The moment I made my way down the stairs of the St. Bonaventure Church community hall, it was 1968 in my head. Was it a coincidence that my earliest Catholic church memories were in the basement of the school? Sister Mary Hubert (Karyn Louise Doerfler) in full habit appeared on the stage and told us to whoop it up for Mother Superior when she came out. We dutifully practiced and when Sister Mary Regina (Lauren Miller) appeared, we obediently gave a good old whoop. Nunsense had begun, directed by Sean Michael Barrett from the original play by Dan Goggin.
Mother Superior confided that the convent cook Sister Julia Child of God (cross yourself) had accidentally knocked off 52 nuns with her botulism-tainted vichyssoise. There was enough money to bury 48 but 4 were still chilling in the freezer. The premise is amusing and Doerfler delivers her lines with a sardonic flavor, In other words, just like a real nun. The Little Sisters of Hoboken from Mount Saint Helen's School were putting on this entertainment to raise money to bury the nun-sicles in the freezer before the health department caught on.
Sister Robert Anne (Heidi Hansfield) was from Canarsie in Brooklyn and was a reformed juvenile delinquent. She was the convent driver and could also strip a car with due speed. Hansfield carries off the street-smart Brooklyn swagger. It jogged my memory about reform schools for girls back in the day–girls who were either too eager with the boys or maybe wanted to be like one of the boys. Sister Mary Leo (Allison Ristaino) wanted to be a ballerina and liked to do her morning prayers as an interpretive dance. That was much to the chagrin of the Mistress of Novices, Sister Mary Hubert.
The group had to encourage Sister Mary Amnesia (Kay Flynn) to join them. Sister Amnesia was clocked on the head with a crucifix during an earlier mission to a leper colony. Flynn's performance as the ditzy and squirrelly nun is my favorite in the play. She led the quiz portion of the show. I did not participate because I could have been a ringer for Catholic trivia and I still have a lot of saint cards and medals from cleaning up at Midnight Catechism a few years back.
This play is filled with humor that doesn't offend unless you're a Protestant who drove the Little Sisters of Hoboken out of the leper colony. Also, if you were a MaryKnoll or Franciscan sister, they had some zingers. In my memory, the MaryKnolls were at the top of the missionary heap and the Franciscans were known for education. The Little Sisters of Hoboken had to try harder to keep current and in good stead with the archdiocese. They were down 52 and if Mother Superior hadn't bought a flat-screen television, they would have been able to bury them all. Doerfler and Miller have fun chemistry showing that even nuns can be competitive. Sister Hubert wants to be Mother Superior and gets a few digs in at her throughout the show.
The Saint Sebastian Players do an okay job with Nunsense. It feels like a grade school musical because the singing is passable with the exception of Flynn who could belt a song. The stage design by Emil Zbella is a bright and retro mockup of Grease that the children of Mount Saint Helen's will be performing, according to Mother Superior. Sister Leo's room, all pink and childish, is a reminder that all Catholic girls were encouraged to join the convent. The direction and pacing could use some energy. The staging is too much like a school play and needs to be more like the spoof that created a line of greeting cards, tee shirts, and nun novelties.
Nunsense is fun and has some good one-liners. It really brought back some memories that are now funny such as speed praying the rosary for the Stations of the Cross, or standing like little soldiers when a priest or nun entered the classroom Costumes are by Robert Eric West from All Dressed Up Costumes. The cast wore the wimple, veil, and those nun shoes! It all was very authentic but the only diss I have on the costumes is that the rosary beads should be bigger—as big as coffee beans. I recommend Nunsense if you are looking for some fun and something to do with the kids or grandparents.
Nunsense is playing now through November 12, at St. Bonaventure Church, 1625 W. Diversey. Tickets are $35 for adults and $30 for seniors and children under 12. For more information please visit saintsebastianplayers.org.
For more information on this and other plays, see theatreinchicago.com.
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