Photo by Mark Frohna
Sister Act at Skylight Theatre
Skylight Music Theatre presents 'Sister Act' with Mona Swain as Deloris Van Cartier.
Skylight Music Theatre closes-out its season with the endearingly soulful disco comedy Sister Act. The powerfully charismatic Mona Swain stars as Deloris Van Cartier, an aspiring singer who witnesses a murder and is forced to hide in a struggling convent until she can testify against the murderer. Dennis Lewis deftly carves-out an assertively vulnerable corner of the stage as Officer Eddie Souther, the policeman trying to aid Deloris in evading danger at the hands of the men looking to silence her.
Director Molly Rhode successfully assembles a large ensemble of reclusive nuns who are forced to deal with an outsider in their midst who isn’t quite what she appears to be. Janet Metz delivers a particularly nuanced and powerful performance as the mother superior who finds her faith tested by Deloris. The musical touches on many different moods as it explores many individual stories in a satisfying large cast of characters. Rhode moves the action around briskly enough that the pacing of the production doesn’t have too much time to lean into any one character. The result is a fast-paced show with a lot to offer.
The costumes in the show are quite impressive. Designer Bobby Sharon has done some fabulous work on the show for some of the flashier numbers. There’s a clean and crisp feeling to the visual of the show which finds the simple glossiness of the costuming finding a perfect home in the humble elegance of Jonathan Berg-Einhorn’s scenic design. There’s quite a bit of impressiveness to scene taking place in a police headquarters and the church itself, but the real impact of the visual come in the form of sharp flashiness of the big disco numbers.
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Skylight Music Theatre’s production of Sister Act runs through April 27 at Broadway Theatre Center, 158 N. Broadway. For ticket reservations and more, visit Skylight online.
