Scott Suchman
The 1992 hit motion picture comedy Sister Act has probably had a longer life than anyone expected. The movie scored two Golden Globe nominations and spawned a sequel that was released just a year later. There’s even a third film on the way. The most surprising turn this movie took was to Broadway in the form of a musical in 2011, following a UK premiere in 2009. Fun Fact: Cynthia Erivo starred as Deloris Van Cartier in the first UK tour in 2011. The UK production earned four Olivier Award nominations, and the Broadway production scored five Tony Award nominations (lead Patina Miller was nominated by both organizations for her performance as Deloris). Like the movie, the musical has had an ongoing life beyond the West End and Broadway with national tours and regional performances. Now the show is taking the stage at Ford’s Theatre in Washington D.C. with a production that is raising the roof.
For those unfamiliar with the story, Sister Act centers around lounge singer/wannabe music star Deloris Van Cartier. After ‘auditioning’ for her (married) boyfriend Curtis at his nightclub, he tells her she’s just not ready for the spotlight (she clearly is but he’s obviously just trying to keep her under his thumb). Curtis is also a crime lord in the Philadelphia area, and when he suspects one of his own stooges is ratting him out to the police he shoots him dead … which Deloris witnesses, but assures Curtis she didn’t see a thing and the poor man is just taking a nap there on the street. She hightails it to the police where she encounters her old high school friend Eddie Souther (aka Sweaty Eddie), now a police officer (who always had a crush on Deloris) who vows to protect Deloris until a trial date can be set for Curtis. The safest place he can think to hide her is a local convent which is facing closure due to a drop in attendance and money in the offering plates. Mother Superior is adamantly against harboring this woman, but the monsignor says the police department is giving the church a generous donation. However there are ‘two bachelors’ also interested in purchasing the church and they have a check on the way. Deloris at first believes she will only be there for a few days, but it turns out the trial date has been set for a year out, and that just isn’t going to work for her or Mother Superior as Deloris has already upended the convent with her antics, but she has also turned the screeching choir of sisters into a bona fide choir of angels, their singing drawing people into the church off the street, filling the coffers in the process,and turning the check to buy the church into a generous donation. Unfortunately, the newly talented nuns have drawn the attention of the media, the Pope and … Curtis, who now knows where Deloris is hiding. It’s a race against time as Curtis and his goons are on the way to the church, and the sisters are due to perform for His Holiness, forcing Deloris to choose her own safety (and keeping her new friends safe) or throwing caution to the wind and giving the Pope the show of his lifetime.
Scott Suchman
Sister Act is a joyful musical comedy that retains the basic story of the movie, and adds some wonderful songs by Alan Menken (music) and Glenn Slater (lyrics). Menken, to those in the musical know, has long been associated with Disney musicals dating back to The Little Mermaid so it’s no surprise he’s involved with Sister Act because it is a Disney movie (though released under the Touchstone Pictures label). So, surprise, this is a ‘Disney musical’ in a way — but it’s not really for kids because it does have some adult themes and gun violence. The songs here actually help drive the plot along, with Act Two in particular very song heavy with dialogue almost replaced entirely with the lyrics. The music is entirely integral to the story, and Menken and Slater have done a great job integrating their songs into the dialogue created by Cheri and Bill Steinkellner (based on the original screenplay by Joseph Howard). That book of the musical is also constructed very well, skillfully blending the more dramatic moments of the story with the humorous, delivering some big laughs all throughout the show. (Slater’s lyrics also contribute to some of the humor as well, particularly in the songs ‘When I Find My Baby’ and ‘I Could Be That Guy’.)
Ford’s Theatre’s production of Sister Act is led by the amazing Nia Savoy-Dock, a performer who is easily the center of attention with her often hilarious facial expressions when reacting to the situation around her as well as her skill at delivering some of the book’s killer one-liners. Savoy-Dock’s presence just fills the stage and her voice is powerful enough to reach the angels in Heaven. She is the heart and soul of this production. But that doesn’t mean she overshadows anyone. Sherri L. Edelen is a force to be reckoned with as Mother Superior, stern with Deloris and her sisters, only wanting to maintain the status quo (perhaps for her own need of maintaining a sense of normalcy), but eventually seeing that Deloris’ presence was exactly what she had been praying for, she just didn’t expect those prayers to be answered in that way. All of the sisters do some wonderful work, with the standouts being Caitlin Brooke as Sister Mary Patrick, and Kanysha Williams as Sister Mary Robert, the two who become the most attached to Deloris (as Sister Mary Clarence) and are the most changed by her, for the better. Williams in particular is an audience favorite as she starts out as the meek ‘church mouse’ of the group, barely able to speak above a whisper, but with Deloris’ guidance she finds her voice and stops the show with her Act Two number ‘The Life I Never Led’. Goosebumps. Debbie Mobley also gets some laughs as Sister Mary Lazarus, especially with her featured bit in the Act Two opening number ‘Sunday Morning Fever’. Lawrence Redmond is also very funny as Monsignor O’Hara, especially as he begins to go from priest to emcee (and he has a funny moment as a different character, a local news reporter, almost unrecognizable). And be prepared for the first time the sisters sing during a rehearsal. The sound that chorus produces is both hilarious and terrifying.
Scott Suchman
Also adding to the list of stellar performances is Derrick D. Truby Jr. as Curtis, and Joe Mallon as Eddie. Truby has to balance his performance of being a real villain while still also having some humor so as not to feel completely out of place in the show. That balance shines in his Act One number ‘When I Find My Baby’. Mallon also has to balance Eddie’s protector role with the lovelorn puppy dog (and dealing with that ‘Sweaty Eddie’ nickname). He also gets a chance to stop the show with his big number, ‘I Could Be That Guy’, which also has some very cool visual surprises. All of these main actors are ably supported by the ensemble who go from thugs to altar boys, nuns to people on the street. A big musical like this relies on the ensemble to fill many different roles, and each and every member of the Sister Act ensemble is outstanding in every way.
Director and Choreographer Jeff Calhoun does a great job of keeping the show and the characters moving, while also being able to focus on some of the more quiet moments, particularly with Mother Superior and her crises of faith, doing some clever things with the stage at Ford’s, which is dominated by an archway wall mid-stage that also has a second level where some of the action take place (and which require the actors to dash from stage level to that upper level in record time — it’s like magic how quickly some of them can run up and down stairs and not be out of breath … unless there is a high-speed lift to get them up and down quickly, hmmmm — the magic of theatre!) Scenic Designer Paige Hathaway makes great use of those arches and a three panel wall that can be spun around to change the setting from a nightclub to a police station or Eddie’s apartment, and a stained glass backdrop hidden by a black curtain that is revealed for any of the church interior scenes. All of it is skillfully and beautifully lit by Max Doolittle. Ivania Stack’s costumes are perfection and Deloris’ dream outfit — only seen at the very end — is stunning. There’s nothing to complain about as all of the craftspeople behind-the-scenes have created a Broadway level production on the Ford’s stage.
If you’re a fan of Sister Act, the movie or the musical, and you’re in the DC area or planning to be in the DC area between now and May 17, make sure to get tickets to this Heavenly production that’s sure to uplift your soul.
Sister Act runs about 2 hours 30 minutes with one 15 minute intermission. Recommended for ages 12 and up. The show runs through May 17, 2025.