Reviewed
by Claudia Perry
In
this day and age it is a rarity to see truly great character acting. Yes,
acting where an actor or actress assumes an entirely different being. Their
inner and outer reality is unlike that of the personality of the actor as we
know them. They walk differently, speak with a peculiar idiosyncrasy, hunch
their shoulders in a certain way, and perhaps crook their fingers to appear
slightly arthritic. In short, they physically and emotionally assume the shape
of a completely new human being. Alex Guiness was always my favorite actor
because I felt that he accomplished this the way no other actor of his
generation ever did. Of course, now we are lucky to have Cherry Jones reprising the role she
originated in 2005 which has earned her a Tony, a Drama Desk Award, an Outer
Critics Circle Award, a Lucille Lortel Award and an Obie.
At
the beginning of the play my husband quietly asked me if Cherry Jones was the
young nun on stage left. I said, "No, Dear, she's the bespectacled, hunch
shouldered, slightly arthritic one that walks like every nun I have ever
known." (And since I was forced to attend Catholic school for eight years,
I knew many of them.) But one shouldn't be dazzled merely by these brilliant
outer trappings, for underneath, Ms. Jones has layered the character of Sister
Aloysius with the steely fiber of a moralistic tigress.
It
is the autumn of 1964 and John Patrick Shanley's Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize
winning four character drama is fueled by Sister Aloysius, the Principal at St.
Nicholas Church School in the Bronx. Ever vigilant about her students, Sister
Aloysius has doubts about the new young priest, Father Flynn. She directs the
new novice teacher, Sister James to report anything unusual to her immediately.
When Sister James comes back with news that the young African American student,
Muller, returned with liquor on his breath after talking with Father Flynn
alone in the Rectory, Sister Aloysius builds a case against Father Flynn.
Sister Aloysius is determined to make Father Flynn confess to abusing the boy.
It becomes a test of wills as the Principal is hard pressed to be able to
gather any concrete evidence against the priest. In her innocent optimism, the
young Sister James simply does not want to believe that Father Flynn is guilty.
And after a meeting with Mrs. Muller, who will not take a stand against Father
Flynn, due to a curious twist, that we never suspect, Sister Aloysius is out on
a limb all by herself.
The
wonderful thing about this play is that the audience seems to go through
exactly what Sister Aloysius does -- we suspect but will never be able to prove
anything. We mistrust and yet at the same time feel compassion for the young
priest. We like Father Flynn's openness and easy going ways - and yet find him slightly
disingenuous. We dislike Sister Aloysius's need to squelch anything new and
amusing and her horror over the "Frosty the Snowman" song is
laughable. And yet we admire her doggedness at trying to root out the truth. In
short, the characters are complex and real and engaging and so is the acting on
all sides.
Chris
McGarry is
charming as the boyish, evasive and disarming Father Flynn. He walks the fine
line between being kind and manipulative at the same time. He knows what to say
to people to comfort them and to win them over. Lisa Joyce is lovely as the young and eager
Sister James. Her joy for teaching is overshadowed by her wish to please her
superior -- who demands that she be a disciplinarian first and a teacher
second. Caroline Stefanie Clay is great as Mrs. Muller - whose revelations about her
son only confound Sister Aloysius. But the real jewel in the crown is Ms.
Jones, who is the engine that keeps the play roaring across the stage. It is
also, I may add, Doug Hughes finely tuned directing that keeps the balance and
tenuous moments of the play together - as if everyone were on tethers made of
silken spider's web.
It's
rare for a straight dramatic play to have much of a life after Broadway - but
this play is definitely the exception to the rule. This will be your last
chance to catch this wonderful play -- as this is the final stop on this
National Tour. If you go - there's no doubt you will find it relevant,
engrossing and thought provoking.