How young is too young to go see "Guys and Dolls"?

[Chef Troy]

Mrs. Chef scored some tickets to see the current touring show of Guys and Dolls next week, but they're on a night when she's working late. Normally under those circumstances, I'd take my 8-year-old daughter, the Youngest Theater Hag In The World -- but in the past when Lil' Miss Sous-Chef and I have gone to see a musical together, I've always known the show beforehand, and I'm not too familiar with G&D.

Those of you who've seen it, would you say it's appropriate to take a girl of eight to see this show? She's pretty advanced... musical theater she's seen and enjoyed include such shows as Wicked and the movie versions of Little Shop of Horrors, Hairspray, and Rent (Edited to add: She hasn't seen the whole movie of Rent, but she's heard the whole soundtrack many times and has seen parts of the movie.)

What say you?

[bienville]

Take her. She'll love it. She'll love you for it. She'll sing the songs for the rest of her life.

Though not aimed at kids, it's entirely appropriate for kids.

[BrainGlutton]

Nathan Detroit* and Adelaide have been "engaged" 14 years, but a physical relationship is merely a safe assumption, not waved under the audience's nose. There is, of course, gambling, and that's the worst wickedness with which Save-A-Soul seems to be concerned. Sarah gets drunk on one occasion, there's no drug use. That's all, nothing racier. Entirely family-friendly.


* Whom I once played in a community theater production.

[Spoons]

...but in the past when Lil' Miss Sous-Chef and I have gone to see a musical together, I've always known the show beforehand, and I'm not too familiar with G&D.Wikipedia has an excellent, detailed plot summary (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guys_and_Dolls#Synopsis), if you're curious.

Some of the guys may be degenerate gamblers, and some of the dolls may be somewhat less than virtuous, but these qualities can only be guessed at. You might want to be prepared for questions, though--after my first viewing of Guys and Dolls (and I must have been eight or nine myself), I well remember peppering my Dad with questions concerning how to play craps, what "the morning line" was, and what "five to nine" meant.

But overall, there's a good story, lots of hummable songs, and fun dance numbers, all in what I'd say is a family-friendly show. Take your daughter and have a great time!

Aside to Brain Glutton: I'm another community theatre G&D veteran--Benny Southstreet here.

[amarinth]

It might be a little long for some 8-year-olds, but there's nothing in the content of the show that's inappropriate for a kid that age.
I think I first saw the movie when I was around 8. Seen the show several times since, was in a production once in college. I love that show. I still sing the songs. Take her - she'll love it.

[jayjay]

And just think...you can sing "I love you a bushel and a peck" to her and she'll get the reference! Priceless!

[panache45]

She'll love it. It's not as bad as other things she's probably exposed to every day.

[Bosstone]

There are some burlesque show numbers, but they're really tame. It's a great musical, and even if she lacks context for some things I'm sure she'll have a fun time anyway. The music and the overall show is really pretty upbeat.

ETA: The first time I saw Guys and Dolls was in high school when I worked backstage. I didn't play a part, but helped with set construction and got to watch rehearsals. The cast was really amazing for a high school production.

[jayjay]

She'll love it. It's not as bad as other things she's probably exposed to every day.

This. It was probably considered a little seamy in 1950, but today it's adorably mock-naughty.

[RealityChuck]

No, the burlesque scene wouldn't have been considered risque in the 1930s, let along the 1950s (Busby Berkeley was more so).

It's a great musical, and there's nothing inappropriate in it (unless you think drinking and gambling is always inappropriate).

[j666]

How young is too young to go see "Guys and Dolls"?

Seventy-one.

The gambling, cons, seductions ... meh. But I found the implied & expressed attitudes to marriage and gender roles appalling.

Great songs, great characters, but I would not want my grand-daughter to see it until she was writing her thesis on "The Changes in Women in American Theater".

[jz78817]

Nathan Detroit.

From Chicago.

[jayjay]

No, the burlesque scene wouldn't have been considered risque in the 1930s, let along the 1950s (Busby Berkeley was more so).

It's a great musical, and there's nothing inappropriate in it (unless you think drinking and gambling is always inappropriate).

