John Patrick Shanley's 90-minute drama is simple in outline, complex in resonance. A priest at a Bronx parochial school in the 1960s is suspected by a nun of sexually abusing one of the boys. Is he guilty, or a victim of groundless accusations? The play thwarts all our comfortable assumptions. The accused (Brian F. O'Byrne) is a hardworking, progressive priest whose defensiveness seems perfectly consistent with a man unjustly charged. The nun (the magnificent Cherry Jones) is a stubborn, old-school bulldog who has precious little evidence for her suspicions. The clash of wills is riveting; the outcome unsettling. This Manhattan Theater Club presentation is moving to Broadway in the spring and will certainly be a major Tony contender.
Come fly with us, and Leo, through the best (and worst) of 2004. Tops in the cinema this year include Scorsese's Howard Hughes biopic The Aviator. Elsewhere, Deadwood was good TV, and a Strange tale fascinated readers.