By Marilyn Jozwik
“Sister Act,” Waukesha Civic Theatre’s holiday production, is a perfect celebration for the season of joy. With its diva singer, frolicking nuns, gangster characters and hummable tunes, it is pure entertainment from start to finish.
But WCT has added a very special ingredient to this holiday dish: heart and soul. I actually felt myself tearing up at several of the songs. They were sung with so much emotion, which is quite a feat in a show that could easily be enjoyed for its hijinks, music and spunky, spicy main character alone.
The story is similar to the one in the popular Whoopie Goldberg movie. Deloris, a singer on the rise, has witnessed a murder by her gangster boyfriend (David Kaye), who fears she’ll turn him in to the cops. So, he and his henchmen (Thomas Hess, Don Lambert, Christopher Orth, Jacob Regenfelder) try to hunt her down so he can keep her from talking – permanently. To protect her from the thugs, Eddie, the detective on the case who had a thing for Deloris in high school, takes her to a convent where she dons a habit and turns the hapless nun choir into a slick production that brings churchgoers – and cash – in large numbers to the struggling parish. Monsignor O’Hara, (a playful, Irish-brogued Ralph Garcia) loves the increasing membership of his flock and the end to money trouble, but the convent’s Mother Superior (Paula Garcia) finds the worldly Deloris a bad influence on her pious charges and prays to find a way to have her removed. The push-pull between Deloris and Mother Superior is wonderfully crafted by these two multi-talented actresses.
The final scenes are just a rollicking good time as the nuns chase – and are chased – by the gangsters – throughout the church, wielding some unorthodox weapons as the bad guys get their comeuppance.
I don’t even know where to start, I enjoyed this Mark E. Schuster-directed show so much. I’ll begin with Patrice L. Hood as Deloris. Hood had the role from Dec. 10 to 12 (I attended the Dec. 11 matinee), while Ashley Levells-Riemer had the role for the first and third weekends. Hood is invested in this role, effortless and real, making it easy to love her colorful character and her nun “sisters.” She belts out tunes like “Take Me to Heaven” and “Fabulous Baby!” in Vegas-revue style, but gets into a sweet reverie in the title tune “Sister Act,” in a wonderful scene that sees Deloris wrestling with two very different life choices.
Deloris as Sister Mary Clarence (Ashley Levells-Riemer) leads the sisters in a rousing number in a scene from Waukesha Civic Theatre’s “Sister Act.” Also pictured, from left, are Anna LaPean, Sandra Hollander (Sister Mary Martin of Tours), Jaclyn Janowski (Sister Mary Patrick), Teri Bergendahl, Ann Lambert.
Making Hood’s Deloris even more delicious to watch is the absolutely spot-on portrayal of Mother Superior by Paula Garcia, who sets the perfect tone for the conflict between the two with her no-nonsense acting and lovely, heartfelt vocals on “Here Within These Walls.” Her rendition of “I Haven’t Got a Prayer” is a thing of beauty with its artful pauses and dynamics during Mother Superior’s faith crisis.
Eddie (Ernest Bell) sings a soulful “I Could Be That Guy” in a scene from Waukesha Civic Theatre’s “Sister Act.”
But the tune that really brings down the house is Ernest Bell’s soulful “I Could Be That Guy” as Eddie, who mulls how he can change his “Sweaty Eddie” image to be the love of Deloris’s life. Just a gorgeous piece of music.
And not to be forgotten is Alexa Farrell’s Sister Mary Robert singing “The Life I Never Led,” as the young postulant breaks out of a life of denial to assert herself. Farrell injects much passion into the tune that helps set the tone for the show’s finale.
I loved the nun choir, especially Mary Wadina’s Sister Mary Lazarus and her feisty rap tunes and Sarah Brown’s Sister Mary Patrick (Jaclyn Janowski handled the first and third weekends) and the extra verve and energy she brought to the role. All wore well-fitting outfits to look like real nuns, and not costumed performers (until they started adding glitzy embellishments), executed flawlessly the many movements – choreographed by Ami Majeskie – and carried the music nicely. Plus, they were just plain fun to watch.
Monsignor O’Hara (Ralph Garcia) and Mother Superior (Paula Garcia) meets with the sister in a scene from Waukesha Civic Theatre’s “Sister Act.” Also pictured are, from left, Silas Knerler, Sandra Hollander (Sister Mary Martin of Tours) and Jaclyn Janowski (Sister Mary Patrick).
The nine-piece orchestra under music director and keyboardist Julie Johnson kept a spritely pace throughout whole show, with a good balance between vocals and orchestra. Simple set pieces made for swift scene changes and meant the focus was squarely on all the wonderful performers.
If you go:
Who: Waukesha Civic Theatre
What: “Sister Act”
When: Through Dec. 19
Where: 264 W. Main St., Waukesha
Info/Tickets: (262) 547-0708; waukeshacivictheatre.org