I meant more the gambling and such, not the burlesque. Miss Adelaide is the least scantily clad burlesque star ever.

[guizot]

What say you?I say fine, because it's your daughter, not your son.

I saw it at about the same age, and my fourth grade teacher sent me to the principal because afterward I was addressing all the girls in class as "doll."

[dropzone]

Gambling is inappropriate these days? Helps you cultivate horse sense and a cool head and a keen eye.

Never take and try to give an iron-clad leave to yourself from a three-rail billiard shot?

But just as I say, it takes judgement, brains, and maturity to score in a balkline game, I say that any boob can take and shove a ball in a pocket.

And they call that sloth. The first big step on the road to the depths of deg-ra-Day-shun.

I say, first, medicinal wine from a teaspoon, then beer from a bottle.

An' the next thing ya know, your son is playin' for money in a pinch-back suit.

And list'nin to some big out-a-town Jasper, hearin' him tell about horse-race gamblin'.

Not a wholesome trottin' race, no! But a race where they set down right on the horse!

Like to see some stuck-up jockey'boy sittin' on Dan Patch? Make your blood boil?

[Chef Troy]

I say fine, because it's your daughter, not your son.

I saw it at about the same age, and my fourth grade teacher sent me to the principal because afterward I was addressing all the girls in class as "doll."Oh, my son's coming too. He's 17, so I didn't figure I needed to worry about his tender innocence. And BELIEVE me, there's zero chance of him calling his female classmates "doll"... he'd have to work up the nerve to talk to one of them first. :)

[Chef Troy]

How young is too young to go see "Guys and Dolls"?

Seventy-one.

The gambling, cons, seductions ... meh. But I found the implied & expressed attitudes to marriage and gender roles appalling.

Great songs, great characters, but I would not want my grand-daughter to see it until she was writing her thesis on "The Changes in Women in American Theater". I'm sure most of that stuff will go over her head, but whenever I let her see a show that's above her pay grade (I'm looking at YOU, Rent!), I always make time to discuss with her anything she found confusing or anxiety-inducing.

[jayjay]

I'm sure most of that stuff will go over her head, but whenever I let her see a show that's above her pay grade (I'm looking at YOU, Rent!), I always make time to discuss with her anything she found confusing or anxiety-inducing.

It DID occur to me reading the OP that if she's seen Rent, there's nothing in G&D that even really comes close in terms of themes or action.

[dropzone]

Really. G&D was based on newspaper columns from a hundred years ago. It is not offensive, even to your great-grandmother. Unless she didn't like gambling. I don't know because I didn't know mine. Or yours.

[appleciders]

G&D is totally safe. If she's got the attention span to sit through it, it's one of the most harmless and kid-friendly shows out there. As noted above, some of the gender roles are a little antique, but a moment of conversation with her afterward should clear that up. Few Broadway shows are appropriate than this.

[Bryan Ekers]

Take her to Avenue Q instead. It's gotta be for kids - it has puppets!

[jayjay]

Let me put it to you another way...has she seen Fiddler? I'd say that Fiddler is less appropriate for a younger child than G&D, if only for the scariness of the Frummah-Sarah scene*, let alone having to explain pogroms and anti-Semitism.


*Yeah, I know. It's supposed to be comic-scary, but I have personal experience of seeing a local production of Fiddler when I was about six (I think) and having nightmares about the "crazy lady".

[dropzone]

My family was mostly (not entirely) on the winning side. For most of them it was a comedy. "Look at those funny Jews!"

[Eureka]

Gambling is inappropriate these days? Helps you cultivate horse sense and a cool head and a keen eye.

Never take and try to give an iron-clad leave to yourself from a three-rail billiard shot?

But just as I say, it takes judgement, brains, and maturity to score in a balkline game, I say that any boob can take and shove a ball in a pocket.


That's from The Music Man--as you undoubtably know.

[DxZero]

Guys and Dolls was the first musical I ever saw and I remember it vividly if for no other reason than someone thought it would be a good idea to troop 150 3rd graders to neighboring high school to watch the dress rehearsal. Mind you, this neighboring school was like 30 miles away. Looking back, this seems like a really odd thing for a elementary school to do.

