UB theatre & dance presents 'Guys and Dolls'

The University at Buffalo department of theatre and dance presents “Guys and Dolls.” The show is directed and choreographed by UB guest artist Keith Andrews, with musical direction by Nathan R. Matthews, associate professor and director of UB Music Theatre, who will also conduct the production.

The musical, with music and lyrics by Frank Loesser, will be presented in a full production with orchestra and newly designed sets, lights and costumes. Public performances will take place at UB Center for the Arts Drama Theatre in Amherst the weekends of Nov. 15-24.

Set in post-WWII New York City and Havana, “Guys and Dolls” focuses on two sets of main characters: of a gambler “guy” and a mission “doll,” and of a second gambler and his nightclub performer fiancée of 14 years, as well as a variety of denizens in New York City’s Times Square. Classic Broadway songs such as “Luck Be A Lady,” “If I Were A Bell” and “I’ve Never Been in Love Before” fill the show’s well-known score.

“Guys and Dolls” is based on “New York City Stories” by Damon Runyon. The musical opened in 1950, won five Tony Awards (including Best Musical), and has received five Broadway revivals. The subsequent film starred Marlon Brando and Frank Sinatra.

Andrews has directed and choreographed nationwide, including the national tour of “The Full Monty” and regional premieres of “On Your Feet,” “Rock of Ages,” “Flashdance,” and “The Wedding Singer.” In New York City, he directed the world premiere of “A Wall Apart,” a new rock musical featuring new songs by Lord Graham Russel of the band Air Supply.

Matthews is a contributing author to “The Oxford Handbook of Sondheim Studies” and a former member of the music staff of the Santa Fe Opera. He is also the founding producing artistic director of the Riverside Opera Ensemble in New York City, where he has developed and produced new works of music theater and helmed events with the participation of Leonard Bernstein, Rosemary Harris and Harolyn Blackwell. Matthews has collaborated on Broadway and across North America with artists such as Anne Hathaway, Mark Hamill, Dixie Carter and Christiane Noll.

The cast and designers for “Guys and Dolls” are students from the UB department of theatre and dance, including Buffalo and Rochester-area students Hannah Keller, Thomas Evans, Michael Wells and Jamil Kassem-Lopez.

Directions are available at https://www.ubcfa.org/directions-maps2019.

Find ticket information at https://www.eventbrite.com/o/center-for-the-arts-26149591719. Tickets are also available at the door one hour prior to show.