Sweet Charity at Arizona Broadway Theatre

Have you ever known a girl who wanted something so badly that she tried too hard to get it? Sweet Charityis a tender and poignant, yet hilariously funny, look at the adventures (or rather misadventures) of Charity Hope Valentine in the ways of love. Gwen Verdon starred in the Broadway production under the direction of the legendary Bob Fosse, and the delightful Shirley MacLaine popularized the role with the 1969 film. This bright and sophisticated comedy boasts incredible dancing and wonderful music numbers, including “Too Many Tomorrows,” “There’s Gotta Be Something Better Than This” and “If They Could See Me Now.” Sweet Charity entertains through the exhausting journey of finding love not only from the world, but also from within.

Sweet Charity is a musical with music by Cy Coleman, lyrics by Dorothy Fields and book by Neil Simon. It was directed and choreographed for Broadway by Bob Fosse starring his wife and muse Gwen Verdon alongside John McMartin. It is based on Federico Fellini's screenplay for Nights of Cabiria. However, where Fellini's black-and-white Italian film concerns the romantic ups-and-downs of an ever-hopeful prostitute, in the musical the central character is a dancer-for-hire at a Times Square dance hall. The musical premiered on Broadway in 1966, where it was nominated for 9 Tony Awards, and also ran in the West End as well as having revivals and international productions.