Doubt
Theater - Terry Byrne, guest contributor
Doubt, that gnawing, unnerving feeling of uncertainty, seeps out over the Colonial Theatre audience like a fine mist. “Doubt,” the Pulitzer Prize and Tony award-winning drama by John Patrick Shanley has arrived in Boston with an intensity unmatched by any drama seen around here in a long time. The greatness of this play was not measured by the level of applause at the end, but by the breathless silence that came over the crowd as the story unfolded.
The truth is it’s hard to imagine being drawn in to a drama about a priest suspected of pedophilia. Here in Boston, we’re worn down by the shame and disappointed and disgusted by the Catholic Church’s response. Besides, the same John Patrick Shanley who wrote the romantic comedy “Moonstruck” some 20 years ago also wrote this. But “Doubt” plumbs a rich well of compassion, torment and guilt that gives this tale an unexpected richness. Shanley also layers his story with other conflicts, including racism, sexism, intolerance and petty gossip, that ratchet up the tension yet feel so painfully familiar even if you never set foot in a Catholic church or school.
At its simplest level, the story, set in the Bronx in 1964, follows the concern Sister Aloysius, the principal of St. Nicholas Church School, has about the parish priest, Father Flynn, who also teaches the children phys. Ed. Her suspicions about his inappropriate attentions to a 12-year-old boy, who also happens to be the school’s only black student, explode into accusations that change everything, and nothing.
Cherry Jones, a founding member of the American Repertory Theatre acting company, brings Shanley’s Sister Aloysius to extraordinary life. Great actors don’t play a part, they embody a character, and the physicality of Jones’ performance is stunning. I confess I spent an inordinate amount of time in Catholic schools and Jones’ stiff walk, her arms folded under her habit, her righteous attitude and stern demeanor made me shiver with recognition. But Jones never allows Sister Aloysius to become a caricature of a nun. She is wise and domineering, driven by the rules, but watch her cower when reprimanded by Fr. Flynn or swallow her humiliation when he makes clear her subordinate position. Her conviction about protecting her students is unshakable, even if some uncertainty about Fr. Flynn may creep in. In the skilled hands of Jones, Sr. Aloysius is a complicated woman, not a fanatic.
Jones’ equal on stage is Chris McGarry as Fr. Flynn. McGarry is confident as he delivers his folksy sermons, full of anecdotes to illustrate his points (like the parables in the gospels, he explains). He also appears sincere as he tries to explain himself to the young nun, Sr. James (Lisa Joyce), who is eager to accept a “truth” that is easy to understand. Is it suspicious that he wears his fingernails long or pays extra attention to a young boy who’s an outcast among his fellow students? Should he simply be tolerated, because, as the boy’s mother (a classy Caroline Stefanie Clay) says, at least someone’s taking an interest?
Shanley lays out all the possibilities, and Doug Hughes’ beautifully directed production keeps us on the edge of our seats through the play’s final moment. The beauty of “Doubt” is that long after the play is over, notions of certainty, acceptability and denial will continue to haunt you.
