Bay City Players Presents "Nunsense A-Men!"

October 13-15 and 19-22, 2006.

September 27, 2006
By: Julie McCallum, Entertainment Editor

Bay City Players will present the musical, Nunsense A-men! October 13-15 and 19-22, 2006. Friday and Saturday performances are at 8:00 p.m., and Sunday performances are at 3:00 p.m.

Male nuns? Have you ever heard of such a thing? If you loved Michigan native playwright Dan Goggin's original "Nunsense", a rollicking musical about five nuns, you will love "Nunsense A-Men!"

Bay City Players is featuring the hilarious show with an all male cast this time around. This all male version of the show premiered in New York in 1998 and follows the 1993 production of the original "Nunsense" at the Bay City Players. The director for this show, longtime Players actor and director Tina Sills, was a member of the Players 1993 cast, when she played the role of "Sister Amnesia." Tina says this time around, "I'm trying hard to let the actor playing "Amnesia" infuse the character with his own personality."

Playwright Dan Goggin based the characters on five nuns he knew growing up Catholic in Alma, Michigan. Tina Sills says "Nunsense A-Men" stays faithful to those characters, but they are updating a few references, such as the Reverend Mother buying a plasma TV instead of a TV/VCR.

The all male cast is rehearsing with long skirts and head veils to get used to how to walk and dance with that kind of attire before they don the traditional "habit" Catholic sisters used to wear. To keep all of the costuming and body language true to the traditional Catholic nuns, Director Tina Sills has called on her real sister, Sister Gretchen Sills O.P, a Dominican nun, to help the actors "keep on the straight and narrow" in their characterizations, such as making a correct sign of the cross.

Sister Gretchen Sills is a pastoral minister at St. Vincent De Paul Catholic Church in Bay City. The five member cast is also being assisted by choreographers Susan Craves and Cathy Craves Priem. Musical Director for the show is Vickie Bowden, who has this all male cast singing an octave lower from the first female Players cast.

Tickets are available at the Bay City Players box office for "Nunsense A-Men!" running October 13th to the 15th and October 19th through the 22nd. There is also a special benefit performance with other Bay Arts organizations on October 18th.

The box office will open to the public on Monday, October 9, 2006. Box office hours are Monday through Saturday from 12 - 2 p.m. and 7 - 9 p.m., and Sunday from 2 - 3:30 p.m.

The box office may be reached at 989-893-5555 during those hours. Ticket prices are $18 for adults, $16 for seniors and students. Bay City Players is located at 1214 Columbus Avenue in Bay City.