<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN">
<HTML><HEAD>
<META content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1" http-equiv=Content-Type>
<META name=GENERATOR content="MSHTML 9.00.8112.16430">
<STYLE></STYLE>
</HEAD>
<BODY bgColor=#ffffff>
<DIV><FONT size=2 face=Arial>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center" align=center><B><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><FONT size=3>Poignant parable unfolds
at Rabbit Run<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns =
"urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /><o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></B></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal
align=center><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Bob
Abelman<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal
align=center><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal
align=center><I style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">News-Herald,
Chagrin Valley Times, Solon Times,<o:p></o:p></SPAN></I></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal
align=center><I style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">The
Morning Journal, Geauga Times Courier<o:p></o:p></SPAN></I></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal
align=center><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Member,
American Theatre Critics Association <o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal
align=center><I style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></I></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal
align=center><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">This
review will appear in the <I style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">News-Herald
</I>on<I style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"> </I></SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">6/24/11</SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P><FONT size=3><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN>Doubt reigned supreme in the 1960s as Americans tried desperately to
make sense of a world in flux.</SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black"><o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P><FONT size=3><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black">The conservative norms
of one decade were giving way to the liberal </SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN>freedoms of another.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN>Opposition to a war, resistance to the draft, and the civil rights
movement divided the nation.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN></SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black">Vatican II attempted to
bring the behaviors and beliefs of the Church into the 20<SUP>th</SUP> century,
leaving many Catholics doubting the sanctity and security of this sacred
institution.</SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN><o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P><FONT size=3><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN>Playwright John Patrick Shanley sets his drama <I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">Doubt: A Parable</I>, currently on stage at
Rabbit Run Theater, smack in the middle of this period and shrouds the personal
doubts of his characters within the cultural, political and social turmoil of
the time. The result is a riveting, award-winning (</SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">Pulitzer Prize, Drama Desk, and Tony)
drama with</SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black; mso-ansi-language: EN">
<SPAN lang=EN>start-to-finish intrigue.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN><o:p></o:p></SPAN></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P><FONT size=3><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN>The play takes place within the seemingly cloistered confines of
</SPAN><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black">St.
Nicholas Catholic School in the Bronx, New York.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>The old-school school principal, Sister
Aloysius, suspects young Father Flynn of having an inappropriate relationship
with one of the students, an eighth grade boy who happens to be the only black
child in the school.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>Although she
has no proof, she engages in a ruthless campaign to out the Father and oust him
from his position of authority.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black"><FONT
size=3>The Sister and Father have been at philosophical odds since his arrival
at the Parish, raising doubt about her motivations. She is an unlikable,
inflexible, and inaccessible soul, furthering our sense of distrust and
deepening the potential for maliciousness.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN><o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black"><FONT
size=3>Yet, knowing what we now know about the existence of such inappropriate
behavior in the Church, doubts arise about Father Flynn’s innocence.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>Although he holds fast to his virtue and
moral fortitude, certain statements and specific behaviors seem to betray
him.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>He protests, but does he
protest too much?<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black"><FONT
size=3>This is a wonderfully woven, marvelously layered mystery and, under Ann
Hedger’s astute direction, the pendulum of doubt swings one way and then the
other with subtle precision.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN><o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black"><FONT
size=3>Nancy Shimonek Brooks is spellbinding as Sister Aloysius.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>She captures all that is cunning,
caustic and disturbingly stoic about this character, yet Brooks gives credence
to Sister Aloysius’ unflagging conviction.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> T</SPAN>his is one in a series of
masterful performances that Brooks has brought to the Rabbit Run stage.
<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black"><FONT
size=3>David Malinowski plays the middle ground in his portrayal of Father
Flynn, choosing ambiguity over vacillating depictions of strength and
vulnerability.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>This is an effective
way to keep the audience guessing about whether Flynn is priest or predator, but
it is a less interesting counterpoint to Brooks’ Sister Aloysius.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN><o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black"><FONT
size=3>Evie Koh plays Sister James, the novice nun in charge of the eighth
graders.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>Her role is pivotal in the
manufacturing and reinforcement of doubt in this production.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>It is never clear whether she
reluctantly confesses her suspicions about the Father to Sister Aloysius or
whether Sister Aloysius has planted the seeds of doubt.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>It is never clear whether Father Flynn
convinces her of his virtue or takes advantage of hers.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>Koh carries the weight of this
responsibility with grace, charm and a genuine sense of innocence.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>She is delightful to
watch.<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black"><FONT size=3>As
the boy’s mother, Mrs. Muller, Maria Thomas Lister is tasked with offering her
son’s perspective and representing the unfortunate status of black women during
the turmoil of the 1960s.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>In just
one scene, she transitions from acquiescence to outrage, and does so
beautifully.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN><SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN><o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><FONT size=3>Ray Beach’s set
design is a testament to the power of understatement.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>There is just enough furniture and
scenery to create the required locations for this play—an office, a garden, a
pulpit.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>However, with superb
lighting by Clayton Sandham, there is just the right amount of furniture and
scenery to create the necessary dramatic effect.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN><o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black"><FONT
size=3>Hedger’s direction keeps this weighty, wordy one act play moving at a
quick and steady pace. This is appreciated but, in the process, some of the
beats that allow for the drama to build and take hold are missed.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>The pendulum of doubt swings so swiftly
that there is little time to reflect on one extreme before the dialogue has
moved on to the next. <o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P><FONT size=3><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN>Consequently, b</SPAN><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">e
prepared to engage in a lively discussion and debate on the drive home.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN></SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; COLOR: black; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN>Doubt continues to reign supreme</SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'" lang=EN> </SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">long after this production of <I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">Doubt</I> is over.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN><SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN><SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN><o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN>Doubt: A Parable </SPAN></I><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">continues through
June 25 at Rabbit Run Theater, 5648 W. Chapel Rd., in Madison Township. For
tickets, $<SPAN style="COLOR: black">17 to $19, call </SPAN>440-428-7092 or
visit <A href="" target=_blank><SPAN
style="COLOR: blue">www.rabbitrunonline.org</SPAN></A>.<I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN></I><B><o:p></o:p></B></SPAN></P></FONT></DIV></BODY></HTML>