Doubt: A Parable is a 2004 play by John Patrick Shanley originally staged off-Broadway at the Manhattan Theatre Club on November 23, 2004. The production transferred to the Walter Kerr Theatre on Broadway in March 2005 and closed on July 2, 2006 after 525 performances and 25 previews.
Plot
The play is set in the St. Nicholas Church School in the Bronx during the fall of 1964. The school is subject to the authority of the parish, and thus the priests, of St. Nicholas. There are two priests in the parish. The priest in charge, Monsignor Benedict, 79 years old, is "very good" but "otherworldly in the extreme." The other priest, Father Flynn, is much younger, new to the parish, and good at basketball. The opening line of the play is a sermon in which he asks: "What do you do when you're not sure?"
The principal of the school, Sister Aloysius, is a conservative nun who insists that her students not be coddled. Father Flynn believes the clergy should be more accessible to the parish and be thought of "as members of their family," including taking the children camping.
Sister Aloysius is introduced to the audience when she gets a visit to her office from Sister James, a young, inexperienced, yet enthusiastic teacher of eighth grade. Sister Aloysius counsels Sister James that she should learn to be canny. She tells her that "innocent teachers are easily duped." She emphasizes that "if you are looking for reassurance, you can be fooled; if you study others, you will not be fooled."
Sister Aloysius wants to know what Sister James did with William London, a fidgety boy that she sent down with a gushing nosebleed. Sister Aloysius notes that William London had a ballpoint pen and kept fiddling with it while he waited for his mother to take him home. The school only permits fountain pens for school work. Father Flynn is later noted to write with ballpoints.
Father Flynn's and Sister Aloysius's schools of thought come into direct conflict when Sister Aloysius suspects Father Flynn of sexual contact with Donald Muller, the school's first black student. Sister James reports to Sister Aloysius that Donald seemed frighted and seemed "most peculiar" when he returned from a private time with Father Flynn, and that she had smelled alcohol on Donald's breath. This sets the play's central conflict into motion.
Sister Aloysius confides to Sister James that she has had experience: "Eight years ago at St. Boniface we had a priest who had to be stopped. But I had Monsignor Scully then who I could rely on. Here there's no man I can go to, and men run everything. We are going to have to stop him ourselves." She warns Sister James that "a man who would do this has already denied a great deal." And that if Sister James would report her observations to Monsignor Benedict, she would simply be "branded an hysteric and transferred."
In a meeting which is ostensibly about revisions to the Christmas pageant, Sister Aloysius, in the presence of Sister James, confronts Father Flynn with her suspicions. He denies any wrong-doing.
The fourth character, Mrs. Muller (Donald's mother) provides yet another perspective when Sister Aloysius meets with her. Mrs. Muller supports her son's relation with Flynn, inappropriate or not. Donald's father beats him (because, Mrs. Muller says, her son is "that way" and because his father works a lot). At least Flynn is a man who takes an interest, and it's just until the end of the school year. Mrs. Muller says "you accept what you got to accept and you work with it," and at the end she reveals that Donald is gay.
Against Sister Aloysius's will, Father Flynn enters her office and slams the door behind him (Sister Aloysius tried to insist that she needs a third party to be present).
Father Flynn takes notes of their discussion and says that he will get Monsignor Benedict to remove her as principal of the school. Sister Aloysius then states that she had broken with the discipline of the church. She says that "this morning, before I spoke to Mrs. Muller, I took the precaution of calling the last parish to which you were assigned."
Father Flynn becomes angrier, since Sister Aloysius says that she actually spoke to a nun at his last parish. Father Flynn emphasizes that "that's not the proper route to have taken, Sister! The Church is very clear, you're supposed to go through the [priest]." This is Father Flynn's third parish in five years.
Father Flynn says there is an innocent explanation, although he does not state what it is, and denies any guilt. Sister Aloysius says "you will go after one child after another, until you are stopped." Father Flynn tells Sister Aloysius that "you have no right to act on your own! You are a member of a religious order. You have taken vows, obedience being one! You answer to us!" Sister Aloysius says that she will go to his last parish and the one before that, if necessary. In time, she will find a parent willing to expose him, "a parent who probably doesn't know you are still working with children!"
Sister Aloysius declares that since Father Flynn is continuing to lie, "if you won't leave my office, I will. And once I go, I will not stop." She is willing to step outside the Church and even to risk excommunication to protect the children. At this Father Flynn starts to plead "even if you can't imagine the explanation, Sister, remember there are circumstances beyond your knowledge." Sister Aloysius insists that he end his involvement in the community and ask for a transfer. She leaves Father Flynn in her office. He uses the phone to make an appointment to see the bishop.
