As a long-time Mary Moody Northen Theater (MMNT) audience member and regular reviewer, I was not shocked by the way some of my favorite MMNT cast members once again stole the show in the latest production of “Nunsense: The Mega Musical.” Among my usual favorites was Gabrielle North as Sister Hubert, whose voice is one of the clearest and strongest I’ve ever heard. 

Although her character was present from the very first scene, it wasn’t until her final performance, “Holier Than Thou,” that I remembered just how breathtaking it is to watch her perform. While I wish I would have gotten more solo stage time from North, I can confidently say that there was no other way to close the show. 

There were obviously notable moments from the rest of the cast throughout the show. Indeed, another dazzling performance was put on by Equity Actress Rachel Pallante, playing the role of Sister Robert Anne. Not only did she play her character perfectly to a tee, but her voice could stop a train. In one of the best Equity Actor performances I’ve seen in my time at St. Edward’s, Pallante swept the audience off their feet with the song “I Just Want to Be a Star.”

While I found these performances to be the best and most show-stopping during “Nunsense: the mega musical,” I had one less-exciting realization during the show’s run. As a former student performer, I remember being taught that everything on stage must be a much bigger version of itself – the sets were bigger, the voices louder, the makeup thicker and so on. What I have noticed about the MMNT shows is that there is a tendency to overdo it. 

On a stage of this size and shape, where the audience is more intimate and completely surrounds the theater, it isn’t necessary for everything to be larger than life. That being said, it was particularly obvious to me during “Nunsense: The mega musical” that this common theatrical practice was the biggest flaw. Certain songs and scenes felt overacted to the point of surpassing a sense of reality toward a feeling of inauthenticity. 

Now, of all the issues to have, this is absolutely one of the better ones. I suppose it is better to do too much than not enough, as some of the overacting provided a laugh or two. An actress who didn’t seem to struggle with this problem at all, however, was Equity Actress Amber Quick in the role of Reverend Mother Mary Regina.

In one scene (lasting several minutes), Quick was alone on stage, her character having accidentally done drugs, triggering an extreme reaction. During the scene, at no point did she break character or sell the scene too hard. She was a perfect example of how to use the MMNT stage in the round. Most impressive was the delivery of her lines, combined with her facial expressions and reactions to what was happening around her. It was the tiny, almost microscopic changes in her body language and facial expression that made all of her choices feel like real-time reactions. 

Regardless of the stellar performance, there were a few other times where I felt pulled out of the show, not only due to the largeness of it all, but also because of the music. One of my favorite things to see when I arrive for a musical is a live orchestra. Almost completely perfect, there was a single moment in the show where the band and the singer were fully out of sync. The issue quickly resolved itself, however, and things went back on track.

All of this is to say that I had a wonderful time at the theater once again, thanks to the MMNT cast and crew. Despite a couple of typical opening night challenges, the show was definitely worth the watch. I would buy a hundred tickets to hear North’s finale one more time – and if you were lucky enough to see it, I think you’d agree with me. I’m all for a female-heavy show, especially with a couple of stars who know how to bring the house down.