposed to help themselves and wear them as I couldn’t see anyone manning it and the only price that was visible was $1.20 for the sunglasses which is obviously the period setting. While there were people in full costume who were obviously extras, there were a few people wearing trilbys that looked like they were audience members and seemed to be watching it rather than taking part (I wasn’t tempted to try a hat on myself as I didn’t want to get mistaken for Micky Pearce from OFAH)

[mkb]

I forgot to mention there were performers and a trio of singers who entertained us for ten minutes before act 2 began. This was great for making us feel like we were in the real nightspot of the show, but the auditorium lighting being on seemed to indicate to many that they could just ignore the actors and carry on with their full-voiced conversations.

[ctas]

Mar 4, 2023 12:00:23 GMT Marwood said:

Anyone else in the standing/promenade area last night: the stall with the hats and sunglasses on it, are the audience supposed to help themselves and wear them as I couldn’t see anyone manning it and the only price that was visible was $1.20 for the sunglasses which is obviously the period setting. While there were people in full costume who were obviously extras, there were a few people wearing trilbys that looked like they were audience members and seemed to be watching it rather than taking part (I wasn’t tempted to try a hat on myself as I didn’t want to get mistaken for Micky Pearce from OFAH)

No, they are props. I think some people had brought their own but did witness someone try to help themselves to props and their subsequent reprimand.

Same also to the person who was passed a newspaper and then immediately asked to give it back in the Fugue. Some Mission pamphlets were handed out but that was it.

[Deleted]

I suppose this is one of the challenges of an immersive experience: look, but don't touch or take, except when it is OK to do that as well.

[Dr Tom]

Mar 4, 2023 12:00:23 GMT Marwood said:

Anyone else in the standing/promenade area last night: the stall with the hats and sunglasses on it, are the audience supposed to help themselves and wear them

I missed that stall entirely, but once I got a decent section to stand in (the cafe side) I largely stayed still. There were obviously lots of extras in the pit, including the security and stage hands, but also (I presume) the seated guy who got rather "smothered" (for want of a better word) by Marisha Wallace in the club scene. Marisha, incidentally, was excellent, but she must have got engaged when she was very young. They did get various audience members involved (giving someone near me a glass of "wine", which was used in a scene, then returned to her and quickly removed). The crew had rather detailed instruction sheets which they had to refer to a lot, so it took a bit of time to get used to the rustling.

Mar 4, 2023 12:05:35 GMT mkb said:

I forgot to mention there were performers and a trio of singers who entertained us for ten minutes before act 2 began. This was great for making us feel like we were in the real nightspot of the show, but the auditorium lighting being on seemed to indicate to many that they could just ignore the actors and carry on with their full-voiced conversations.

Yes, that really annoyed me too. It takes a long time to get everyone in and out of the pit area during the interval (and you're pretty much forced to leave if you want a mobile signal) so people are still returning when this goes on, but wanting to continue their conversation. The only plus of people coming back late is I did manage to get a better standing position for the second act and I got an excellent view of Leslie Garcia Bowman's added tap dance number. He is a pleasure to watch. Talking was a problem throughout the whole show, as there were people considering as it was an immersive performance and actors would talk to the audience, they were free to talk whenever they wanted. I also don't think people should bring alcoholic drinks into the pit area, I'm sure there will be spillages and accidents, but maybe that's just me.

It was mentioned above about people staying towards the back and out of the crush. I tried that, as I don't like being crowded, and the view simply isn't good if you're too close to the people in front due to the angles (unless you're one of the 6 foot plus members of the audience). But I was moved several times by the crew, so there wasn't really much choice other than cramming in. Then you got the people who took up a front spot, got moved back when the stage moved and expected everyone to move back to accommodate them being in a prime spot for the next raised part of the stage, rather than realising it's now their turn to move behind the people who have positioned themselves for that scene (it's pretty obvious where the raising/lowering stage areas are - and what will be played out where - if you know the show at all).

That all sounds more negative than it's meant to be and most of the audience were excellent, as was the show as a whole. It is long though. I think I'd prefer a matinee if I stand again, and ideally a hot day where I don't need to mess around with checking in a coat.

[ncbears]

Mrs NCBears is five feet tall. I'm guessing that the immersive standing area would mean she would have difficulty seeing much of the show.

[ceebee]

Mar 4, 2023 17:53:48 GMT ncbears said:

Mrs NCBears is five feet tall. I'm guessing that the immersive standing area would mean she would have difficulty seeing much of the show.

Not really - the stages elevate so you'll be looking up not across or down

[gmoneyoutlaw]

Mar 4, 2023 0:34:37 GMT Jon said:

How is Daniel Mays as Nathan Detroit?

I thought Daniel was great. No pleased with the costume choice as I can't image Nathan would spend so much on shoes.  They are brand new.

Of the four leads, he's the best.

[gmoneyoutlaw]

Mar 4, 2023 10:17:24 GMT karloscar said:

Mar 4, 2023 2:21:03 GMT mkb said:

I wasn't pleased to discover on arrival that my booking for the fifth preview had, without notice, become the first preview. I prepared myself for lots of technical hitches.

In the event, it all seemed to pass remarkably smoothly for a first public performance of a very complex operation. The stage floor level barely stopped moving up and down in various configurations, each replete with manually changed sets and props, with promenaders shepherded back from rising floors by NYC cops.

