Faculty Sponsor(s)
Tyrone Marshall
Location
Jereld R. Nicholson Library: Grand Avenue
Subject Area
Theatre
Description
A warm and cozy visual sensation and early 1900s architecture provided the basis for this design. It features an intimate space with a comfortable interior where all the characters gather to tell their stories. This approach was shaped by repeated references to bitter cold, blizzard-like weather outside the building in which the play Bus Stop takes place, with the interior providing a safe haven from the ferocious weather and the lonesomeness felt by the characters who find themselves at this bus stop. The visual approach was pursued through a warm color palette and use of William Inge's description of Grace's Diner as a “dingy, street-corner" building in a "small Kansas town” with a “few antique set dressings and a few "modern improvements." Since the play takes place during the early 1950s, the modern improvements Inge references were based on that era. Warm and cozy spaces are usually ones that have been heavily lived in. Therefore, in Grace's establishment the history of the building and its users is noticeable throughout the space with obvious modern improvements added only when absolutely necessary.
This design was created for Linfield's Scene Design course. At the 2016 Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival Region VII Conference in Denver, Colorado, the design and associated poster presentation received a Meritorious Achievement Award in the Non-Realized Scenic Design division.
Recommended Citation
Hurst, Savannah N., "Development of a Scenic Design for Bus Stop by William Inge" (2016). Linfield University Student Symposium: A Celebration of Scholarship and Creative Achievement. Event. Submission 25.
https://digitalcommons.linfield.edu/symposium/2016/all/25
Development of a Scenic Design for Bus Stop by William Inge
Jereld R. Nicholson Library: Grand Avenue
A warm and cozy visual sensation and early 1900s architecture provided the basis for this design. It features an intimate space with a comfortable interior where all the characters gather to tell their stories. This approach was shaped by repeated references to bitter cold, blizzard-like weather outside the building in which the play Bus Stop takes place, with the interior providing a safe haven from the ferocious weather and the lonesomeness felt by the characters who find themselves at this bus stop. The visual approach was pursued through a warm color palette and use of William Inge's description of Grace's Diner as a “dingy, street-corner" building in a "small Kansas town” with a “few antique set dressings and a few "modern improvements." Since the play takes place during the early 1950s, the modern improvements Inge references were based on that era. Warm and cozy spaces are usually ones that have been heavily lived in. Therefore, in Grace's establishment the history of the building and its users is noticeable throughout the space with obvious modern improvements added only when absolutely necessary.
This design was created for Linfield's Scene Design course. At the 2016 Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival Region VII Conference in Denver, Colorado, the design and associated poster presentation received a Meritorious Achievement Award in the Non-Realized Scenic Design division.
