'Late Nite Catechism' offers familiar laughs

By Don Fowler
Posted 5/25/16

Sister has been entertaining her audiences with this familiar spoof on Catholic schools for as long as I can remember. Colleen Moore has been touring as the opinionated nun for over 15 years, and she still has the sparkle in

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'Late Nite Catechism' offers familiar laughs

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Sister has been entertaining her audiences with this familiar spoof on Catholic schools for as long as I can remember. Colleen Moore has been touring as the opinionated nun for over 15 years, and she still has the sparkle in her eyes.

We have seen co-writer Maripat Donovan in the role and found Moore to be a kinder, gentler version. She didn’t take anyone’s chewing gum and didn’t insist on being called “Sister” every time, but she did chastise one woman for crossing her legs and another for a low cut blouse.

The show pronounces that “you don’t have to be Catholic” to enjoy it, but last Saturday night the small audience seemed to be about 90 percent Catholic women, many of whom had attended Catholic school. My guess is that Moore would change her act depending how her audience reacted. She certainly had them in the palm of her hands that night.

Her “Catechism Class” was treated to a brief history of the church and a funny look at who should be legitimate saints and why. She waxed nostalgic about the decline of Catholic schools and the number of women becoming nuns.

Moore knows how to handle an audience, involving many along the two-hour journey, giving glow-in-the-dark rosaries and St. Christopher medals as prizes to those who gave correct answers as to “What is purgatory?” or “What is your Easter duty?” She enlightened us with the fact that St. Patrick was born in Scotland and even told us that there was a saint of Pole Sitters.

Surprisingly, she finished her bit and asked if there were any questions from the audience, receiving some serious ones, like “Should women be priests?” which drew her out of her comedic role and reverted her to Coleen Moore, rather than Sister.

The evening closed with a funny joke, an appeal for donations for the Little Sisters of the Poor in Pawtucket, and a number of “selfies” with the good Sister in the lobby.

“Late Nite Catechism” has rented the downstairs theatre at Trinity through June 12. For reservations and information call 351-4242, or go online at trinityrep.com, where you can select your seat. There were plenty available as of this writing.

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