Late Nite Catechism
By Vicki Quade & Maripat Donovan
June 2 – July 26
- see photos - see the video
'Late Nite' is spiritually funny at Golden Apple
By Jay Handelman, Sarasota Herlad-Tribune
School's in for the summer with the Golden Apple's Late Nite Catechism By Kay Kipling, Sarasota Magazine
Late Nite Catechism gets a gold star By JANUARY HOLMES, Bradenton Herlad
School's in for the summer with the Golden Apple's Late Nite Catechism
Kay Kipling, Sarasota Magazine
Late Nite Catechism
School's in for the summer with the Golden Apple's Late Nite Catechism.
By Kay Kipling
It’s true: You really don’t have to be Catholic to enjoy Late Nite Catechism, now playing at the Golden Apple Dinner Theatre.
As it happens, I did attend Catholic school for a number of years, and even before the show started, the classroom set, with its chalkboard, attendance chart, statue of Mary and crucifix summoned up memories in (or struck fear into) my heart. But many of the audience members on press night did not raise their hands when asked if they spent their formative years under the tender or not so tender guidance of nuns, and they still roared as the evening went on.
Late Nite Catechism has been something of a phenomenon ever since its conception (immaculate or not) back in 1993 in Chicago; it’s traveled to every state in the country as well as making stops in Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia. The Golden Apple production features Nonie Newton-Breen as the sister in charge of an adult catechism class, and, after eight years of touring in the role, she clearly has the part down.
There are certain set bits in Late Nite Catechism, including a segment called “Saint/Not a Saint,” where Sister leads the audience in determining which one of five saints should be eliminated from the heavenly rolls. (Don’t worry, she gives you plenty of information about each to help decide.) But sometimes it’s hard to tell where the script ends and the more improvisational part begins. That’s due in large part to Newton-Breen’s skills; her improv roots, honed at Chicago’s famed Second City, are obvious here (as is that Chicago accent) as she’s able to work easily with the audience, whether asking questions about their childhood memories or scolding its more scantily clad female members. (“Always ask yourself, ‘What would Mary wear?’” she advises.)
Newton-Breen is capable of delivering that withering look all teaching nuns seem to have perfected, but she’s also adept at displays of compassion and at being down to earth as her character copes with the changes in the Catholic Church that have been wrought ever since Vatican II. There are great comedy lines already there for her to use, but some of the biggest laughs come in response to questions from the audience (which she may or may not have heard before by now) that she manages to play off with impeccable comic timing.
Whether you’re searching for definitive answers about Limbo or the difference between venial and mortal sin, or just for a bit of nostalgia dressed up in a nun’s habit, Late Nite Catechism should get your attention, just like a smart rap across the knuckles with a ruler. Oh, and did I mention there are prizes?
'Late Nite' is spiritually funny at Golden Apple
By Jay Handelman, Sarasota Herlad-Tribune
Watch the cleavage. Sister doesn’t want the men around you getting excited. It is better for them to cast their eyes up toward the crucifix over the blackboard.
Welcome to “Late Nite Catechism,” happily ensconced at the Golden Apple Dinner Theatre, where Sister is going to share some lessons, teach you about the saints, warn you about the fires of hell, test your knowledge and keep you up to date on changes in the Catholic Church since Vatican II in the 1960s.
Who would have thought such a discussion could be laugh-out-loud funny?
Sister wants you to sit up straight – no slouching! – pay attention and contribute. You may win a prayer card or a Mary statue.
The show, set at St. Bruno’s adult catechism class, is a wonderfully scripted and improvised act — part theater and part stand-up comedy act — performed with style, a firm gentility and steely resolve by Nonie Barrett-Breen, who has been playing Sister for eight years in this comical gem by Vicki Quade and Maripat Donovan.
It might help if you attended parochial schools in the 1950s and 1960s – the period that is celebrated in the show – or at least have some awareness of what school life was like back then. But you don’t need to be Catholic to get a kick out of Sister’s sweetly comical take on things.
