The Catholic Church is in a state of contemporary crisis. Whatever your religious convictions might be, there can be no doubt of that. But "doubt" is the exact concept upon which an unstable foundation for accuser and perpetrator is built —and thus, the basis for John Patrick Shanely's play about a priest suspected of molestation at a Bronx Catholic school and parish, circa 1964. The title, of course, is Doubt.
"Center Stage wants to bring important works to the community as well as the musicals and other entertainments that audiences love," said Ann Holt, the executive director of Center Stage Jackson, one of Mid-Michigan's premier theater companies. "So, as much as we are doing this for the audience, community theatre is also about giving its performers the opportunity to explore great plays."
A great play is certainly an accurate way of describing Doubt, in all its cynical and uneasy glory. Adapted into an Academy Award nominated film in 2008 that starred Meryl Streep, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Amy Adams, and Viola Davis in the four principle roles, the play follows the sparing of two nuns and the priest who head up the parish. Sister Aloysius, the school's formidable headmistress, suspects Father Flynn of inappropriate contact with the school's first black student, and makes no bones about her convictions of his guilt. Sister James, however, harbors grave doubts.
| Doubt Potter Center, Jackson Oct. 1-3, Fri. and Sat. 8 p.m., Sun. 3 p.m. $15 centerstagejackson.org, (517) 796-8600 |
"The play is not about abuse. It is not meant to be controversial. If it were, it would be a lecture about a point of view and of little interest to the audience," Holt said. "The play is about doubt —something we all have experienced whether we admit it or not."
Happily, there can be few doubts about Center Stage's ability to give this live-wire material the spark of life it needs.
"Gerry Blanchard, the director, has a reputation for doing excellent work at the Croswell Opera House recently, although he lives in the Jackson area. This play drew him back to Center Stage for the first time since 2001 when he directed a successful production of Yasmina Reza's Art for us," Holt said. "The play is less interesting if the audience leaves without some doubt about what they have just seen. It is a challenging piece of theater for actors and for the audience."
Difficulties aside, Center Stage Jackson is more than up to the challenge. There can be no doubt about that.
