Review By Kate Brauer

(L-R) Adam Ziemkiewicz and Catherine Cook

In 1955, a blizzard leaves a bus stranded for a night at a café in rural Kansas. So begins William Inge's Bus Stop, onstage at Rising Phoenix Theatre Company (RPTC) in Middletown.

We meet Grace (Buffy Hanna), a lonely heart café owner, and Elma (Judy R. Shaw), a teen-age waitress. They are joined by the town sheriff (Paul Eisenman), the bus driver (Robert Moore), and the passengers: two cowboys (Adam Ziemkiewicz and A. Jackson Ford), a drunken professor (Daniel Britt) and a young nightclub singer (Catherine Elizabeth Cook). The night unfolds in a series of intricate social interactions that challenge our ideas of love, sex, isolation and independence.

It might have been opening night nerves, but initial interactions seemed rushed as actors upstaged one another, each vying for central focus in a play that requires a unified ensemble. After intermission, the dynamic mellowed, and the actors seemed more natural and relaxed. Director Kate Landinic's blocking worked well in the intimate space, but scenes were too noisy with clatter and overly projected voices.

Ziemkiewicz and Cook are energetic and charismatic as Bo and Cherie, two lovers in a tumultuous relationship. But Landinic hits a flat note here, working too hard to play up the comedic element. Much more captivating is the chemistry between young Elma and the professor. Britt's performance is particularly good, and the professor's pedophilic advances are both frightening and eerily pathetic. Also worthy of note is Ford, whose cool, natural performance brings a much-needed anchor to the cast.

In Inge's portrait of mid-century America, love is elusive and oppressive. "A man's got a right to things he loves," Bo declares, referring to Cherie. Bus Stop is a powerful play that examines the relationship between hope and desolation, humor and despair. Although this production misses some opportunities to build on the subtlety inherent in the script, the audience gave it a standing ovation. As RPTC's ticket sales thrive, it will be fun to watch Middletown's only professional theater company continue to grow.

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