All over town, Chicago actors are re-inventing themselves as directors. E. Faye Butler, who has starred in many a holiday show over the years, has made that switch for the Drury Lane Theatre’s new staging of “Sister Act,” the much-produced 2011 Broadway musical based on the 1992 caper movie that starred Whoopi Goldberg as a lounge singer who hangs around with the wrong crowd, witnesses a shooting and finds herself hidden by the police in an inner-city covent.
Therein, the newly christened Sister Mary Clarence amps up the choir and persuades all the nuns that self-actualization is not a sin.
“Sister Act” holds few surprises for me; it shows up around town every couple of years. In 2021, there was an especially clever production at the Mercury Theater in Chicago, now sadly dark. But I usually enjoy myself because I like the Alan Menken score so much: it’s a fast-paced and often under-rated homage to the disco era, albeit with a few nods to R&B, and it’s stocked with especially rich ensemble numbers that invariably please an audience: “Take Me to Heaven,” “Spread the Love Around,” even “Sunday Morning Fever.” The show just bops along, and since it was written in an era when book writer Douglas Carter Beane (hired to amp up the gags for the stage) did not have to worry about the PC police, it comes with an edgy, witty book along with a big, ecumenical heart.
In fact, I was struck on Wednesday when I saw the show that “Sister Act” really is ripe for a Broadway revival. With the right star. And a few more nuns.
How is this production? When I was there, on the final day before opening, it was afflicted with some sound problems, meaning that the vocals were not well balanced with the small band. But I imagine that got fixed by now and Drury Lane otherwise has a fun if familiar production of modest scale and stakes, but nonetheless eager to please.
Lawrence Flowers in “Sister Act” at Drury Lane Theatre in Oakbrook Terrace. (Justin Barbin)
Rae Davenport, who plays the lead, looked like she still was finding her way (this is Chicago, where ensemble actors do not mess around), although she sure has all the talent to do so. The best performance here is from the terrific Lawrence Flowers, who plays the well-meaning cop “Sweaty” Eddie, and the bemused-looking Kelvin Rolston Jr. is fun as bad dude Curtis Jackson. Amanda Walker, meanwhile, is just delightful as Sister Mary Robert, the show’s self-actualizing ingenue. Two other longtime stars of Chicago theater can be found acting holy here: Kelly Anne Clark, who plays Sister Mary Theresa, and Lorenzo Rush Jr., who plays the priest.
Butler has roped in the great Kenny Ingram, a veteran performer himself, as her choreographer and he gets those sisters swishing.
Nuns who know how to boogie just always bring a smile to your face.
Chris Jones is a Tribune critic.
cjones5@chicagotribune.com
Review: “Sister Act” (3 stars)
When: Through Jan. 11, 2026
Where: Drury Lane Theatre, 100 Drury Lane, Oakbrook Terrace
Running time: 2 hours, 30 minutes
Tickets: $75-$150 at 630-530-0111 and drurylanetheatre.com
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/21/review-sister-act-drury-lane/
