Review: Hell in a Handbag's THE DIVINE SISTER

Photo by Rick Aguilar Studios.

Hell in a Handbag's Chicago premiere of Charles Busch's THE DIVINE SISTER is a laugh-filled homage to classic Hollywood nun films such as "The Trouble With Angels" and "The Singing Nun" with a bit of "The Da Vinci Code" thrown in for good measure. Fans of camp theater won't want to miss it.

The play represents a return of sorts for the playwright. Busch had a mainstream hit with THE TALE OF THE ALLERGIST'S WIFE. In THE DIVINE SISTER, Busch returns to his roots with this send up that tackles issues of faith, gender and identity.

Mother Superior (David Cerda successfully channeling both Julie Andrews and Rosalind Russell) is the affectionate yet determined head of St. Vincent's school in Pittsburgh. The school has seen better days and Mother Superior hopes to raise funds to tear down the old school and build a new one in its place. Along with the butch wrestling coach Sr. Acacius (Handbag regular Ed Jones) they solicit a widowed Jewish woman (a hilarious Chad as Mrs. Levinson) for the needed funds.

Meanwhile, a Hollywood agent (Levi Holloway as Jeremy) has arrived in town with the hopes of securing the film rights to the story of one of the convent's postulates (Charlotte Mae Ellison as Agnes) after the girl begins to display signs of the Stigmata and has visions.

Jones is at his comedic best as Sr. Acacius and gives a layered performance. One particular moment catches Acacius when she is most vulnerable and the Jones is both funny and touching.

Cerda's Mother Superior is matronly in a sweet way (his characters usually have a bit more of a bite to them). Busch's script has one particularly touching moment where his character coaches a young boy on how to hit a baseball in a more manly way. It never feels saccharine or forced.

In a flashback, the rapid-fire dialog between Cerda (in his character's pre-nun days as no-nonsense reporter Susan) and Holloway harkens back to films like "His Girl Friday." Holloway is especially proficient in delivering his lines in the style of a 1940s heartthrob. His character -like everyone else in the proceedings-is endowed with his own delicious secrets that Holloway slowly but surely peels back to reveal.

Ellison's Agnes embodies the necessary sweetness required of the role with enough of an edge that lets us know there's more brewing below the surface.

As Sr. Walburga, Maria Stephens' German accent is a bit too thick and the acoustics in the church didn't help. Many of her lines were garbled, their meaning lost. It marred an otherwise amusing performance as Ms. Stephens gamely throws herself whole-heartedly into the zany proceedings.

The church setting certainly adds a level of authenticity to the proceedings. Cat Wilson's lighting takes full effect of a stained glass window. Shade Murray's direction keeps things zipping along at a great pace. Keith Ryan's wig designs also seem to reach new heights (particularly in the case of Mrs. Levinson). Hell in a Handbag's production of THE DIVINE SISTER manages to be both irreverent and heartfelt.

THE DIVINE SISTER runs through July 10 at Ebenezer Lutheran Church, 1650 W. Foster. Tickets, $28-$38. 800.838.3006 or www.handbagproductions.com.

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