GUYS & DOLLS Opens at The Keeton Theatre Tonight

Jenny Norris Light plays Sarah Brown, with Michael Maupins as Sky Masterson, Hallie Long as Miss Adelaide and Brian Best as Nathan Detroit in The Larry Keeton Theatre's eagerly anticipated production of the classic Broadway music Guys and Dolls. Directed by Ginger Newman (who doubles as musical director as well), with choreography and staging by Cary Street, the musical that introduced the theatrical standards "Bushel and a Peck," "Adelaide's Lament" and "Luck Be A Lady Tonight" to Broadway audiences runs at the Keeton Theatre tonight, June 4, through June 20.

Guys and Dolls was conceived by producers Cy Feuer and Ernest Martin. Weaving together the short stories "The Idyll of Miss Sarah Brown", "Blood Pressure" and "Pick the Winner," Feuer and Martin began the process for what has been called the perfect musical. Using Damon Runyon's classic stories from the 1920s and '30s they hired the crack team of Frank Loesser, Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows to musicalize and comically homogenize Runyon's work.

With music and lyrics by Loesser and book by Swerling and Burrows, the result was a 1950 Broadway blockbuster. Still employing Runyon's style of mixing highly formal language with colloquial slang, Loesser, Swerling and Burrows, created a unique New York City filled with gangsters, gamblers, showgirls and a troop of Salvation Army soldiers amid a milieu of underworld intrigue and nightclub shenanigans - there's even a quick trip to Havana included in the onstage festivities.

Guys and Dolls premiered on Broadway in 1950, running for 1,200 performances and winning the Tony Award for best musical. It was made into a classic movie musical starring Marlon Brando, Frank Sinatra, Vivian Blaine and Jean Simmons in 1955.

Performances are Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, starting at 7:00 p.m. and Sundays starting at 2:00 p.m. Each performance is preceded by a three course meal; dinner seating begins at 5:45 p.m. Thursday through Saturday and at 12:45 p.m. on Sunday. Tickets range from $15.00 to $28.00. For specific ticket information call (615) 883-8375 or go to www.thelarrykeetontheatre.org or www.ticketsnashville.com for further details.