Doubt motivates us to challenge, to search, to consider. Doubt, A Parable is a play artfully designed to inspire discussion. The major topic of discussion will inevitably be whether Father Brendan Flynn is guilty of sexual abuse, but in fact that question is irrelevant to playwright John Patrick Shanley's ends. The point Shanley is making is that doubt has value, and more importantly, that doubt can be a means of binding a community.
The play was turned into an Academy Award-nominated film starring Philip Seymour Hoffman as Father Flynn and Meryl Streep as Sister Aloysius.
As a special feature, after each performance (except matinees) the audience is invited to Reflections, a moderated discussion (20-30 min.) of the issues presented by Doubt. At Langham Court Theatre, to Dec. 5. langhamtheatre.ca