Guys and Dolls

A Musical Fable of Broadway

Guys and Dolls

by Frank Loesser, book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows

TOPS Musical Company at the Hampton Hill Theatre, until 16^th May

Review by Polly Davies

It is hard to beat the classics, especially in this sparkling, fresh production of Frank Loesser’s romantic comedy Guys and Dolls from TOPS at the Hampton Hill Theatre. Maybe the otherwise excellent musicians could turn down the volume a little, but everything else about this show was first class. I was trying to work out why this production, which faithfully followed the familiar script, felt so fresh and modern. Then I read the programme note, which explained how director Charlie Booker had changed the gender balance in the gangster gangs; notably introducing Harriet Law as the more than equal partner to Christian Scales’ Harry the Horse; and a star performance from Jenny Simpson-Wood as the truly scary Big Jule.

From the exuberant opening number to the finale, it was a treat. The expressionist-like backdrops took us straight to New York, the accents were perfect, and the huge range of costumes was extraordinary. We had every type of character you might find on a New York Street, office workers, late night revellers, criminals, and more, including of course the Salvation Army, all perfectly dressed for the 1950s setting of this musical.

The plot is based on Damon Runyan’s story about the interaction between a group of tough New York gamblers and the members of a Street Mission, desperate to save the souls of the miscreants around them. It includes some of the most familiar songs from that era. Last night, as you might expect from TOPS, the vocals were wonderful and the stagecraft extraordinary. The comedy was funny and the romantic scenes moving. All credit to the director, musical director John Davies and Gaby Law’s choreography for getting that number of people on the small stage at the same time, so often with moves that were so entertaining to watch.

Becky Silverstein’s Broadway diva Miss Adelaide was a joy, whether channelling her Ethel Merman and belting out Take Back your Mink with the talented HotBox girls, sadly accepting in her solos or defiant in her duet with the similarly talented Heidi Delve. Her Sarah made the wildly implausible conversion from missionary to fun-loving tourist through the love of a bad man, believable. Her drunk scene was a delight.

Their male counterparts were equally convincing. Michael Stacey brought out the complexity of Nathan Detroit’s character, inveterate gambler with a soft heart, but maybe not quite soft enough. Though his sweetly romantic duet Sue Me with Miss Adelaide would have won many hearts. Aidan Dobson’s enigmatic Sky Masterson made the transition from gangster to evangelist plausibly funny, and the performance and staging of the well-known Luck be Lady Tonight was enthralling. I might be biased because he does get one of my favourite songs from this period, but Tyler Fagan’s Nicely Nicely Johnson was my star of the night. There, but in the background for most scenes, his athletic Sit Down You’re Rocking the Boat was a showstopper. Too many excellent cameos from Dan Looseley, Mark Hallows and others to credit them all. Suffice to say it was quite hard not to do a quick song and dance act along the High Street on the way home.

Polly Davies, May 2026

Photography by Simon Drake