And if I not mistaken it was a Catholic high school. So that should give you a little idea of the risqueness of the subject matter,

[HeyHomie]

I've never seen G&D on stage (I've seen the 50's movie with Frank Sinatra, though), but whenever I listen to the soundtrack, I've always wondered: When Adelaide sings "You can treat her all day with the Vitamin A and the bromo fizz, but the medicine never gets anywhere near where the [beat] trouble is...." if the actress is subtly looking down at her.... waist.

[Morelin]

I've never seen G&D on stage (I've seen the 50's movie with Frank Sinatra, though), but whenever I listen to the soundtrack, I've always wondered: When Adelaide sings "You can treat her all day with the Vitamin A and the bromo fizz, but the medicine never gets anywhere near where the [beat] trouble is...." if the actress is subtly looking down at her.... waist.

I thought she was looking at her naked left ring finger.

[Lasciel]

I thought she was looking at her naked left ring finger.

Lessee, movie version with Sinatra - looking at ring finger.

2 theatrical versions (high school and a local community production) - looking at ring finger

1 theatrical version (unofficial college theatre troupe) rocking an imaginary baby in her arms.

That last one got a good laugh, but I always wondered if it was even remotely true to the spirit of the original production.

[kbear]

I had totally forgotten I've seen it...with Ewan McGregor no less...yum! It's loads of fun and there's nothing your daughter would have a problem with.

I remember taking my kids to Mama Mia when they were 7 or 8 and feeling very grateful they were sitting on the other side of my friend and her daughter so I didn't have to explain how the girl had three "fathers" until later!

[BrainGlutton]

But I found the implied & expressed attitudes to marriage and gender roles appalling.

Then you'd have to rule out practically every show on Broadway before the 1970s, wouldn't you?!

[BrainGlutton]

Nathan Detroit

From Chicago.

Allow me to introduce Don Diego from San Fernando, Don Francisco from San Jose, Don Fernando from San Diego, Don Jose from San Bernardino, and Luis Obispo from Bakersfield.

[BrainGlutton]

You should also allow your 8-year-old-stage-hag daughter to read this thread. Just to see how much she understands.

[BrainGlutton]

Lessee, movie version with Sinatra - looking at ring finger.

2 theatrical versions (high school and a local community production) - looking at ring finger

1 theatrical version (unofficial college theatre troupe) rocking an imaginary baby in her arms.

That last one got a good laugh, but I always wondered if it was even remotely true to the spirit of the original production.

I don't think it is. Adelaide acts as if she's fed up, not as if she's working under a deadline. And, come to think of it, I've read a lot of Damon Runyon's stories and cannot recall even the possibility of unwed motherhood mentioned in any of them. Considering the subject matter, they're really very chaste stories. When a guy takes an interest in a doll he has marriage on his mind, always -- I can't recall the Nathan-Adelaide relationship having any counterpart in the stories -- at any rate, no guy seems to have the slightest interest in seduction-and-abandonment.

[BrotherCadfael]

Allow me to introduce Don Diego from San Fernando, Don Francisco from San Jose, Don Fernando from San Diego, Don Jose from San Bernardino, and Luis Obispo from Bakersfield.You forgot Don Du-Duh Don.

[Spoons]

Considering the subject matter, they're really very chaste stories. When a guy takes an interest in a doll he has marriage on his mind, always -- I can't recall the Nathan-Adelaide relationship having any counterpart in the stories -- at any rate, no guy seems to have the slightest interest in seduction-and-abandonment.Agreed. It's also important to note that when Sky takes Sarah to Havana in the show, it's just for dinner--nothing else is implied. I imagine the original plan was to fly back to New York immediately after dinner, but the fight and Sarah's hangover delay their return. But at no time does Sky say (or seem to want to say), "Let's get a hotel room," or otherwise take advantage of her while she is drunk. That wouldn't happen in a Runyon story.

[The Devil's Grandmother]

Then you'd have to rule out practically every show on Broadway before the 1970s, wouldn't you?!

::snort!:: And a LOT of the ones afterwards!

