'Nunsense II' a hilarious, interactive variety show

May 2, 2008

BY CHARITY BONNER Staff Writer

Nuns often aren't known for their shtick. But five actresses from the Elgin Theatre Company will sing and dance for the upcoming production of Nunsense II: The Second Coming.

Nunsense II continues where the original production left off and is the story of how Sister Julia poisons 52 nuns prompting a need for burial funds. Five nuns -- Sister Regina, Sister Mary Hubert, Sister Robert Anne, Sister Mary Leo and wacky Sister Mary Amnesia -- decide to put on a variety show.

Nunsense II: The Second Coming takes place six weeks after the sisters have staged their first benefit. The sisters used some of the funds to purchase a DVD player, so they must raise more money to pay for the burials of 11 more deceased nuns who are being temporarily kept in a freezer.

The sisters return to stage a thank-you show for their fans, but chaos ensues after two Fransiscans claim Sister Mary Amnesia as their own.

Director Kevin Wiczer, a Columbia College theater graduate, has been a playwright for 12 years and director for eight. Wiczer said the show incorporates a variety of performance styles, from western hoedowns to ventriloquist acts to roller-skating numbers. Nunsense II includes 19 songs and 14 dance numbers.

The interactive show also will allow the audience to sing and play bingo with the nuns.

Choreographer Kara Williams, who has choreographed for Dollywood, said the team of performers has become strong despite a rehearsal space that was too short for the tallest cast member.

"It is a full team effort, and any challenge we have had to face as a team, we have overcome it," she said. "There is a really great amount of camaraderie with this cast. ... The thing that ties us all together is that we are all passionate and we all love what we do and we just want to make the best show possible."

The participatory quality of the show is what Williams prizes most.

"I don't think anyone could ever sleep through anything like this, and if they did, probably one of the nuns would jump off stage and wake them up. It will be very entertaining," she said.

The original Nunsense is in its 25th year, has been performed internationally more than 5,000 times and has been translated into 21 languages. Among its many spin-offs: Nunsense Jamboree, Nuncrackers, Meshuggah Nuns, Nunsensations and Nunsense A-Men.

Nancy Davis of Elgin portrays Sister Mary Hubert and was in Elgin Community Theatre's (ETC's predecessor) Nunsense 10 years ago. She returned because of the close bond with the cast and for the entertaining story.

"If you know anything about Catholicism, nuns are pretty well-liked universally, I think," Davis said. "It is just a really fun show. It is different to see them singing and dancing, though."