Will masters is william inges representation of a smalltown sheriff. It can be lumped with a whole genre of plays in which a restaurant or bar becomes a gathering place for a diverse group of people to air their deeper and surface concerns, either regularly as in the iceman cometh, the night of the iguana or even sitcoms like cheers, or as a result of a disaster like the snowstorm that strands bus stop s. Unlike his earlier two plays, come back, little sheba and picnic, this work is not an indepth study of relationships. William inge wrote bus stop, a play that first appeared on broadway in 1955. Nowhere is this more noticeable than in the addition of two characters, who i do not believe were in the original play, and who stole the show. I met william inge once when i visited a friend who was undergoing psychoanalytic treatment at the austin riggs clinic, stockbridge, massachusetts, in the fall of 1962 as i was on the verge of my first teaching job at boston university and the first stage of my interest in psychoanalysis and psychoanalytic criticism bus stop 215. William inge, kansas playwright, is mapped in kansas. Join stageagent today and unlock amazing theatre resources and opportunities. It is filled with comedy, compassion and tenderness.
Wonderful play with universal themes and timeless characters. The artificial family dynamics, the humans intense desire to be treasured. Another of his plays, bus stop was a big success and was later made into a film starring. When william inges play, bus stop, opened on broadway march 2, 1955, it was an immediate commercial and critical success. The 1956 film of the same name was opened up in the beginning to include scenes on the bus and in places away. Download pdf william inge and the subversion of gender.
William inge was born in may of 19 as the youngest of five children. Like i been talkin with my buddy, and he thinks im virgin enough fer the two of us. Most of william inge s plays are a mixture of comedy and drama. The production of the william inge play, bus stop serves as the culminating experience in theatre arts graduate studies. Inge has put together an uproarious comedy that never strays from the truth. She is trying to escape with the aid of the people that work in the bus stop where the bus was stranded due to road conditions ahead. Eleven short plays by william inge acting edition for theater productions william inge on. Will masters is william inge s representation of a smalltown sheriff. A young nightclub singer is the center of attention as she is pursued by anadoring cowboy who wishes to whisk her off to montana as his bride.
All four plays had become successful films featuring top hollywood stars. When william inge s play, bus stop, opened on broadway march 2, 1955, it was an immediate commercial and critical success. William inge may be best known for his 1955 broadway hit bus stop, but the sweeping range of his abilities is well represented in this sampling of his work. A snowstorm has delayed the trip, so the 5 characters who are on the bus and the 3 who are in the diner spend around 15 a. If you click on the reference link below it will take you to the enotes site which provides abundant. Bus stop written by william inge directed by will frears.
I had to go and tell em i was takin the midnight bus. Inge s plays are some of my favorites because he has the ability to capture so much of human emotion with ingenious brevity. Dec 25, 2016 picnic is a threeact play written by william inge, the author of bus stop and. He had written an unprecedented string of broadway hits. Trapped in a barren 20yearold marriage, doc drowns his disappointment in alcohol and fantasizes about marie, their young boarder. Selected monologues from bus stop including video examples, context and character information. Somewhere in america by william inge edited by craig pospisil. With all roads blocked, the weary travelers spend a long night waiting out the stormuntil morning. The william inge collection has 1,629 books from william inges personal library. Collegeuniversity, community theatre, ensemble cast, high school, professional theatre. The play centres on the frustrated lives of doc and lola. Bus stop by william inge overdrive rakuten overdrive. It is not so much the production that is flat as the play itself. A flawless structure depicts each role with a succinct amount of dialogue.
William inges popular plays of the 1950s received tony nominations bus stop 1956, and dark at the top of the stairs 1958 and won a pulitzer prize picnic 1953. The story concerns the passengers of a crosscountry bus who are stranded overnight by a blizzard and congregate. What does playwright william inge say about the character will masters in bus stop. Analysis and discussion of characters in william inges bus stop. Heinemann, 1960includes come back, little sheba, picnic, bus stop, and the dark at the top of the stairs. They had to go and tell bo, a course, when he come in a lil after eleven. Based on inge s earlier oneact play, people in the wind, bus stop involves a pair of young lovers and their struggle to find love in the modern world. Kansas, has provided the collection with copies of 16mm movies of bus stop, the dark at the top of the stairs and the stripper which is based on the play a loss of roses and splendor in the grass. Bus stop william inge cherie 20 a singer tells how she was kidnapped by a cowboy. Romantic or quasiromantic relationships ensue as they wait out the storm. Bus stop is a drama, with romantic and some comedic elements. Bus stop is a 1956 american romantic comedydrama film directed by joshua logan for 20th century fox, starring marilyn monroe, don murray, arthur oconnell, betty field, eileen heckart, robert bray, and hope lange unlike most of monroes films, bus stop is neither a fullfledged comedy nor a musical, but rather a dramatic piece. As a screenwriter, he won an academy award splendor in the grass 1961. Multiple links are listed since a different versions exist and b many scripts posted become unavailable over time.
Is the play bus stop by william inge indeed a one act play. And he liked it so much, he jumped up on a chair and yelled like a indian, and put his fingers in his mouth and whistled like a steam engine. Bus stop both the play and the movie is an attempt to dramatize what is preeminently undramatic, viz. Read about his work and the places in kansas that inspired his writing. Clayton community theatre presents bus stop by william inge, february 1 11, 2018. Add in a cast ofinteresting characters including the bus. This study guide consists of approximately 40 pages of chapter summaries, quotes, character analysis, themes, and more everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of bus stop. What do an aspiring singer, two cowboys, two waitresses, a professor, a sheriff, and a bus driver have in common.