[C K Dexter Haven]

I agree that it's fine for an 8-year old. My suggestion would be that you get a CD and have her listen to some of the songs in advance, it can be hard to catch the words first time 'round. We did that when our kids were little, exposed them to the songs before taking them to a musical, and we found it helped.

[Chef Troy]

I agree that it's fine for an 8-year old. My suggestion would be that you get a CD and have her listen to some of the songs in advance, it can be hard to catch the words first time 'round. We did that when our kids were little, exposed them to the songs before taking them to a musical, and we found it helped. This is an excellent idea -- and in fact that's what I did with Wicked.

Actually, it's a pretty cool story. Mrs. Chef and I had planned to go see both Wicked and Avenue Q, one for my birthday and one for Father's Day. THEN we found out how much tickets were going to cost and had to scale back. :(

We decided to see Avenue Q (WITHOUT Lil' Miss Sous-Chef, of course) and had a great time. I was still blue about not going to see Wicked, though. Then I found out that the theater was holding a ticket lottery -- if you went down there two and a half hours before any showtime and put your name in the hat, then IF they drew your name you could buy two orchestra seats for that performance for just $25 each instead of $75 each. That kind of uncertainty couldn't work for Mrs. Chef, who works retail...but she was planning to take a weekend trip to see her cousin get married, and while she was gone, Lil' Miss Sous-Chef (who was seven at the time) and I decided to try our luck.

I made sure she understood that we didn't have much chance of winning and that we would probably have to keep our bottom lips from quivering and walk away bravely. She solemnly agreed to these terms. At which point, of course, my name was the first one drawn. She started jumping up and down, jabbing me in the chest with extended index finger, and whisper-screaming "That's YOU! That's YOU! That's YOU!" Then we had to race home, grab a quick bite, change into theater clothes, and race back to the theater.

Best of all, I'd just worked an acting gig that paid $50, which neatly covered the cost. Pretty good seats, too.

[C K Dexter Haven]

You do know about the cheap ticket kiosks, right? South end of Broadway, IIRC (it's been a while since I was in NYC.) I forget what they're called, but day of show you can buy unsold seats at major discount (like 50%).

[Chef Troy]

You do know about the cheap ticket kiosks, right? South end of Broadway, IIRC (it's been a while since I was in NYC.) I forget what they're called, but day of show you can buy unsold seats at major discount (like 50%). I'm in Dallas, C K. This is a touring show we're going to.

[Fenris]

Like to see some stuck-up jockey'boy sittin' on Dan Patch? Make your blood boil?
Well, I should say!

And yeah, put me in the category that there's nothing remotely child inappropriate about Guys & Dolls and the songs are so catchy she'll be singing them leaving the theater.

[BMalion]

Gambling is inappropriate these days? Helps you cultivate horse sense and a cool head and a keen eye.

Never take and try to give an iron-clad leave to yourself from a three-rail billiard shot?

But just as I say, it takes judgement, brains, and maturity to score in a balkline game, I say that any boob can take and shove a ball in a pocket.

And they call that sloth. The first big step on the road to the depths of deg-ra-Day-shun.

I say, first, medicinal wine from a teaspoon, then beer from a bottle.

An' the next thing ya know, your son is playin' for money in a pinch-back suit.

And list'nin to some big out-a-town Jasper, hearin' him tell about horse-race gamblin'.

Not a wholesome trottin' race, no! But a race where they set down right on the horse!

Like to see some stuck-up jockey'boy sittin' on Dan Patch? Make your blood boil?


Well I should say.

Fond memories. I played Harold Hill in a high school production.

[raspberry hunter]

I agree with other posters that if she's seen Rent, this will be tame by comparison.

Though if it were my daughter, we'd have a talk afterwards as to why the song "Marry the Man Today" might not be a good template for one's own relationships. (I actually love the song. But it also makes me kind of cringe.)

[Mtgman]

If you've got the seat, take her. It's really shows like Spring Awakening and Avenue Q that I would reserve for the teenage set. Just get there early and spend the five bucks to rent a booster cushion for the seat because Music Hall seats can be pretty deep for little kids to see from. She'll enjoy it more if she doesn't have to constantly be shifting around to be able to see.