Explaining sins, she will say that there’s “original and extra crispy” (as in the fires of hell).
Sister often focuses on the sweeping changes of Vatican II, which lead to shifts in regular masses. “They turned the altar around so the priest faced the people, like a cooking show,” she says with a touch of disdain. Sister clearly prefers tradition and the firm hand that nuns used to teach their charges in the classroom.
Attendees who attended Catholic school get extra points. If you didn’t, she will say, “Too bad your parents didn’t care about you.”
The insults and ribbing are handled in a way that makes you laugh rather than cringe. Audience members at Thursday’s opening performance eagerly volunteered to answer questions or ask their own.
Two women – both local performers – were chastised for tops that were a bit too revealing, and she covered them up with napkins.
The strength of the show rests in its respect and its ability to poke a little fun, and Newton-Breen’s ability to improvise. You just never know how people will answer a question or what they will ask.
When one audience member asked if priests should be allowed to marry, she quipped, “Yes, if they really love each other,” before going into a more serious explanation of how priests are actually married to the church.
Thursday’s audience had a large contingent of priests and nuns — though as Sister noted ruefully, you’d never know because they don’t have to wear the kind of heavy habit she dons. They were laughing as heartily as everyone else.
Late Nite Catechism gets a gold star
By JANUARY HOLMES, Bradenton Herlad
Late Nite Catechism gets a gold star
By JANUARY HOLMES
jholmes@bradenton.com
I must confess, I’m not Catholic and I’ve never attended Catholic school. But even with my limited Catholic knowledge, I found myself laughing during “Late Nite Catechism,” now playing at the Golden Apple Dinner Theatre.
This jolly one-woman show is a comic romp set in a Catholic school classroom. It features a fictitious nun ready to school her students in Catholic culture. Much of the show’s entertainment comes from the sister’s interesting exchanges with her class — the audience.
From the moment “Late Nite Catechism” begins, Sister (Nonie Newton-Breen) commands the show with the feel of a real school teacher/no-nonsense nun. It was enjoyable to watch her quiz the audience about topics such as the Immaculate Conception, confession, purgatory, the saints, etc. — packing humor in between. Newton-Breen has an ease of ad-libbing with audience members — coming up with comic elements off the top of her head — flowing back to her humorous scripted material and then changing subjects. Many of the strong punch lines in this show come fast and unexpectedly, making the audiences laugh all the more.
As Sister, Newton-Breen isn’t afraid to pick on the students — especially the trouble makers. Thursday night’s audience had a few, including a clergy member. By the second act, a few of the “students” were getting a little rowdy with the sister. Breen played off them well — writing names on the board and even making one woman — whom she covered in napkins because of her semi-low-cut outfit — sit on stage in a corner for a moment during the first act.
The stage is set up cleverly as a classroom, with a teacher’s desk, a few figurines of saints and a bulletin board filled with past United States presidents, including John F. Kennedy — who was Catholic.
The sister awards prizes to people who answer questions correctly. Audience members receive glow-in-the-dark rosaries, “shut-up” gum, saint cards and other goodies.
Near the end of the show, the audience had the opportunity to ask whatever they wanted about the Catholic faith. No one was able to stump the sister or catch her off-guard as her wise cracks continued. Questions ranged from old versus new sins to if priests should be allowed to marry.
“Yes, if they love each other,” the sister said nonchalantly, before making a funny face. “That’s just a little convent humor.”
The light-hearted religious jokes aren’t offensive. And, while being amusing, the sister gives the audience true facts about the Catholic faith (with a funny spin to it) no matter how outrageous it sounds — such as the seven demons that flew out of a little door in Mary Magdalene’s head, as Sister said.
“Look it up!,” Sister told the audience. “I’m not making this up.”
So I did: Luke 8:2. Of course, there was no little door, but there was the casting out of demons.
As Sister claims, she’s always right.
January Holmes, features writer, can be reached at 745-7057.
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