By Jason Hagey and Alisha Hagey
Questions encircle as An Other Theater Company presents Doubt: a Parable in Provo, Utah. This is an intimate and powerful portrayal of John Patrick Shanley’s 2004 play. This work received the 2005 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and the Tony award for Best Play, while the 2008 film adaptation received several nominations for Crisis takes Center Stage in Provo with An Other Theater Company’s Provocative Portrayal of Academy Awards. The text, as a parable, is lean but potent. Using simplicity as a tool to captivate, it jumps right to the point and allows audiences to form their own conclusions.
Within the story, Sister Aloysius, principal of a Catholic school, takes matters in her own hands when she suspects Father Flynn of having improper relations with one of the young male students.
With the opening sermon given by Kacey Spadafora (Father Flynn), the audience is transported into what tends to be a binary world, but Flynn evokes a strong sense of gray: “Doubt can be a bond as powerful and sustaining as certainty. When you are lost, you are not alone.” After the monologue, the play challenges the audience with a parable that is left open for them to ponder on the idea of ambiguity in human relations: Is there a right and wrong to every situation?
Carrying a heavy load, Kim Abunuwara (Sister Aloysius) is a severe, but concerned, nun who rides a fine line between the Christian dichotomy of mercy and judgment. Abunuwara provides a beautiful character who is stern in accomplishing that which she sees as right while being obviously motivated by love. Striking the balance is hard and Abunuwara accomplishes it.
Surrounding the whole narrative is the question of Father Flynn’s guilt. Just as the title says, there is doubt throughout as to whether he is guilty or innocent. Spadafora’s Flynn is charismatic,but not altogether absolved of that guilt. He keeps a careful, thoughtful, caring and warm portrayal of Father Flynn while some of his actions and words leave you wondering.
Simply perfect in the role, Alexis Boss (Sister James) is impressionable and enthusiastic. Her approach is simple and trusting, but unsure as to what is right and what is wrong. In a way, she is the proxy for the audience. Boss exudes love for everyone. Without the certainty that Sister Aloysius displays, Boss does a wonderful job of being believing in a world pressing her to take a side.
With just one scene, Shelby Noel Gist (Mrs. Muller) doesn’t waste time. Gist guides us through the turmoil of the 60s via the care of a wife and mother. She recognizes her son’s plight (both at school and at home) and fights for him to survive. Gist gives us the real struggle: a mother torn by a son who is abused at home and is possibly being abused at school. What should she do?
Director Taylor Jack Nelson uses a deceptively simple set to full capacity. His direction is equal parts intimate and epic. The audience is drawn into the relationships of individuals and ideas, each actor portraying very human, very empathetic performances. This level of communion with the characters keeps viewers involved and interested in the outcomes of their otherwise gigantic struggle. The powerful ideas of the play resonate loud and clear, while a voice is never raised, and Nelson never tells the audience what to think. He allows the text to take life through his cast and, as any good director does, he gets out of the way and allows the magic to happen.
There is always a joy in this confined space. Each time entering this converted store, the audience is transported beyond the substance of the mall. Lyndee Bauman (Muralist) ensures that the audience is instantly taken to the Bronx, surrounded by brownstones and Catholic statuary. There is a unique sensibility to her art. The lines aren’t completely clean or even uniform. This naturally lends itself to the nature and questioning of the story.
Along with the art installation, Kacey Spadafora (Set Designer) also plays with the tensions and questions. There are rigid straight lines from a door that line up with a tree. These lines match up with characters and rules that surround the school in which the story takes place.The branches of the tree don’t connect to the base, rather like rumors and doubt itself. They feel grounded, but not fully proven. It is a simple touch, but a strong one.
Aaron Gubler (Lighting Designer) articulates space extremely well. He uses gobos (a template placed inside or in front of a light source to control the shape of the emitted light) to give the audience a sense of windows and tree branches. He goes from interior to exterior simply and effectively. Gubler’s lighting plays in the amber tones, dimly casting shadows, and again supporting the very nature of the story.
Doubt never gives clear answers. It poses probable cause and complete uncertainty. The audience members are tainted to think the worst based on news reports and other experiences, but they aren’t fully certain. This is the brilliance within the text. Shanley creates a world inhabited by people who truly seem to want the best for those around them, but who seek to obtain their definition of “best” by extremes: extreme love, extreme rigidity, extreme care, and even turning a blind eye for self-preservation. An Other Theater Company allows Shanley’s words to stay with the audience, haunting them like the shadows of Sister James’ dreams. How can they ever know for sure and yet how can they not choose to act? As in most parables, we are left to find our own meaning.
This thought-provoking show will be running for most of November, so there is plenty of time to experience Doubt for yourself. Get your tickets and come for an unforgettable night of moral conflict and personal introspection.
Approximate runtime: 90 minutes with no intermission.
An Other Theater Company presents Doubt by John Patrick Shanley
Provo Town Centre, 1200 Towne Centre Boulevard, Provo UT 84601
Nov 1-2, 8-9, 26-27, 15-16, 22-23, 2019 7:30 PM, Sun matinee November 17 5:00 PM
Tickets: $15 Adult, $13 Senior, $12 Student. Tickets are $2 more when purchased at the door.
Contact: anotherTheaterco@gmail.com
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