Phrases like "I always know what time it is, thanks to the clock on the wall of the convent with the Apostles pasted on. When the big hand's on the Peter, and the little hand's on the John, I know it's time for the Sisters to get down on their knees," and "Boy Scout Treats: 1. Take 12 Brownies, get them good and hot--" represent Nunsense A-men! as a whole: cheap laughs, disjointed episodes, shallow characters, a weak plot, and immature music. American Stage tried its best to alleviate the true lack of essence in Dan Goggin's musical, but in vain.

The musical--and I use the term lightly--covers the trials endured by the Little Sisters of Hoboken convent as they attempt to raise money to bury the last few nuns in the freezer (if Reverend Mother (Jack Eddleman) hadn't bought a VCR, they would have had the funds to bury them all). They died from Sister Julia Child-of-God's vichysoisse. Botchulism. How will they earn the funerary fees? By putting on a vaudeville show, of course. Sister Mary Hubert (Matt Elkins), the Mistress of Novices, trying to shoulder her way into higher status, Sister Robert Anne (Christopher Swan) trying to get a part in the performance, and Sister Mary Amnesia (JonVan Middlesworth)--doing her best to remember who she was before being hit on the head with a crucifix--all hinder the matter. The final joke of this absurd plot? The entire cast is male.

The problem visible from the beginning of the production was the lack of powerful singers. It was often difficult to hear what the Sisters were saying. Of course, when it was possible to hear them, the jokes were so stupid I wished I hadn't. I must admit, quite a few times I found myself laughing hysterically; however, there is more to a musical comedy than cheap jokes, much more. Unfortunately, Mr. Goggin didn't appear to know this vital fact. Besides the utterly anti-climatic revealment of who Sister Amnesia was, the characters experience no growth. Then again, growth usually requires a foundation to grow from, and the characters were only sketched out enough to make them easily identifiable as separate people to the audience. Musically, I found Nunsense rather lacking. I would not consider myself knowledgable enough to form strong opinions about what constitutes good musical orchestration and what doesn't...all the same, I have a definite feeling that this wasn't it. There should be a law, that whenever a work's exposition requires visual aids, it needs to be slimmed down. The first act began rather well, and almost got my hopes up. It began to drag in the middle of said act, but picked up again at the beginning of the second. Alas, that soon too fell into triteness. The quotes at the beginning of this review, sadly, are the only memorable lines from the show. And neither are particularly impressive.

Yet, Nunsense is amazingly profitable. This reaffirms the belief that most people are stupid. Sure, it was funny. Sure, it passed relatively quickly. Wait, scratch that. Blessedly, it passed relatively quickly. I imagine it must be a fun musical to perform: easy costumes, easy to get laughs out of the audience, simple acting. It was obvious that the cast was enjoying itself, and that was one of the few redeeming features of the show. Their enthusiasm was passed on to the audience--and needed enthusiasm it was. Musical comedies have a trade-off. It's difficult to write funny and well. To write lyrics that are funny and good is even more trying. One doesn't always expect the world's greatest acting to be in a comedy. Laughter is a comparatively easy emotion to encourage. But....but one expects an attempt, at least. The cast tried, I feel. It could have been much, much worse. The writer didn't make this attempt, and it's obvious. Goggin was going for the cheap, easy laughs that'd bring in the crowds and make him money. Understandable, and impossible to condemn. However, it is saddening to realize how little the public appreciates the best of what isn't funny. Since, I've found, what isn't funny is oftimes the best. Comedy can be good, and serious drama can be good. But the most impressive of comedy is rarely as impressive as the best of serious drama. That probably isn't a good thing. Nunsense Amen! isn't a play that tries to change matters.