If you haven't been to the Music Hall in a while they've moved the cushion rental station from near the gift shop to between the last two aisles on the lower level. Pretty much straight above the men's restroom on the bottom floor.

Moxmaiden and I are going Tuesday night.

Enjoy,
Steven

[BMalion]

This one should be fine.

I'd wait a few years before Oh Calcutta!, however.

[Mr. Excellent]

ETA: The first time I saw Guys and Dolls was in high school when I worked backstage. I didn't play a part, but helped with set construction and got to watch rehearsals. The cast was really amazing for a high school production.

My sister did a high school production as well - I'm not sure why, but this show seems to really bring out the best in high school casts.

[DooWahDiddy]

You do know about the cheap ticket kiosks, right? South end of Broadway, IIRC (it's been a while since I was in NYC.) I forget what they're called, but day of show you can buy unsold seats at major discount (like 50%).

For people who may be wondering, it's called TKTS.

[j666]

I'm sure most of that stuff will go over her head, but whenever I let her see a show that's above her pay grade (I'm looking at YOU, Rent!), I always make time to discuss with her anything she found confusing or anxiety-inducing.Will "Marry the man today and change his ways tomorrow" go over her head?
No, it won't. Please be prepare to put that in some kind of social context for her.

"Take back your mink, take back your pearls" is also problematic - respect for animals.

However, " ... do not take that bet, ... " is very good advice.

And it will be good opportunity to warn her about the dangers of dessert drinks.

[Chef Troy]

...Moxmaiden and I are going Tuesday night.

Enjoy,
Steven Hey, that's when we're going, too! We should try to meet up during intermission or something. Which should be easy enough, Mtgman, since you and I are going to easily be the two biggest people there -- we'll just look over the heads of the rest of the audience and spot each other.

Edited to add: Oh, and GREAT advice about the booster seat.

[Spoons]

Let us know how your daughter enjoyed the show. And whether you had to get a pair of dice and some Monopoly money to explain certain things. (My Dad had to after my first viewing.)

Regardless, enjoy the show!

[BrainGlutton]

"Take back your mink, take back your pearls" is also problematic - respect for animals.

Or, just explaining what the lady's upset about.

[JohnGalt]

I was in the pit orchestra (band) for my high school's Guys and Dolls in 1975. I vividly recall my mother walking up to the director (a teacher) after one performance, angrily telling her that she thought it was an inappropriate choice for high schoolers. I bet she'd still feel the same way, and lots of people in the heartland/Bible belt would agree, but you know your own kids best.

Frankly I wouldn't take my kids, not because of the subject matter, mostly because I think it's a boring musical, except maybe for "A Bushel and a Peck". I just caught it on TCM awhile ago, and I was pissed to be reminded that that number got cut from the movie.

We did have one minor problem with our performance. After weeks of rehearsals, we kids in the pit essentially had the lines memorized, and the most scandalous line in the entire play came on the last night. One of the actor's final line was "What a lucky fellow!", which we knew was coming, but he started the line with "What a f... <pause> lucky fellow!". The band director just shook his head in shame while kind of laughing.

[Mtgman]

Hey, that's when we're going, too! We should try to meet up during intermission or something.We usually hang out between aisles 4 and 5 on the orchestra level in one of the little seating areas. Sometimes we go a little further or come back one seating area, it depends on how crowded it is.

We'll keep an eye out for you.

Enjoy,
Steven

[Mtgman]

Well, the strippers at the Hotbox were a little more explicit than I expected, although since it's a Broadway production I guess I should have thought of that. They stripped down to bodysuits which looked like g strings and pasties. The streetwalkers weren't as aggressive as they could have been, but there was one part with a streetwalker and a mime which raised an eyebrow.

But those were by far a minority of time in the show, and it's just such a fun show. Adelaide was a hoot, reminded me very much of Lucille Ball. Nicely Nicely did a good job with Sit Down You're Rockin' the Boat and got the audience to laugh. There was applause after most of the numbers and even an AMEN in the middle of the prayer meeting at the mission.

