The Catskill Chronicle

Story by Sandra Acome – Photos by Leni Santoro

The recently-renovated Rivoli Theater in South Fallsburg is a pleasing venue for the Sullivan County Dramatic Workshop’s (SCDW) production of Agnes of God, written by John Pielmeier and directed by Lori Schneider-Wendt.

For one seeing the play for the first time the story was riveting; the actors, wonderfully, dissolved into their characters. Set in the late 1970’s, it is the story of a troubled young postulant, the mysterious discovery of a dead newborn, and the nun and psychiatrist who, adversarially, try to help. Flashbacks for each of the characters gradually flesh out the story as the motivations of each become apparent.

Sacred singing, a capella, is an integral part of the story, and its performance by Marissa Cohen, who plays Sister Agnes, is breathtaking in its purity.

Cohen, who is going into her junior year at Ellenville High School, showed exceptional nuance in her portrayal of Agnes. She has acted in numerous high school productions, as well as several SCDW productions, including most recently, The Third Violet (part of the Sullivan County Bicentennial Celebration). Most of the productions that Cohen has taken part in have been musicals and comedies. Within the confines of Agnes of God she is able to show off her tremendous dramatic capabilities.

Evelyn Albino and Annie Hat, as the psychiatrist and the nun, respectively, balanced the piece with their own intensely developed roles.

Albino plays Dr. Martha Livingstone, a woman who is at one time attempting to help Agnes, while she is also forced to confront herself. Not an easy task, but one to which Albino brings a lifetime of expertise in the theater. Since getting her BFA from New York University’s Tisch School of Arts in 1986, her roles have included Rita in Educating Rita, Maggie in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and Stella in a Street Car Named Desire.

Annie Hat who plays Mother Miriam Ruth is best known around the county for her singing as lead female vocalist of The Vantwistics. However, what many may not know is that Hat is also an accomplished actress, having to her credit parts in a Midsummer Night’s Dream, Twelfth Night and As You Like It with Chicago’s Shakespeare in the Park.

Agnes of God is a touching, poignant and dramatic play. In SCDW’s presentation of Agnes of God the dramatic tension is sustained for the full length of the play; noteworthy for a piece with so few characters.

To view more photos or to purchase prints from Agnes of God Comes to the Rivoli visit the Chronicle on Zenfolio.