According to local writer Robert Luxford, some nuns have a lot to confess.
Sister Catherine has nothing but trouble tucked in her wimple: ciggies, gambling stubs, bottles of booze.
Sister Bernadette has a secret and rather odd fetish involving needles.
Even the Mother Superior is no saint …
“Nuns is a black comedy with bite,” explains Luxford. It came about when, “An actress approached me about a play for three women to take over to the Edinburgh Festival. I have a warped sense of humour so I thought a play about three nuns fighting for smoking rights would be politically incorrect enough to raise a few eyebrows and be a good laugh.”
The result is a no doubt ire-provoking piece of satire that began its life as 10-minute skit at Crash Test Drama, before a run at Short+Sweet and then, at the request of a company in America, Luxford went to work on the the full-length adaptation. The Gorilla Tango Theatre Company ended up giving it a run in Chicago.
“A critic for the Chicago Review hated it because of its unflattering portrayal of the Catholic Church. However the subscribers to the column commented that the reviewer didn’t know what he was talking about and they loved [it]!”
And what would the Pope say? “I would like to think he has a sense of humour, but realistically I doubt he would like it at all.” That’s safe to say … but luckily, we might.
Mar 22-Apr 15, Imperial Hotel, 35 Erskineville Rd, Erskineville, $10-15, 1300 GET TIX, moshtix.com.au
