Rebel Wilson will be developing a cold as Miss Adelaide for eight shows a week in the West End! The screen star is set to join the West End cast of Guys and Dolls for eight weeks, June 28 through August 21. The production is playing at the Phoenix Theatre.
"A lot of people who know me from my more recent film work have no idea how much theater has influenced my life,” said Wilson in a statement. “Training at the Australian Theatre for Young People gave me the opportunity to perform onstage in eight productions ranging from new Australian musicals to classic plays…I am delighted to be making my West End debut in Guys and Dolls and to be playing such an iconic role as Miss Adelaide is truly an honor. Hopefully I crush it....but you'll have to come and see me to find out!”
Wilson’s screen credits include Pitch Perfect and Pitch Perfect 2, along with Bridesmaids, How to be Single, Grimsby, Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb, Bachelorette and Ice Age: Continental Drift.
Directed by Gordon Greenberg, with choreography by Carlos Acosta and Andrew Wright, the current cast of Guys and Dolls includes Nigel Lindsay as Nathan Detroit and Samantha Spiro as Miss Adelaide, who will both have their final performance on June 26. Further casting will be announced later.
Based on a story and characters by Damon Runyon, with music and lyrics by Frank Loesser and a book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows, the show follows a desperate Nathan Detroit in prohibition-era New York. He needs money for an illegal dice game, and he needs it fast. Not to mention a 14-year engagement with nightclub singer Miss Adelaide, whose patience is finally running out. Enter notorious gambler Sky Masterson, a guy who can never turn down a bet, and straight-laced missionary Sarah Brown, a doll with a heart of ice. Nathan’s wager is that Sky has to romance Sarah by taking her to Havana for dinner and in return he’ll provide a dozen "sinners" for Sarah’s mission. Surely this is one bet Nathan absolutely can't lose?