The William Inge Festival

April 17, 18, 19, 1983

Sunday, April 17

1:00 pm Registration, Foyer of William Inge Theatre

1:30 pm “Come Back, Little Sheba” presented by the Picnic Players of Independence

3:45 pm Panel - "Midwestern Values in the Work of Inge”

Panelists - Dr. Jacqueline Snyder, Wichita State University; Dr. James Erickson, Wichita State University; Dr. Ralph Voss, University of Alabama; Dr. James Hoy, Emporia State University

4:45 pm Tours of the Inge Collection in Library

8:00 pm “An Evening with Jerome Lawrence and Friends” -Reception in foyer following the performance to honor Dr. Lawrence and Ms. Scott.

(Dr. Lawrence is co-author of “Inherit the Wind”, “The Night Thoreau Spent in Jail”, “Auntie Mame”, “First Monday in October”) (Martha Scott, actress-producer, was the original Emily of both Broadway and screen versions of “Our Town”)



Monday, April 18

9:00 am Registration, Foyer of William Inge Theatre

9:00 am Tours of the Inge Collection in Library

10:00 am Symposium “An Actor Prepares”

Panelist - Martha Scott, actress and producer (Ms. Scott created the role of Emily in “Our Town”, produced “First Monday in October” for Broadway and films)

11:00 am Symposium, “How Do You Make A Bus Stop Sing”

Panelists - Walter Willison and Jefrey Silverman (Actors and composers for Broadway and television, currently preparing a musical version of “Bus Stop” for Broadway)

12:00 noon Luncheon honoring conference guests

1:30 pm Symposium, “Dramatizing an Historical Event for Stage and Screen”

Panelist - Jerome Lawrence, co-author of “Inherit the Wind”, “The Night Thoreau Spent in Jail”, “The Gang’s All Here”, “First Monday in October”

3:00 pm Film, “Inherit the Wind”

3:00 pm Vans for tours of Inge’s Independence with a stop at the Ladies Library and Art Museum to visit the Inge Room.

6:30 pm Dinner Party for Conference Guests (with reservations, Independence Country Club, “Reminiscing with Jerome Lawrence”



Tuesday, April 19

9:00 am Registration, Foyer of William Inge Theatre

9:30 am Film, “William Inge: Penn Avenue to Broadway”

10:30 am Panel – “The Evolution of William Inge as a Writer”

Panelists - Dr. Ralph Voss, University of Alabama; Gene DeGruson, Pittsburg State University; Dr. Tom Rea, University of Kansas; Tom Averill, Washburn University

11:30 am Tours of the Inge Collection in Library

12:15 pm Luncheon honoring conference guests and Inge relatives

1:30 pm Scenes from “The Dark at the Top of the Stairs”. Presented by the high school drama department, Manhattan, Kansas

2:30 pm “The Influence of a Community on a Writer’s Work”

Panelists - Dr. Jerome Lawrence, playwright; Dr. James Hoy, Emporia State University; Dr. Art McClure, Central Missouri State University; Dr. Robert Gobert, Pittsburg State University



The William Inge Festival for 1983 Funded by Grants From:

The ARCO Foundation

The Kansas Arts Commission

The Kansas Committee for the Humanities

Citizens National Bank

Independence State Bank