hile
preparing for Bus Stop, I immediately envisioned Edward Hopper’s
painting "Nighthawks." As in many of Inge’s plays, loneliness and
isolation surface as reoccurring themes in the paintings of Edward Hopper.
Thus, the two are constantly linked in my mind. Just like Bus
Stop, "Nighthawks" portrays a few customers of an all-night diner who
seem to have taken refuge in the 
safety
of this brightly-lit shelter. Through his use of light and color,
Hopper emphasizes the warmth of the diner in contrast to the dark subdued
tones of the "outside" world. Similar to the characters in Bus
Stop each customer in "Nighthawks" seems to be attempting to escape
from the pain of another lonely night. This painting symbolizes my
concept of the play. I then asked the staff, cast, and crew to create
the production with the colors, textures, and tone of the painting as the
central theme. This direction serves to fire the creativity of everyone
involved with the production in a way that is fresher, inspiring, and not
available by simply reading the script. As a result, our production
is capable of exceptional unity, consistency, and power.
With the blizzard of 1999 fresh in our minds, Northeastern Illinois University presents William Inge’s play Bus Stop. Set in 1955, a blustery winter storm has hit the Midwest (sound familiar), and a busload of travelers from Kansas City must stop and spend the night at a small diner outside of Topeka, Kansas.
Bus Stop is based on a real-life incident observed by the playwright William Inge. On a bus strip from Missouri to Kansas City, he noticed a man persistently trying to pursue a woman at every stop. Although she was apparently traveling with him, she continually rejected his advances. However, by the time they reached the Kansas City terminus, the suitor had made so much progress that they walked away arm in arm!
Bus Stop could be subtitled "An Anatomy of Love." William Inge considered it "a composite picture of varying kinds of love, ranging from the innocent to the depraved." All of the characters grasp hungrily for the love that can vitalize and give meaning to their lives. Bo Decker, a young rancher from Montana, insists on marrying Cherie, a stubbornly unwilling sexy chanteuse, because he had "been familiar" with her. Cherie needs someone who will love her because she has never known what it is to be wanted for anything except her sexuality. Inge has placed a twist on the conventional code of morality. This central love conflict is resolved only after Bo has humbled himself. Will Masters tells him, highlighting another of Inge’s themes, that people get the things they love by being a little humble and that being humble is not the same as being wretched. Grace, the owner of the diner, wants a good man to take her upstairs and "comfort her" now and then—Carl, the bus driver, fills this simple need. Elma, a scholarly, romantic schoolgirl, is yearning for her first love affair and thus her initiation into womanhood. Through Bo’s buddy Virgil, Inge illustrates a love based upon charity. Virgil represents genuine, uncommon sacrifice. His devotion to Bo is so sincere and virtuous that he has passed up his own opportunity to have a home and family. Even the name "Virgil Blessing" suggests the purity implicit in his devotion to Bo. Dr. Lyman represents the direct opposite of Virgil. Dr. Lyman’s tragedy is that he has never had the generosity to love. Dr. Lyman’s seduction of Elma and of past young women reinforces the depth of his self-centeredness.
Another theme Inge explores in many of his plays is that of loneliness. In Bus Stop, all of the characters are searching for a way out of the loneliness of their lives. Bo and Cherie needing the comfort of each other, Grace and Carl’s casual affair emphasizing the loneliness from which they try to escape, Elma knowing there is a wonderful world outside of the bus stop and yearning to explore every possibility, Dr. Lyman escaping the mess of his life through alcohol, and Virgil preserving his freedom by resisting love. Inge makes an important statement when at the end of the play, Virgil, the only character who represents purity—with the possible exception of Elma—is left out in the cold, completely alone. His situation reinforces Inge’s there: the extreme loneliness of life without love.
Inge has constructed a powerful story line, with three different plots going on at the same time. For the audience, it provides a roller coaster of excitement, rising to absolute comedy at one moment, and dipping into despair the next. A fun, yet quiet play, that is sure to make everyone glad they came to see it.
--Kevin Long , Director
KEVIN LONG (Director) has worked professionally
in various equity and regional theatres in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, West
Virginia, Indiana, and Illinois. He holds a BFA degree in Acting
from West Virginia University and will graduate this summer with an MA
degree in Speech and Performing Arts from Northeastern Illinois University.
Among his directing credits are productions of 42nd Street, The Sound Of
Music, The Good Doctor, On Golden Pond, Driving Miss Daisy, Crimes Of The
Heart, The Fabulous Fable Factory, Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat,
and many others. Kevin wishes to thank his wife Gena and his three-year-old
son Adam for their love and support.