Rosebud Theatre presents Mass Appeal this fall

Laureen F. Guenther
Times Contributor

 

Mass Appeal, Rosebud Theatre’s fall show, opens Sept. 18, on Rosebud’s Opera House stage.
On Aug. 25, I attended the show’s first read. A first read is just what you’d expect, the first time a cast reads a play together. The actors read expressively but with minimal acting. The designers, set crew, costumes, lights, and sound also present their plans for the show.
At first glance, the framework of Mass Appeal appears similar to that of Doubt, Rosebud’s 2014 fall show, in that it’s set in a Catholic church and school. The church leaders are the key characters, but as I learned, the story is quite different and it leaves its own kind of impact.
The story has only two characters. Father Tim Farley, played by John Innes, who is a well-established and well-loved parish priest, though he’s somewhat complacent.
Mark Dolson, played by Caleb Gordon, is a seminary student who’s determined to care for other people and to do what’s right. Father Tim finds Dolson difficult and annoying, and thinks he takes his convictions too far. Yet Father Tim offers to mentor Dolson, seeing in him something he believes the church needs.
As I listened to Innes and Gordon read, I was squirming in my seat for a few moments, afraid the characters couldn’t possibly have a happy ending. I won’t tell you whether they do, but I will say the ending surprised and satisfied me.
I can also tell you that, despite the sensitive issues it tackles, this play is very funny. Our small audience laughed aloud and we laughed often.
After the reading, director Paul Muir commented on his vision for the show, referring to the verse from the Gospel of John that says we’ll know the truth and the truth will set us free. The characters’ journey in Mass Appeal is about the nature of truth, Muir said, and how truth or lies find its way into their lives.
Both Father Tim and Dolson are wrestling with their own kind of lies, he said, but in this case, the direct contrast to truth is not just lies, but fear. Muir observed that God wants to win back Father Tim’s heart, and He uses Mark Dolson as the catalyst to do it.
Hours after we’d heard Innes and Gordon read Mass Appeal, a friend and I laughed again over the jokes in the script. Several more hours after that, I found myself wondering how the characters were doing, hoping they were okay. I had to remind myself that Father Tim and Mark Dolson aren’t the live people whom I’d met that morning, it just felt that way.
Considering the story had this kind of impact on me after I’d only heard it read, I’m intrigued to discover how it affects me after Muir has directed Innes and Gordon through weeks of rehearsals and I see them perform on a full set. I’m also keen to see how Muir will develop and portray the themes of truth, lies and fear and how he’ll emphasize God’s pursuit of Father Tim’s heart.
Mass Appeal opens Sept. 18 and runs til Oct. 24. Get your tickets at rosebudtheatre.com or 1-800-267-7553.