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The Runner Stumbles
By Milan Stitt
Directed by Kevin Gladish
Produced by Halcyon Theatre
At Steep Theatre
3902 N. Sheridan
Chicago, IL
Call 312-458-9170, tickets $15
Mondays, Tuesdays & Wednesdays at 8 PM
Running time is 2 hours with intermission
Through November 8, 2006
Suspenseful whodunit deals with forbidden love
Set in 1927 in the northern Michigan and based on an actual event, The Runner Stumbles by Milan Stitt now running on off-nights at Steep Theatre, is a taught, gripping murder mystery. Told in flashback, the play deals with a maverick priest, Father Rivard (Mark Pracht) whose upstart manners toward the Bishop and the Monsignor (Michael Graham) gets him assigned to a rural Michigan parish with few Catholics. Rivard is full of self-hatred, doubt as he tries much too hard to be the perfect priest. He is aided by his convert-turned-housekeeper, Mrs. Shandig (Lisa Butterfield) who idealizes the devout priest.
When Sister Rita (Krista Forster) arrives things change quickly as the energetic and charismatic young nun starts a school while invigorating the parish. She has a strong need to communicate her ideas and to interact with her peers while Rivard is the quiet, contemplative loner who demands his solitude. Rivard and Sister fight their mutual attraction that is played out in several richly underplayed, nuanced scenes by Pracht and Forster. Rivard’s guilt and frustration become almost overwhelming for him. When sickness causes Sister to move in the rectory, the seeds of scandal are sown. The attraction blossoms over time.
Sister is murdered during a forest fire that almost wipes out the town and immediately Father Rivard is the prime suspect as he fled the town during the fire. We see him at his trial as the suspense builds in the riveting courtroom drama. Much of the play is a psychological drama of two dedicated religious folks struggling to balance their human desires and needs with their commitment to their religious vows. We see the Catholic Church both as both a source of comfort and a rigid rules oriented burden to humanity.
This whodunit is a fine, well-paced mystery that has several levels of meaning that are fully developed in a gripping tale of forbidden love and blind devotion. Mark Pracht and Krista Forster are terrific while Lisa Butterfiled lends nice work as the housekeeper. This is a worthy show that is a nice off-night treat. You’d be hard pressed to find better entertainment on a Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday evening.
Recommended
Tom Williams
Tom99@chicagocritic.com for comments
Talk Theatre in Chicago podcast
Date Reviewed: October 17, 2006
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