Alliance Theatre Reviewers Blog

Review by Jada Genter – Doubt

     Alliance Artistic Director Susan Booth has an almost tangible touch on the productions which she directs, and as a theatre-goer I recognize the flavor of her directing, seen first in Jacques-Briel and now in John Patrick Shanley’s Pulitzer-Prize winning play, Doubt. This is a play that asks difficult questions and gives no easy answers and while I did not experience the near-nirvana I felt when watching Eurydice, I was both engaged and challenged.

     My friend who attended the play with me made a wise observation when she noted that we tended to believe the person we liked more. As a teacher I took an immediate dislike to the principal, Sister Aloysius, played by Pamela Nyberg, based on her determination to squash a young and impressionable teacher’s enthusiasm for her work. Accordingly, when the principal attacked another dedicated teacher, I was not inclined in her favor.

     Something common in life but not often fairly represented on stage are people who see themselves as inherently good coming into serious conflict with other people who also see themselves as inherently good. The question here is whether or not the people are as true and honest as they appear. Sister Aloysius clearly does not believe Father Flynn, as imagined by Thomas Piper, to be such a person, while he believes her to be hardened past feeling and therefore inherently wrong. The lovely Cara Montella as Sister James, the committed Donna Biscoe as Mrs. Muller, and the audience are all left to decide for themselves.

     Todd Rosenthal’s set pointed to the heavens while Deb Sullivan’s lighting cast shadows, and the actors did a beautiful job of capturing characters caught somewhere in-between those two extremes. Where Kent Gash’s productions are identifiable by their unbridled exuberance, Susan Booth’s productions have an almost indefinable subtlety and class in the harmony of the production elements. Both styles are delightful in different ways, and it has been a privilege to become familiar with them throughout this season at the Alliance.

     Another thought-provoking show at the Alliance. Well done.

Doubt- by Shana Basnight

Doubt, the final play of the 39th season at the Alliance, is appropriately titled because I have my doubts on whether or not you will enjoy it. To be honest, I was a little disappointed that Doubt was selected to be the season finale. The plot is a tad bit predictable, with a story revolving around a priest and nuns that are facing moral and ethical dilemmas within the church. The nuns are entertaining as they both bring a little humor to the show. The priest delivered his lines well, although his sermons were a tad bit lengthy. I also expected the priest to be a little bit older. There were times when I could not believe that the young, agile guy I saw on stage was really a priest in the Catholic church.

Overall, I would say that Doubt has potential. The story is a power struggle between the sexes. There is enough drama to keep you in your seat throughout the duration of the show. Convictions and beliefs are challenged as rumors are spread throughout the religious school. As an educator, parent, or community member, you could relate to some of the issues being dealt with in this story. Although I may have my doubts on whether or not you will enjoy the show, I will let you be the final judge.

Doubt by Wendell Barnes

The only thing wrong with Alliance Theatre's "Doubt" is that it is over too soon. The cast of four outstandingly talented actors keep John Patrick Shanley's masterful Tony and Pulitzer prize-winning script moving at such a lively pace that I couldn't believe it was over when it was.  I actually was surprised when the cast came out for their bows, as only 90 minutes had passed in what seemed like 30.  But as we exited, my wife turned to me and said, "Well, what else could he have said?"  And this is the truest statement she could have shared with me:  at the end of the play, doubt is established in the audience's mind.  The truth is for each individual to decide.  We had a lively debate as to whether the protagonist was guilty or not all the way home, and guess what?  After examining all sides of the discussion, both of us still had doubt!  Pamela Nyberg was a perfect Sister Aloysius, the nun you love to hate.  Thomas Piper was an appealing and convincing Father Flynn.  Their subtle performances created just the right amount of doubt.  But I was even more impressed by the supporting players:  Donna Biscoe as Mrs. Muller and Cara Mantella as Sister James.  Ms. Mantella's mobile face and convincing naiveté won me over from the first scene.  Ms. Biscoe earned well-deserved applause at the exit of her far too short scene.  Director Susan Booth kept the pace lively and interesting from the beginning pulpit scene until the curtain falls.  The Alliance has ended their Tony Award winning season with a production that will not soon be forgotten by Atlanta's faithful, although now full of doubt, audiences.  Although I leave the page as a reviewer for this outstanding season, I will remain one of the faithful audience members who has learned this season even more about the magic created nightly within the walls of the Woodruff Arts Center.  That is one thing that there is no doubt about.  Thanks for reading.
--Wendell Barnes