I generally enjoy immersion into a production, but Julius Caesar at this venue was an exception. At that, standing added little, and I noticed that the lower seated rows had by far the better view. It didn't help that at one point, when I was standing at the back so as not to get in the way of the set shifters, an actor in a minor role unexpectedly needed to be in my spot, and suddenly marched towards me, violently shoving me out of his way. I had bruises to show for it.

So for Guys and Dolls I chose to be seated and did not regret it. A72 offered an excellent front-row view from the lower tier, and I would recommend this over standing, even for people like me who usually prefer the latter.

The even better aisle seat, A70, had been reserved for what I presume was Nicholas Hytner (in which case he looks nothing like his online photos) making notes throughout, and at one stage urgently passing a piece of paper down to someone below, and next to him in A71 a female colleague tapping away on a tablet.

The concave nature of the badly designed, slatted, wooden fence in front of me meant that, while my knees had plenty of room, my toes were uncomfortably held back.

For this production, The Bridge have decided that the basement foyer, which is already overly congested during an interval, needs to be made smaller still by the installation of a temporary bar.

The audience was very hyped up. Some clearly decided they were at a gig not the theatre and behaved accordingly. A group of four directly in front of me frequently had loud conversations. One lady collapsed and had to be escorted out. The general hubbub from chatter and the sound of the set changes meant I missed some of the dialogue. I would have preferred the audio to be much louder to drown out this background noise.

The show itself went down a storm and was received very enthusiastically, with a partial ovation from those seated. I was less keen. Some of the choices didn't work for me, and this was the least good of the various versions of Guys and Dolls I've seen. It's still an entertaining show, and will no doubt improve by press night.

Daniel Mays as Nathan Detroit and Celinde Schoenmaker as Sarah Brown were the stand-outs. Andrew Richardson is convincing as Sky Masterson but

SPOILER: Click to show

Hytner has him visit Havana for gay affairs, and Brown, judging by the look she pulls, is so disgusted, she physically attacks his admirers and drags Masterson away for herself. In this comic musical, we're not meant to dislike Brown, but Hytner achieves that.

Cedric Neal did not wow me with his rendition of Sit Down, You're Rockin' the Boat, and I can't fully put my finger on why. This number has always worked for me before. His Nicely-Nicely Johnson is described as a "big fat water buffalo", but he's not big or fat; the floor space doesn't allow much room for any serious choreography, and there was just not enough oomph from the music.

My biggest problem was Miss Adelaide. Marisha Wallace does a reasonable job, but Hytner has transformed the character from a ditzy, dumb broad played for comedy, to someone altogether more earnest and human. In the context of this piece, that does not work.

I loved the evocative production design and snazzy costumes, and the band, along one side of the middle tier, showcased with strip lighting, create a gorgeous soundtrack.

Four stars.

Act 1: 19:34-20:57
Interval act: 21:11-21:22
Act 2: 21:22-22:25

Every production of Guys and Dolls I've ever seen has Sarah physically attack whoever Sky is dancing with in Havana, because she's drunk for the first time, out of control and showing her true feelings, possessive jealous rage. It shouldn't make any difference whether he's dancing with a man or woman. We see her with her defences down, and it's supposed to be shocking as well as funny. 

My biggest problem was Miss Adelaide. Marisha Wallace does a reasonable job, but Hytner has transformed the character from a ditzy, dumb broad played for comedy, to someone altogether more earnest and human. In the context of this piece, that does not work.

Miss Adelaide would never act this way in any production.  I hope it changes during previews.  My friend was disgusted by her interaction with an audience member.  He said, there were cops already in the theatre and she wasn't arrested?

[mattnyc]

Are we sure it was an audience member? I thought for sure it had to be someone in the company looking like someone in the audience.

[mkb]

Mar 6, 2023 12:25:59 GMT gmoneyoutlaw said:

Miss Adelaide would never act this way in any production.  I hope it changes during previews.  My friend was disgusted by her interaction with an audience member.  He said, there were cops already in the theatre and she wasn't arrested?

When you analyse it and contrast it with other events that have triggered outrage, what Miss Adelaide does with her bosom to an unwitting audience member goes a stage further than, say, John Barrowman's windmilling of his manhood to fellow cast members as it involves actual contact, arguably non-consensual contact. The motivation in both cases is clearly nothing more than to make people laugh.

Personally, I'm in the camp where this is all harmless fun.  Life would be so dull if everyone was uptight and prudish all the time, but I realise that contrary opinions are in the ascendancy and seem to dominate the popular narrative in the current decade.  I don't dare touch anyone anymore for fear it will be miscontrued, which is rather sad.

[leanne23]

Mar 6, 2023 13:47:20 GMT mattnyc said:

Are we sure it was an audience member? I thought for sure it had to be someone in the company looking like someone in the audience.

Definitely an audience member. During the interval a few audience members (including my Mum and I) sat down at the tables on the elevating platforms. We were told by an usher that for the next ten minutes or so we would be part of the action and we were asked whether or not we were happy to proceed. I was sitting right behind the man in question. He had been sitting next to his companion but she was asked to vacate her seat so Kathy Seacombe could sit there for the top of Act Two. After said interaction with Marisha, the man continued to watch the rest of the show from the pit.