Hope the kids enjoyed it and it was good to chat with you for a bit before the show.

Enjoy,
Steven

[Chef Troy]

...there was one part with a streetwalker and a mime which raised an eyebrow.Yeah, I saw that bit and thought to myself, "No REAL mime EVER got THAT kind of action." ;)

Lil' Miss Sous-Chef really enjoyed it, and so did Chef Jr. We had two extra tickets, so each of them invited a friend; a good time was had by all. (Lil' Miss Sous-Chef did whisper-scream "EWWWWW!" at the end of "Take Back Your Mink" when the burlesque girls stripped down to the fundamentals, but she was giggling at the same time.)

Since I became an actor, whenever I go to a show, I always try to size up the characters and see which one(s) I could be cast as; in this show, the only one I really felt like I could play was Big Julie -- I have the right voice for Sky Masterson, but not the matinee-idol build, and my voice is too deep to sing Nicely Nicely Johnson or Nathan Detroit.

Speaking of Nathan Detroit, the actor who played him in last night's performance had clearly taken his inspiration from the Broadway revival that starred Nathan Lane; he seemed to be doing a Lane impression.

[Bosstone]

Well, the strippers at the Hotbox were a little more explicit than I expected, although since it's a Broadway production I guess I should have thought of that. They stripped down to bodysuits which looked like g strings and pasties.Huh, I wouldn't have expected that either. But then, I suppose, the two versions I've really seen are a high school production and the 1950s movie. In both cases they'd be inclined to be fairly modest, and I incorrectly assumed any production would keep that modesty.

[Dangerosa]

Yeah, I saw that bit and thought to myself, "No REAL mime EVER got THAT kind of action." ;)

Lil' Miss Sous-Chef really enjoyed it, and so did Chef Jr. We had two extra tickets, so each of them invited a friend; a good time was had by all. (Lil' Miss Sous-Chef did whisper-scream "EWWWWW!" at the end of "Take Back Your Mink" when the burlesque girls stripped down to the fundamentals, but she was giggling at the same time.)

Since I became an actor, whenever I go to a show, I always try to size up the characters and see which one(s) I could be cast as; in this show, the only one I really felt like I could play was Big Julie -- I have the right voice for Sky Masterson, but not the matinee-idol build, and my voice is too deep to sing Nicely Nicely Johnson or Nathan Detroit.

Speaking of Nathan Detroit, the actor who played him in last night's performance had clearly taken his inspiration from the Broadway revival that starred Nathan Lane; he seemed to be doing a Lane impression.

The movie from the 1950s has Frank Sinatra as Nathan and - believe it or not - Marlon Brando as Sky. Its a good double feature with Paint Your Wagon where Clint Eastwood sings.

[Chef Troy]

The movie from the 1950s has Frank Sinatra as Nathan and - believe it or not - Marlon Brando as Sky. Its a good double feature with Paint Your Wagon where Clint Eastwood sings.REEEEEally. I'm having a hard time imagining that. The movie's tone must be a lot less silly than the play.

[Bosstone]

REEEEEally. I'm having a hard time imagining that. The movie's tone must be a lot less silly than the play.Nope, it's just as silly. Brando is very Brando and is extremely slick throughout the movie, but Sinatra was happy to ham things up. Maybe not as much as Lane, but he knew he was playing a comedic role. The movie is basically just the play with a camera in front.

I'm surprised Lane played Detroit, really. He's got the personality to play a nervous huckster, but I always saw Detroit as a short and wiry fellow.

[BMalion]

"Equipoise."

[Spoons]

"Valentine"

[Fenris]

"Paul Revere"

[Mtgman]

"Epitaph"

[a35362]

Darn you, dropzone! I'm gonna have that spiel looping over and over in my head now!

Grr! *shakes fist ineffectually*

[jjimm]

That's from The Music Man--as you undoubtably know.1. "undoubtedly"
2. Please see "pet SDMB hates" thread over in IMHO

ETA: nice one, dropzone :D

[Eureka]

The movie is basically just the play with a camera in front.


