Novato Theater Company opened its 104th season with Dan Goggin’s 1988 award-winning comedy, Nunsense.
The show, directed by Lisa Morse, with choreography by Marilyn Izdebski and musical direction by Nick Brown, runs through Oct. 6.
The plot is pretty straightforward if one hasn’t seen this show or one of its six(!) spin-offs. The Little Sisters of Hoboken need to raise money to bury 52 of their number who were accidentally killed by soup. They start a greeting card company that did well until an ill-timed purchase by Mother Superior Sister Mary Regina (Jane Harrington) left them short of funds to bury the final four. They are stored in their freezer, making the ice cream taste funny.
So the sisters, who used to be missionaries to a leper colony until they started literally falling apart, decide to do a variety show! Sister Mary Regina is joined by her second-in-command Sister Mary Hubert (Kristine Ann Lowry), initiate Sister Mary Leo (Lauren Sutton-Beattie), amnesiac Sister Mary Amnesia (Nicole Thordsen) and street-smart Sister Robert Anne (Tina Smith). Things do not go according to plan.
Nick Brown is very good, syncing music to actors several times to cover a missed line. The sound mixer, Simon Eves, and stage manager, Dianne Harrison, were on top of things, meaning that a local show happened for the first time in a long time with no unfortunate sound issues. Judging when a live performer will be louder or softer than expected is an art form and should be recognized.
The set design by Tom O’Brien was whimsically appropriate. The basketball hoop is a nice touch to ground the set in a middle school gym. Props by Cindy Morris were well designed, with special notes for the specificity of the stuffed animals and the silly cookbook cover.
The play is supposed to feel like five amateurs putting on a scattered variety show, and it does feel that way. All five women are talented performers, impressive singers and good dancers. When all five are onstage together, the equality of their talent keeps the show moving and funny. But things are less uniform during the solos. It was sometimes hard to decide when a character was awkward and when the actor was off. For example, Harrington’s scene after accidentally inhaling a narcotic goes on too long and has too much air in it to keep it on the funny side of cringe.
Many of the issues the production encounters are due to the hopelessly dated script. Soon, the audience members who tittered at references to Sally Field won’t be the people filling theaters. The backstory of the leper colony is rife with references that, in the 40 years since it was written, we have learned are not funny.
It’s easy to see the appeal of choosing this show. A small-cast comedic musical with an all-female cast without anything overtly controversial about it is like a magic bullet for community theaters. But maybe it’s time we put the sisters in the freezer and move on to shows with less-dated comedy.
‘Nunsense’ runs through Oct. 6 at the Novato Theater Company, 5420 Nave Dr., Ste. C. Fri & Sat, 7:30pm; Sun, 2pm. $25–$35. 415.883.4498. novatotheatercompany.org.
