Guys and Dolls facts for kids
Guys and Dolls is a famous Broadway musical that first opened in 1950. Frank Loesser wrote the music and songs. Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows wrote the story, which was inspired by short stories from Damon Runyon. This musical even won a special award called the Tony Award for Best Musical.
Contents
The Story of Guys and Dolls
Nathan's Big Problems
The musical takes place in 1920s New York City. We meet Nathan Detroit, a man who loves to gamble. He needs a secret spot for his illegal dice game. He finds a place, but it costs a lot of money to rent for one night. Nathan feels stuck.
Then, he hears about a very famous gambler named Sky Masterson. Nathan decides to make a risky bet with Sky. He bets Sky a thousand dollars that Sky cannot get a serious missionary named Sarah Brown to go to Havana, Cuba, with him. Nathan thinks Sarah is too proper and religious to ever agree.
Nathan has another big problem. He has been engaged to his girlfriend, Adelaide, for 14 years! But they are still not married. Adelaide is very upset about this. She even gets sick because she is so frustrated. She tells Nathan that if he does not marry her soon, she will leave him for good. Nathan promises to marry her. However, he realizes the wedding night is the same night as his big dice game. He misses the wedding, and Adelaide becomes extremely angry. She tells him she never wants to see him again.
Sky and Sarah's Unexpected Trip
Meanwhile, Sarah Brown's mission is in trouble. It might close down unless she can get many people to a special prayer meeting. Sky Masterson hears about her problem. He makes a deal with Sarah. If she goes to Havana with him, he will make sure many men come to her prayer meeting. Sarah is desperate to save her mission, so she agrees.
At first, Sky only takes Sarah to Havana to win his bet with Nathan. Sarah only goes to save her mission. But something unexpected happens in Havana. They start to fall in love!
When Sky brings Sarah back, he says goodbye to her. Just then, Nathan and the other gamblers run out of Sarah's mission. They had been holding the dice game there! Sarah thinks Sky only took her away so Nathan could use the mission. She gets very angry with him.
Love and Happy Endings
Sky is still in love with Sarah. He wants to keep his promise to help her mission. So, he makes a new bet with all the gamblers. If he loses, he will give each of them a thousand dollars. But if he wins, they all have to go to Sarah's prayer meeting. Sky wins the bet! Because of this, Sarah's mission is saved. Sarah realizes that Sky truly cares about her.
Later, Sarah meets Adelaide. They talk about Nathan and Sky. They both realize they are deeply in love with their men. Sarah decides to marry Sky. And Adelaide finally decides to marry Nathan.
Images for kids
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Vivian Blaine as Miss Adelaide and Sam Levene as Nathan Detroit in the 1950 original Broadway production of Guys and Dolls
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Guys and Dolls window card starring Vivian Blaine, Robert Alda and Sam Levene from original 1950 Broadway production at the 46th Street Theatre
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New York Mirror "Theatre-Ticket Ordergram" featuring original Broadway stars Vivian Blaine, Sam Levene and Isabel Bigley in 1950 Broadway production Guys and Dolls at 46th Street Theatre
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Before opening at London's Coliseum on May 28, 1953, Vivian Blaine and Sam Levene co-starred in an eight performance run of Guys and Dolls at the Bristol Hippodrome.
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Window card from 1st UK production of Guys and Dolls co-starring Vivian Blaine and Sam Levene which ran for 555 performances at London's Coliseum
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Guys and Dolls program from 1st Las Vegas production which opened September 7, 1955 at the Royal Nevada, performed twice daily starring Vivian Blaine, Robert Alda and Sam Levene, each reprising their original Broadway performances
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Libretto and vocal book, Music Theatre International (1978), rented out to actors
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DVD cover of the 1992 cast-album recording documentary, Guys and Dolls: Off the Record, starring Peter Gallagher, Josie de Guzman, Nathan Lane, and Faith Prince