Except with a cast of hundreds, maybe thousands rather than twenty. There weren't more people with real roles, so far as I am aware, but there were more more burlesque dancers, more gamblers, more people in just about every scene.

(Disclaimer: I'm not sure whether I've seen it once or twice live. I know I saw it done professionally on a smallish stage, I just can't remember whether I've seen in done by a high school group or an amateur group as well.)

[StGermain]

For those that are interested, the film version of Guys and Dolls (http://www.tcm.com/this-month/article/18618|0/Guys-and-Dolls.html) is showing on TMC on August 1st at 4:15 pm Central. Set your DVRs.

StG

[Spoons]

"Equipoise."

"Valentine"

"Paul Revere"

"Epitaph"Looks like some of us tinhorns got things a little mixed up. The correct sequence is:

Epitaph!
Valentine!
Paul Revere!

But "Equipoise" does fit in, in Rusty Charlie's lyric about Epitaph's bloodline:

Wait just a minute, boys.
I've got the feed box noise
It says his great-grandfather was Equipoise

I am very glad we did not bet on this, as I would have got cider squirted in my ear!

ETA: I got curious about our "Fugue for Tinhorns" here, so I pulled out my DVD of Guys and Dolls, just to check.

[Spoons]

... And I just finished watching the DVD. What a great show! Chef Troy, I'm glad to hear that you and your daughter enjoyed the show; and as for me--I'm looking forward to when our local amateur troupe does the show again.

Spoons
"Benny Southstreet"

"I was always a bad guy, and a bad gambler. I wanna be a good guy, and a good gambler. I thank you."

[Chef Troy]

I forgot to mention that before the show, Lil' Miss Sous-Chef and I went to our local Half-Price Books to see if they had the soundtrack for "G&D" -- they didn't, but we did find a DVD of "West Side Story" that she begged me to buy. She's already watched it several times.

(Why did she want me to buy it? Because WEEKS ago, she was watching our copy of season one of "The Muppet Show," and saw a sketch with a hideous monster singing "I Feel Pretty." I'd told her the name of the show it came from and the skeleton outline of the story. She remembered.)

AND "West Side Story" will be coming to Dallas this October, and she's already informed me that we WILL be going to see it. *knuckles away a tear of happiness*

[j666]

REEEEEally. I'm having a hard time imagining that. The movie's tone must be a lot less silly than the play.
The ONLY sympathetic line in that entire musical was Frank Sinatra's " ... sue me ... I love you."

[Chef Troy]

Update: While we were out of town on vacation, I ran across a copy of the 1955 movie at a going-out-of-business Borders (I was there with the other buzzards to pick bargains from the flyblown corpse). I bought it, and Lil' Miss Sous-Chef and I watched it with much enjoyment. The Playbill from the show we saw called the movie "disappointing," but we both thought it was good, even though Lil' Miss Sous-Chef was scandalized that the producers replaced "Bushel and a Peck" with some ridiculous cat-themed number. I was openmouthed at the spectacle of Brando singing and dancing. Still think they should have cast Sinatra as Sky Masterson and Danny Kaye as Nathan Detroit, though.

[Bosstone]

Sinatra wanted to be Sky real bad. He and Brando had difficulty working together on the set in part because of that. Their differences in acting methods were also a problem; Sinatra preferred one-and-done, while Brando always asked for more takes, which drove Sinatra up a wall.

[Kizarvexius]

Sinatra wanted to be Sky real bad. He and Brando had difficulty working together on the set in part because of that. Their differences in acting methods were also a problem; Sinatra preferred one-and-done, while Brando always asked for more takes, which drove Sinatra up a wall.

There's the famous story about filming the scene when Nathan and Sky meet at Mindy's Diner. Like Bosstone said, Sinatra liked to get each scene over and done with as quickly as possible. But Brando (quite deliberately) blew take after take after take until the working day was over. All the while, Sinatra could do nothing but fume and keep eating one slice of cheesecake (which he hated) after another. The next morning they returned to the set and Brando breezed through the scene on the first try.

Oh, and I was Nicely Nicely, thank you, back in high school. At a parochial school. And I don't recall ever hearing of a single complaint about the content.