I Doubt It, by Amy Lighthill

     In l990, Buddhist monk Stephen Batchelor published a book called The Faith to Doubt. He pointed out that in the Zen tradition, three factors have to be cultivated on a spiritual path: great faith, great doubt, and great courage. Doubt, in his context, means “to keep alive the perplexity at the heart of our life, to acknowledge that fundamentally we do not know what is going on, to question whatever arises within us…Faith is not equivalent to mere belief. Faith is the condition of ultimate confidence that we have the capacity to follow the path of doubt to its end.”
 
     None of the four characters in John Patrick Shanley’s play, Doubt, has this kind of deep understanding of faith or doubt. The year is l964, and in a small parochial school, the nuns and priest are tussling with black-or-white concepts of faith and obedience. Though the younger ones are ready to crack open the rusty door of church dogma, the tradition-bound school principal, Sister Aloysius, remains starchily ensconced in her crack-the-whip-for-your-own-good nundom. For reasons never explained, she quickly determines to bring down the handsome and breezy young priest, the one perhaps too beloved by schoolboys, but who, nonetheless, feels the hierarchy’s support behind him.

     Viewers are apparently adoring the opportunity to proffer an opinion about the slightly mysterious resolution of this battle of wills. But the iron-fisted, tight-jawed head sister here stayed one-dimensional, to my eyes. Like the play itself, her performance lacked nuance. Though set in the bosom of Catholic education, the play has surprisingly little to offer about theology or the real inner spiritual lives of its inhabitants. The central “dilemma” sat in the principal’s office in more ways than one. Characters search for “the answer” and don’t feel comfortable when they lose their moorings. Even in the relative innocence of l964, there must have been more shading in a life devoted to faith than this. 

     Mr. Shanley gave us a wryer, more affectionate, look at this same neighborhood in his delightful film comedy, Moonstruck. There, the characters spoke straight from their hearts with poetic simplicity and depth about their very Catholic world.  The one character in “Doubt” who suggested a richer awareness of life’s shades of gray was, perhaps ironically, the one black character, Mrs. Muller (the arch and deliciously powerful Donna Biscoe). Her one scene, in which she casually deconstructed Sister’s naïve and self-righteous assumptions about her son, stole the show and won her a well-deserved ovation at the play’s abrupt conclusion.

     Beautifully staged by Pat Flora, the show provides an opportunity to consider, again, the shortcomings of the institution that so many love to hate (or, love and hate). If you love being right, you'll have a lot of fun trying to argue other theater-goers out of their doubts about "Doubt".      

 

 

 

 

Doubt, A Parable - Maria Surprise

They saved the best for last.  Doubt, the Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning play by the esteemed John Patrick Shanley, closes the stellar 2007-08 Alliance Theatre season on the main stage.  Expertly directed by none other than Susan V. Booth, this tightly woven drama deftly navigates the waters that run between certainty and doubt.  Every word, every gesture and pause has meaning in this concise and wonderful work of art; nothing is left to waste.  From the stark but effective set design and staging to the glorious cast, Doubt works on every level.  Each scene is beautifully crafted, and each character has an important role to play as the drama unfolds.  Watch out for Donna Biscoe as Mrs. Muller – she practically steals the show from Pamela Nyberg’s Sister Aloysius.  John Patrick Shanley has written a masterpiece for the stage, and this production deserves to be seen by all of Atlanta and beyond.

After the performance, my husband, friends and I had an animated discussion about the play on our walk home.  It is highly likely you will, too, for this carefully plotted drama confounds as well as excites.  Are you absolutely certain of a character’s innocence – or guilt?  Keep talking…you may find a sliver of doubt slowly eroding your convictions. 

Doubt is not only the last play of the current Alliance Theatre season, it is also the end of my brief stint as a reviewer.  Thank you, Alliance Theatre, for giving me a voice this season, and for allowing me the opportunity to be a small part of your community.  I look forward to the 2008-09 season, as I will be back in my regular seats, on my regular night, waiting to see what new dramas unfold on stage.