In 1993, Allison Lawrence and Rick Meadows acted opposite each other in Raleigh Little Theatre’s production of Guys and Dolls, playing long-term engaged duo Adelaide, a showgirl and hopeless romantic, and Nathan, a gambler who loves her almost as much as he loves his vice.
32 years later, Lawrence and Meadows are sharing the stage in yet another production of Guys and Dolls. Things feel the same, but different. This time around, they’ve been cast, respectively, as the straight-laced Sarah and her unexpected love interest, Sky.
The Triangle residents are performing the “Senior Edition” of the musical comedy, which has been condensed to a one-hour runtime for its 55-and-over cast. The production is put on by Dancing Man Productions in partnership with Raleigh Little Theatre (RLT). The score and script are familiar, but their new characters offer a fresh lens on the story, and the actors themselves bring an additional three decades’ life experience to their roles.
“I’ve been stuck in this place where I’m too old to play the younger parts and too young to play the older parts,” says Meadows, a recently retired realtor. “I haven’t done a show since before COVID, and this was what it took to bring me out of my shell.”
“Raleigh Little Theatre is my second home,” says Lawrence, a voice and theater teacher who’s been acting at RLT since 1986. “I’m thrilled. I know so many of these people.”
The rest of the cast is equally excited to be part of Raleigh’s first 55+ musical theater production. Rehearsals are imbued with a buoyant, almost giddy energy. Cast members are confident, high-energy, and often hilarious. They may whisper and giggle in the wings like teenagers, but their performances are unmarred by youthful insecurity. Guys and Dolls, raucous and earnest in turns, is a great canvas for their talents.
Some of the cast, like Lawrence, have been performing for decades. Others, including ensemble member Ianthe Lambie-Osborne, are acting for the first time.
“I’m always doing for other people, and I wanted to do something fun for myself, “ says Lambie-Osborne, a physician whose high school-aged daughter introduced her to RLT.
Ensemble member Bev Norwood is here to “support the concept,” she says. “There’s so much talent in this town that goes unused.”
“It’s been intimidating, a little bit,” Meadows says. “The cast is surprisingly great. [At] the first rehearsal, we were doing sing-throughs, and you’d expect it to be all butchered and chopped. But these guys were nailing it.”
“The voices are big, they’re crisp and clean—except for mine,” Meadows adds, self-deprecatingly. “I haven’t sung since before COVID. It’s kind of like going to the gym for the first time after five years.”
Guys and Dolls Sr. executive producer Mark Steward and director/choreographer Freddie-Lee Heath are among the co-founders of Dancing Man Productions, a new Raleigh-based production company for senior shows.
Studies show that performing theatre benefits older adults’ cognitive function, memory, self-esteem, and physical health. Plus, Raleigh’s theatre community is full of 55-and-overs who are talented and eager to perform but have aged out of most leading roles.
“Theater can be a nurturing place,” Heath says. “We’re trying to build community. These people that are sitting at home, we’re trying to say, “Come back. You’re not done.’”
Dancing Man Productions and Raleigh Little Theatre’s Guys and Dolls Sr. runs from October 7 to 12 with performances at 2 p.m. each day.
Chloe Courtney Bohl is a Report for America corps member. Follow her on Bluesky or reach her at [email protected]. Comment on this story at [email protected].