Opera Parallèle staged Douglas J. Cuomo and John Patrick Shanley's Doubt a few weeks ago. It's based on Shanley's Pulitzer Prize- and Tony Award-winning play of the same name. You might have seen it on stage or you might have seen the film, which starred Meryl Streep as sister Aloysius and Philip Seymour Hoffman as Father Flynn, with Amy Adams as Sister James and, in a brilliant ten minutes on screen, Viola Davis as Mrs. Miller. It's Davis I remember most clear; the film, directed by Shanley, was seriously marred by the competitive altar-cloth chewing performances of Streep and Hoffman.
The play, film, and opera all leave you in, um, doubt as to what happened and what it meant. Did Father Flynn abuse young Donald Miller? Well, it is ambiguous. I think it's possible (that business where he might have given Donald wine). I also think it's possible that Father Flynn is gay and recognizes that Donald is going to grow up to be gay, which results in a mentoring relationship. Mrs. Miller certainly recognizes this in her son and is glad for the attention – and role modeling? – he gives to Donald.
I liked the opera a whole lot and said so in SFCV; Matthew Travisano, reviewing for Parterre Box, was less happy with it. I think we actually said somewhat similar things about how the opera works musically; I just liked what it did better than he did.
- Lisa Hirsch, SFCV
- Matthew Travisano, Parterre Box ("Nun the Wiser," fantastic headline)
- Charlise Tiee, Opera Tattler
- Eddie Reynolds, Theater Eddys
- Michael Milenski, Opera Today
- Kellie Hanna, Broke-Ass Stuart (Preview)
- Charles Lewis III, 48 Hills (Preview)
- Timothy Pfaff, BAR (Preview)
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