Stage: Trust and Its Limits

| Print Post This | Like (0) | Comments (0)

STEELY, STERN AND COMBATIVE, Cherry Jones' Sister Aloysius serves as a compelling catalyst in John Patrick Shanley's tense, see-sawing play "Doubt," being staged through Sunday at the National Theatre with the same cast that brought it ecstatic attention in 2005 — a Tony Award for best play and a Pulitzer Prize.

Set in a Bronx Catholic school shortly after the Kennedy assassination, Sister Aloysius kicks off an investigation of her charismatic, well-liked parish leader, Father Flynn (Chris McGarry), when she begins to question the nature of his relationship with a young student. Using information extracted from the naïve rookie teacher Sister James (Lisa Joyce), Sister Aloysius begins a crusade to expose the father's wrongdoing, even though she has little to back up her suspicion except her intuition.

Jones' Sister Aloysius is a colossus of a character. As the veteran principal of St. Nicholas, she has little time for the patient coddling of newbie teachers and revels in the knowledge that she inspires fear among the student body. But Sister Aloysius' bristling nature is fueled by her devotion to her church and her school, so when she begins her investigation into Father Flynn's alleged wrongdoing, her passion in the pursuit of justice is unwavering.

The play tackles a variety of themes — taking on gender roles, race relations (the child at the center of the scandal is also the school's first African-American student) and the hierarchy of the Catholic Church.

At the center, though, is the play's title motif — the struggle of certainty versus uncertainty, faith, if you will, versus empiricism. Sister Aloysius' continual questioning in the face of Father Flynn's seemingly credible alibi can seem foolhardy or courageous, or even both, often at the same time.

"Doubt requires more courage than conviction does and more energy," Shanley suggests in the play's preface, "because conviction is a resting place and doubt is infinite — it is a passionate exercise."

» National Theatre, 1321 Pennsylvania Ave. NW; through Sun., $38-$78; 800-447-7400. (Metro Center)

Written by Express contributor Dan Miller
Photo courtesy Chris Schwartz Photography