- SISTER ACT
- STARLIGHT THEATER – KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI
- AUGUST 16, 2022
Over the past couple decades there have been a number of Broadway musicals that have been based on popular films. “Hairspray,” “The Producers,” “Beetlejuice,” “Rocky,” and “Young Frankenstein” are just a small fraction of the shows that have hit the Great White Way – with new productions of “The Nutty Professor” and “Mr. Holland’s Opus” currently previewing in smaller cities. Some have gone on to Great success, while others have faded away. One of the better ones has just arrived in Kansas City.
Based on the very popular 1992 film that starred Whoopi Goldberg, “Sister Act” is the story of lounge singer Delor1s Van Cartier (an excellent Tamyra Gray), auditioning to perform in a club owned by her gangster boyfriend, Curtis (Benjamin H. Moore) on Christmas Eve 1977. However, despite her obvious talent, she is told she is “not ready” to play the club yet. This does not phase Deloris, whose dream is to be a star. She knows she has the talent and the desire. She just needs the opportunity. When Deloris accidentally walks in on Curtis and his henchmen immediately after they have killed someone, she runs to the police, who decide that the best thing to do is to hide Deloris where no one would think to look for her.
Smartly written, with a great score by multiple Oscar-winner Alan Menken and Grammy award winner Glenn Slater, “Sister Act” is a combination of laughs and music. Ms. Gray brings a belter’s voice and a Catskill veteran’s comic timing to the role of Deloris and genuinely makes it her own. Other outstanding turns by Mr. Moore, Anne Tolpegin (Mother Superior) and Susana Cordon (Sister Mary Robert) are accompanied by a supporting cast that keeps the show moving swiftly.
If there was one drawback to the evening, it was one that had nothing to do with the performances. In each city, local “celebrities” appear on stage in the silent role of the Pope and on opening night we were treated to Kansas City Mayor Quentin Lucas in all of his Papal glory. Unfortunately, due to some local political issues, some idiots in front of the stage felt the need to stage a protest, causing security to escort them out and taking the fun out of the closing number.
That aside, I highly recommend you catch “Sister Act” when it comes to your town. It is, dare I say, a divine evening at the theater.
“Sister Act” runs through Sunday, August 21 at Starlight Theater in Kansas City.