“None” nun Patti Hannon has gotten used to being called “Sister.”
Such constant slips of the tongue from the public come with the territory for an actress who’s played a teaching nun in “Late Nite Catechism” over and over and over again. We’re talking thousands of times for tens of thousands of playgoers from New York City to Scottsdale, where Hannon has held court (and “class”) since June 2000 at Scottsdale Center for the Arts.
Hannon will give a little taste of the acerbic nun at the 12th annual Get Out Performing Arts Expo, Saturday at Mesa Arts Center. Fans and newcomers to Hannon can catch a bit of her long-running “sister act” at 1:45 p.m. in the Ikeda Theater.
Her holiday show “Sister’s Christmas Catechism: The Mystery of the Magi’s Gold,” will begin in December at the Scottsdale venue. “Late Nite Catechism” and “Late Nite Catechism III: ’Til Death Do Us Part” will run January through March 2012.
Does Hannon ever tire of donning Sister’s habit hundreds of time a year in an one-woman play about a nun who’s on her last legs?
“No, not really. Because Maripat (Donovan, the playwright) leaves lots of room for improv. That keeps the material fresh and me on my toes,” says Hannon, who sharpened her laugh-getting skills at Second City, Chicago’s legendary comedy club and lab.
Hannon was reminded of the show’s originality and innocence during a recent “Late Nite” performance in Show Low.
“Trust me, few people in Show Low had even heard of this show. But I was there in this small town for a fundraiser for a Catholic school, and the audience was incredible — I mean, really incredible. Their response truly tickled my heart.”
Leon Ceniceros posted at 1:21 pm on Mon, Sep 5, 2011.
The Ursiline "No-Heart" Nuns and the Sister of "No-Charity"...God bless em all. They made little ladies and little gentlemen out of a bunch of rowdy kids. Girls back then were taught to "keep your knees together at ALL TIMES....ALL TIMES". Boys were taught to respect girls like your respect your own "sister". Expression was = BAD...Repression was = GOOD. The Good Father believed in putting a Name to every Face behind the Confessional screen...and loudly listing your sins for every one in the Church waiting for Confession or saying their Penance at the Communion rail (no hiding in the pews for the sinners of this Parish Priest. The neighborhood Moms knew your sins before your own Mother did....lol. There were so many elopements to Las Vegas and Tia Juana because what bride wants to hear as she is walking down the aisle on her father's arm..."She sure has a lot of nerve wearing a white weeding dress with her reputation". You couldn't get away with anything because most of the older people still sat out on their front porches back in the 1940's and 50's. The only "bullies" were the Nuns and Sisters. School yard fights were settled in the Mother/Sister Superior's office as both parties were made to bend over the desk and both got the same number of straps with the belt or whacks with the paddle. The two protagonists left the office as buddies not enemies. The Nuns and Sisters didn't give a hoot about "fulfillment" or "independent thinking" or the "inner child". Kids were in school for one thing and one thing only to "LEARN".The Nuns and Sisters were there to make darn sure that the kids in there class "DID JUST THAT...ON WAY OR ANOTHER....LOL". There were always extra "peanut butter and jelly" or "baloney" sandwiches for kids who had "forgotten" their lunch (there was no lunch to forget sometimes)..or a kid was kept after class at the beginning of Lunch Recess and then walked out of the classroom with lunch bag...no kid was ever made to feel shame because they were poor or go hungry at Lunch. If we got praised in school, we treasured it....if we got punished in school it was because we deserved it.
We Parochial School kids have so much to thank these tough, mean, kind, caring, loving, wonderful, self-sacrificing women. God Bless them all.