Photo: Darren Setlow
by Marilyn Taylor
Coastal Journal contributor
PORTLAND - There is absolutely no ‘Doubt’ that this play is powerful and well worth seeing. That’s one of the few things that is certain about this Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize-winning play. The questions and challenges it raises, however, are never clear cut (or black and white, as the script says).
The action takes place at a Catholic School in the Bronx in 1964. A grumpy old nun who is Principal of St. Nicholas School, Sister Aloysius, has a grudge against the new young priest, Father Flynn. She doesn’t like the changes he represents, from the ball point pen he uses to his ability to be friendly and sensitive to the children at the school.
Sister Aloysius is Old School---she wants everything to be and stay the way it has always been. She wants extreme discipline and runs St. Nicholas more like a prison than a school.
Mixed in with these two characters at opposite ends of the Catholic spectrum is Sister James, an enthusiastic and idealistic young nun. Sister James gets tremendous joy from every part of teaching until Sister Aloysius squelches that joy. This loss is replaced with Doubt.
There are many themes in this play including the struggle between female nuns and the male hierarchy of the Catholic Church. This is expertly displayed by the fact that a nun is not allowed to be in the same room with a priest unless another nun is present.
We have a ring-side seat for the struggles between newness and sameness; old versus new; age versus youth; and faith versus ambiguity. As the playwright says, “The beginning of change is the moment of Doubt.”
Sister Aloysius has a prejudiced opinion about young Father Flynn. She doesn’t like him and wants him out. The play revolves around her plans to eliminate him from her school---for cause or no cause.
I found it challenging to take sides in the ongoing debate---because the evidence shifts in each scene. In other words, I sat there in Doubt.
It’s also challenging to judge (or understand) this play considering the recent history of Catholic priests and young boys. One can’t help but bring that knowledge into the theater with them.
This play raises more questions than it answers. The play notes say it is semi-autobiographical, so one can’t help but wonder what happened to John Patrick Shanley at Catholic school.
The show is expertly acted. It’s astounding the depth and breadth brought to these complex issues by just four characters.
Christine McMurdo-Wallis is menacingly malevolent as Sister Aloysius. Timothy Deenihan is pitch perfect as the shape-shifting young priest who appears sincere and then questionable with the next breath. There always seems to be something rumbling just below the surface.
Kate Turnbull is flawless as Sister James, the loving, caring novice whose whole existence gets thrown into Doubt. And Tamela Aldridge is masterful as Mrs. Muller, the mother of the 12-year-old boy who is at the center of the action (even though we never see him). Mrs. Muller oozes with ferocious integrity in defense of her child’s well being. She’s the only person in the play who has absolutely no Doubt.
This production works on all levels: it’s well directed by Sally Wood. The inventive sets by Scenic Designer Daniel Bilodeau keep the action moving gracefully. Costume Designer Susan E. Picinich makes us feel we are back at the Church of our youth and Lighting Designer Lynne Chase expertly shifts the mood and creates perfect ambiance.
Have no Doubt---this play will maintain your interest from start to finish---and beyond.
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