There is a curious flatness about william inges bus stop, gilroy community theaters latest contribution to south county drama. The orangeburg parttime players latest production, william inges bus stop, brings together three young actors who are having a blast breathing new life into the 50yearold play. But william inge had it made, or so it seemed in 1962. Washington university south campus theater, 6501 clayton road, clayton mo director. Bus stop plot summary, character breakdowns, context and analysis, and performance video clips. The greatest egos are those which are too egotistical to show just how egotistical they are. Bus stop dramatists play service, 1955 picnic dramatists play service, 1953 come back, little sheba samual french, inc. Their story is one of high humor a mixture of brag, heartache, bluster, and the funniest tough love affair ever put on stage, screen, or between the covers of a book.
A freak snowstorm has halted the progress of the bus, and the eight characters five from the bus have a weatherenforced layover in the diner from approximately 1 to 5 a. Bus stop, romantic comedy in three acts by william inge, performed and published in 1955. William inge, in full william motter inge, born may 3, 19, independence, kan. It premiered on broadway in 1955, just on the heels of inge s first broadway success, picnic. Picnic, bus stop, the dark at the top of the stairs, and come back, little sheba.
Bo and cherie got together when they were stranded at a bus stop one night. Bus stop takes audiences on a journey into relationships. Bus stop is a somewhat entertaining hillybilly love story between beau, a stubborn, romanticallyinexperienced cowboy in town for the rodeo, and cherie, a showgirl he meets along the way. I cant bear to see lovely things go to waste, declares the fading actress of william inges a loss of roses. Bus stop by william inge is a drama with romantic and comedic elements, set in a diner about 30 miles west of kansas city in early march 1955. A powerful snow storm isolates a handful of bus passengers in a roadside diner in middleamerica. Bus stop arvada center for the arts and humanities. Eleven short plays by william inge acting edition for theater productions. In 1956, bus stop was brought to the silver screen, starring marilyn monroe in the role of cherie. Bus stop, based on a play by william inge 6 out of 10 a different version of this note and thoughts on other books are available at. This assessment was assembled by our professional instructors to test your understanding of the characters, their motivations and the setting of the play, bus stop.
I felt william inge did a wonderful job of creating such a vivid and realistic portrayal of people stranded at a bus stop. The 1956 film of the same name was opened up in the beginning to include scenes on the bus and in places away from the diner. He meets up with madge owens, the town beauty queen and girlfriend of alan benson. William inge, kansas playwright, independence, map of. Bus stop was based on the play of the same title which in turn was expanded from an earlier, one act play people in the wind by william inge. Grace, the owner of the diner, and carl, the bus driver, have a little bit of a relationship. Discussion of themes and motifs in william inge s bus stop. From come back, little sheba to the classic bus stop, william inge explores the unspoken among our everyday life. Most of william inges plays are a mixture of comedy and drama. Williams inge tackles the facade that we all use to attempt to protect ourselves.
The same can be said of this play, which hasnt been seen in new. Visit to a small planet 1960 jerry lewis full length comedy movie duration. Bus stop by william inge the play bus stop is set in a diner in early march of 1955. According to the enotes study guide for william inges bus stop, it is a threeact play. William inge collection william inge center for the arts. Eleven short plays by william inge acting edition for. William inge has been described as the playwright of the heartland. Cherie, on the other hand, is not exactly going along for the ride.
William inge, kansas playwright, independence, map of kansas. The inspiration for the play came from people inge met in tonganoxie, kansas. Malika oyetimein and sean ryan professional director training program sixtyyears after its broadway premiere, firstyear mfa directors malika oyetimein and sean ryan lead us back to the small town diner 30miles west of kansas city where the great american playwright william inge revealed simple truths of our common humanity. Dramatists play service, one of the premier playlicensing and theatrical publishing agencies in the world, was formed in 1936 to foster national opportunities for playwrights by publishing affordable editions of their plays and handling the performance rights to these works. Come back, little sheba, drama in two acts by william inge, published in 1949 and first performed in 1950. It premiered on broadway in 1955, just on the heels of inges first broadway success, picnic. Not in the league of oneill, albee, williams and miller but this is a g.
Inges work is an embodiment of this type of storytelling. The morning of a small town labor day picnic, a drifter hal carter blows into town to visit an old fraternity buddy alan benson who also happens to be the son of the richest man in town. Essentially inge uses the busstopping snowstorm to draw brief indepth portraits of the four stranded bus passengers, the bus driver and the three locals the diner owner, her waitress and the town sheriff. An uproarious comedy with romance and compassion, bus stop is the story of eight lonely people stranded at a roadside diner in the middle of a howling snowstorm. Theatrical realism is described as performances that are faithful to real life settings, time and behavior.
File ms323, box 12, folder 6 bus stop by william inge. By william inge directed by christian haines produced by maureen odonoghue. In the middle of a howling snowstorm, a bus out of kansas city pulls up at a cheerful roadside diner. A quintessential it takes strong men and women playwright of realism. Bo come in one night when i was singin that old black magic. When you are ready to print, please highlight, copy, and paste into a document. Bus stop, set in a small town in kansas, is an expansion of the oneact play people in the wind. Based on inges earlier oneact play, people in the wind, bus stop involves a pair of young lovers and their struggle to find love in the modern world. It is set in a diner in rural kansas, about 25 miles west of kansas city, missouri during a snowstorm from which. In the middle of a howling snowstorm, a bus out of kansas city pulls up at a small roadside diner. Hal is an egocentric braggart all potential and no accomplishment. Bus stop, by william inge epubkindlepdf wildside press. William inge theatre play, george axelrod screenplay. If you just hit print every single monologue will print humorous all kiding aside bumsevelyn bums.
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