GRANTHAM, Pa. (Sept. 18, 2007) — When a busload of weary travelers are stranded at a dingy diner in the Midwest, relationships are tested, formed and stretched in William Inge’s play “Bus Stop.”  The Messiah College theatre department will perform “Bus Stop” from Oct. 4-9 at 8 p.m. in Miller Auditorium in the Climenhaga Fine Arts Center on the college’s Grantham campus.  Tickets are $10 ($5 for students and seniors) and can be ordered through the college ticket office at (717) 691-6036.  The play will be staged in a black box configuration, so seating is limited to 75 people per performance.

A two-act comedy, “Bus Stop” takes place entirely within one night at a diner in rural Kansas.  This crowd-pleasing play was turned into a movie starring Marilyn Monroe in 1956. 

Bob Crawford, guest director, has been active in central Pennsylvania theatre for more than 40 years as a writer, actor and director.  Crawford has contributed to other performances at Messiah College, including directing “A Thurber Carnival” and playing Matthew Brady in “Inherit the Wind.”

Messiah College, a private Christian college of the liberal and applied arts and sciences, enrolls more than 2,800 undergraduate students in 60 majors. Established in 1909, the primary campus is located in Grantham, Pa., near the state capital of Harrisburg. A satellite campus affiliated with Temple University is located in Philadelphia.