In the final scene, Flynn receives a promotion and is transferred to another parish (with another school). Sister Aloysius, respecting the chain of discipline of the church, spoke with "our good Monsignor Benedict." He refused to believe her. Sister Aloysius confesses to Sister James that she lied about speaking to a sister at Father Flynn's previous parish, and, revealingly, that she has grave doubts—although it is left ambiguous whether this refers to her certainty in Father Flynn's guilt, her confidence in the church's discipline or her faith in God.
Characters
- Sister Aloysius: The protagonist of the play who believes Father Flynn has sexually molested Donald.
- Father Flynn: A priest in St. Nicholas Church School, who believes that the clergy should be more accessible.
- Sister James: A young nun who reports to Sister Aloysius. She loves her students and loves teaching.
- Mrs. Muller: Donald's mother struggles to protect a "different" child who does not have acceptance at home or at school.
Productions
The New York production, directed by Doug Hughes, was performed in one act, running approximately 90 minutes. In interviews, the cast said the second act was what took place when the audience left the theatre and began to discuss their differing opinions of the events - some agreeing with Aloysius and others siding with Flynn. Upon publication, Shanley changed the title from Doubt to Doubt: A Parable.
The four original cast members were Cherry Jones as Sister Aloysius, Brían F. O'Byrne as Father Flynn, Heather Goldenhersh as Sister James, and Adriane Lenox as Mrs. Muller.
In 2006 Eileen Atkins, Ron Eldard, and Jena Malone joined the cast, replacing Jones, O'Byrne, and Goldenhersh, respectively. In the fall of 2006, Jones headed the national touring company that consisted of Chris McGarry, Lisa Joyce, and Caroline Stefanie Clay. Doubt won the 2007 Touring Broadway Award as Best Play.
The West Coast premiere was directed by Claudia Weill and took place at the Pasadena Playhouse.
The Australian premiere was mounted at the Sydney Opera House by the Sydney Theatre Company on 4 February 2006. The cast included Alison Bell, Jennifer Flowers, and Christopher Garbardi, and was directed by Julian Meyrick. This was followed by the Asian debut of Doubt in Singapore on 21 March 2006 and in the Philippines on 2 June 2006. Doubt ran at the Auckland Theater Company in New Zealand, from 16 March to 8 April 2006, directed by Colin McColl, with Latham Gaines as Father Flynn, Elizabeth Hawthorne as Sister Aloysius, Kate Prior as Sister James and Goretti Chadwick as Mrs Muller.[1]
The play was staged in the Philippines in 2006 by Atlantis Productions. This production starred Cherie Gil as Sister Aloysius and played at the Carlos P. Romulo Theater at the RCBC Plaza in June 2006.[2]
The play was premiered in Britain at the Tricycle Theatre. Directed by Nicolas Kent, it starred Dearbhla Molloy as Sister Aloysius, Nikki Amuka-Bird as Mrs Muller, Padraic Delaney as Father Flynn and Marcella Plunkett as Sister James.[3] The production ran from 22 November 2007 to 12 January 2008.
The play was directed by Roman Polanski during its run in Paris in late 2006. In April 2007, it was staged in Warsaw, Poland by producer Gene Gutowski, at Polonia Theatre.
Film adaptation
Miramax Films' adaptation of the play stars Meryl Streep as Sister Aloysius, Philip Seymour Hoffman as Father Flynn, Amy Adams as Sister James and Viola Davis as Mrs. Muller. Production began on December 1, 2007 with playwright John Patrick Shanley directing and Scott Rudin producing.[4]
The film is dedicated to Sister Margaret McEntee, a Sister of Charity nun who was Shanley's first-grade teacher and who served as a technical adviser for the movie. She is the real-life Sister James.[5]
Awards and nominations
- Awards (2005)
- Drama Desk Award for Best New Play
- Drama Desk Award Outstanding Actor in a Play (Brían F. O'Byrne)
- Drama Desk Award Outstanding Actress in a Play (Cherry Jones)
- Drama Desk Award Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play (Adriane Lenox)
- Drama Desk Award Outstanding Director of a Play (Doug Hughes)
- Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Play
- New York Drama Critics' Circle Best Play
- Pulitzer Prize for Drama
- Tony Award for Best Play
- Tony Award Best Actress in a Play (Jones)
- Tony Award Best Featured Actress in a Play (Lenox)
- Tony Award Best Direction of a Play (Hughes)
- Theatre World Award (Heather Goldenhersh)
- Nominations (2005)
- Tony Award Best Actor in a Play (O'Byrne)
- Tony Award Best Featured Actress in a Play (Goldenhersh)
- Tony Award Best Scenic Design of a Play (John Lee Beatty)
- Tony Award Best Lighting Design of a Play (Pat Collins)
References
Notes
Bibliography
- Shanley, John Patrick (2005). Doubt: A Parable. New York: Theatre Communications. ISBN 1559362766.
See also
External links
