Guys & Dolls on Sydney Harbour in 2025

Opera Australia has announced a new production of the musical Guys & Dolls for Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour in 2025, that will transport audiences to Manhattan, a colourful and glamorous world filled with showgirls and gangsters, set against Sydney’s glittering skyline.

With music and lyrics by Frank Loesser and a book by Jo Swerling  and Abe Burrows, Guys & Dolls premiered on Broadway in 1950, winning five Tony Awards including Best Musical, the adaptation to a Hollywood film in 1955 starring Frank Sinatra and Marlon Brando, to its most recent revival in the West End, this musical is filled to the brim with toe-tapping tunes, high-energy, vibrant dance numbers and plenty of laughs.

OA’s Artistic Director Jo Davies will direct the production atop a new set designed by Brian Thomson, whose previous Handa Opera on the Harbour credits include La Traviata, Carmen and West Side Story. 

The iconic location and a stage that is two and half times larger than any other in the country, presents a huge creative opportunity for a production like Guys & Dolls says director Jo Davies, who will be drawing on her extensive experience directing large scale opera and musicals in unique locations around the world.

“Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour is so magical, just the walk through the venue to reach your seat creates such a sense of anticipation. I’m thrilled to be bringing a beloved musical like Guys & Dolls, with its wild ensemble dance numbers and brilliantly sharp comedy to this incredible stage.

“Presenting this magical 1950s score with a full orchestra and a talented cast on such an epic scale is an exciting prospect,’ said Ms Davies.

Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour is supported by the NSW Government, via its tourism and major events agency Destination NSW, and through the International Foundation for Arts and Culture as Naming Rights Partner, Dr Haruhisa Handa OA’s Patron in Chief, and OA’s Principal Partner HSBC.

opera.org.au/harbour

Guys & Dolls

A Musical Fable of Broadway

Based on a Story and Characters of Damon Runyon

Music and Lyrics by Frank Loesser

Book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows

Licensed exclusively by Music Theatre International (Australasia).

Performance dates

21 March – 20 April

Evenings 7:30pm

Excluding Mondays and Good Friday on 18 April

Bookings

BUY TICKETS HERE.