Guys and Dolls - Bridge Theatre

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.

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.

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

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

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

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. 

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.