Actor Greg Thornton, who will open in Saint Vincent Theatre's production of "A Bench in the Sun" tonight, is the first to say his path has been a fortunate one -- and that he's grateful it's led him back to Saint Vincent.

"I spent the very early part of my career here, and my career took me away," he said. "But now it's kind of wonderful to be back."

Mr. Thornton, 59, came to Saint Vincent College in the 1970s from New Jersey. He intended to train as a Benedictine monk, but his plans changed to focus on acting.

Like so many performers who have passed through Saint Vincent, Mr. Thornton's path was altered by the Rev. Tom Devereux, the founder of Saint Vincent Summer Theatre, who died last June.

"Father Tom grabbed me for a role in 'The Music Man,' " he said, and student productions soon gave way to professional roles in the summer theater.

His last season with the summer theater was in 1977. He returned in the mid-1980s at the invitation of director Joe Reilly to star in a production of "Spoon River Anthology," but Mr. Thornton had not been back to Saint Vincent since.

The death of Father Devereux brought him back into contact with many of his friends from Saint Vincent, including Mr. Reilly.

"Suddenly, there was a lot of communication," he said, and he felt the pull of his connections here.

"The sinew that holds us all together is Father Tom."

Mr. Reilly offered him the role of Harold in "A Bench in the Sun," as well as the part of Owen O'Malley in "Twentieth Century," which will open June 25.

Mr. Thornton noted that although he hadn't heard of "Bench" before, audiences would enjoy the three-person comedy, which he called "The Odd Couple Goes into Retirement."

Two men who have been friends their whole lives have moved into a retirement community, but their friendly bickering takes on an edge when a retired actress arrives to stir things up.

Mr. Thornton said that although most of the play takes place on a bench in the garden of the retirement home, it never seems static.

"It's a good script, and I think audiences will identify with these characters dealing with getting older."

Besides the chance to return to Saint Vincent, Mr. Thornton pointed out that he's been very lucky in his professional life.

After St. Vincent, Mr. Thornton went on to perform at several residence theaters in the East and Midwest, in a 37-year career that is unusual in the acting world for the consistency of his employment and his long stretches of time spent in one place.

He spent two years at the Shakespeare Theater of Rochester, in New York, then five years with GEVA Theatre Center, also in Rochester. During that time, he married his wife, Pat Thornton, whom he met while she was a student at Seton Hill.

A decade at McCarter Theatre in Princeton, N.J., followed, and he has spent the past 20 years at the Alabama Shakespeare Festival in Montgomery.

"I'm just four plays short of the canon," he said, referring to the many Shakespeare plays he's appeared in over the years.

He also teaches in the master's program at the Shakespeare Festival, has had several television roles in shows such as "Law and Order" and continues to work at other regional theaters such as the Cincinnati Playhouse and Old Globe in St. Louis.

"Someone up there is watching out for me," said Mr. Thornton, "because I've been really lucky."

He also considers himself lucky for the support of his wife, who works in fundraising at the Southern Poverty Law Center, and for his two children, Sarah and Michael.

Michael, 21, is finishing his junior year at the University of North Carolina. Sarah, 24, has followed in her father's footsteps to become a professional actress in New York city.

"That scares me somewhat," he said of his daughter's choice of career. "But she has a real passion for it."

Mr. Thornton said he's been enjoying his return to Saint Vincent because despite the changes, much has remained the same.

"Some of the conversations I'm having seem like we're just picking up where we left off," he said.

He added that the beauty of the Saint Vincent campus has reminded him that Father Devereux's influence on the theater here will continue for a long time.

"His spirit is abiding around here," said Mr. Thornton.

"After rehearsal, I walk around and I feel like I get a few notes from him.

"He continues to give me direction."