(Above: Some of the cast of The Shedd’s production of Guys and Dolls, onstage at The Shedd from July 20-29; photos courtesy of The Shedd Institute for the Arts)

By Randi Bjornstad

Upon hearing the title Guys and Dolls, many people probably instantly think of Frank Sinatra and Marlon Brando, and those two — along with Jean Simmons and Vivian Blaine — definitely put their mark on the classic tale in the 1955 musical film.

But “Guys and Dolls” is inherently intended for the stage, and The Shedd Institute for the Arts is continuing that live performance tradition this summer with their production of the musical comedy that debuted in 1950, based on several 1930s-era short stories by revered journalist and fiction writer Damon Runyon.

The plot of “Guys and Dolls” centers around small-time gamblers in 1930s New York City, as immortalized in short stories by author Damon Runyon; actors from left are Phil Dempsey, Matthew Leach and Wade Fairbairn

It’s a thoroughly New York story, filled with somewhat one-dimensional characters representing some of the stereotypical roles — small-time gamblers, showy showgirls, earnest Salvation Army missionaries, and eager-to-lay-down-the-law cops — that peopled the period.

When composer and lyricist Frank Loesser and writers Jo Dwerling and Abe Burrows set out to create Guys and Dolls: A Musical Fable of Broadway, they must have had a great deal of fun.

Their yarn centers on a group of local gamblers led by Nathan Detroit and his buddies Nicely-Nicely Johnson and Benny Southstreet, who are trying to set up a mega-craps game to accommodate a bunch of high rollers who happen to be in town.

The problem is that the low-rolling locals don’t have the grand it takes to rent the space, so Detroit sets up a $1,000 bet with a better-heeled gambler, Sky Masterson, that Masterson can’t persuade Sarah Brown, the beautiful but strait-laced “sergeant” at the Save-A-Soul Mission, to accompany him to Havana for a day.

Shirley Andress and Cloud Pemble lead the “Guys and Dolls” cast as Sarah Brown and Sky Masterson

Unfortunately for Detroit, Masterson is sly enough to get Brown to go with him, on the promise that he will gather up plenty of sinners for her next soul-saving service at the Mission. So things look bleak for Detroit, who’s also perennially in trouble with his fiancée Miss Adelaide, who won’t marry him until he promises to give up gambling, while he feels he can’t give up gambling while he’s getting further and further into debt.

Yeah, so maybe the story line is a little thin — this is a a musical, after all, not a Charles Dickens novel — but then Dickens’ books don’t offer their readers glorious burst-into-song offerings such as “Luck Be a Lady,” “Sit Down, You’re Rocking the Boat,” “A Bushel and a Peck,” “If I Were a Bell,” and of course, “Sue Me.”

Ron Daum and Lynnea Barry also have featured roles in “Guys and Dolls, playing Nathan Detroit and Miss Adelaide

The Shedd’s Guys and Dolls has a cast led by Shirley Andress and Cloud Pemble as Sarah Brown and Sky Masterson, with Lynnea Barry and Ron Daum as Miss Adelaide and Nathan Detroit.

The rest of the performing cast includes Phil Dempsey, Matthew Leach, Dylan Stasack, Claude Offenbacher, Conner Crisswell, MacKenzie NesSmith, Lyn Burg and Ward Fairbairn, with ensemble members Cyra Conforth, Kenady Conforth, Abigail Howell, Madeleine Sisson, Clarae Smith, Ashley Mason, Tessa Douangaphaivong, Caitlin Christopher, Jim Ballard, Samuel Rose, Garett Poncho, Larry Kenton, and David Work.

Peg Major directs, with Robert Ashens in charge of music and Caitlin Christopher handling choreography. Designers include Jamie Parker, costumes; Connie Huston, sets; and Cosmo Cole, lighting and sound. Kristin Combs is stage manager, assisted by Rebecca Blanchard, with Tabetha Crosely as properties master, Emily Kidder as conductor’s assistant, as Jan Easton as technical director.

The show includes two dozen songs.

Guys and Dolls

When: 7:30 p.m. 0n July 20-21 and 26-27, with 3 p.m. matinees on July 22 and 29

Where: Jaqua Concert Hall, The Shedd Institute for the Arts, 868 High St., Eugene

Tickets: $28 to $34, available at the box office, 541-434-7000, or online at theshedd.org; discounts available for students, groups, and package purchases

Details: Meals available at 6 p.m. before evening performances and after matinee performances, by reservation; cost is $21.75 for adults and $16.75 for children ages 9 years or younger

Information: 541-687-6526