Franklin Footlight Theatre gets back in the habit

FRANKLIN — Franklin Footlight Theatre will present Dan Goggin’s popular musical comedy, "Nunsense!" Thursday to Saturday, April 11-13, at 7:30 p.m., and Sunday, April 14, at 2 p.m., at the Franklin Middle School.

When the Little Sisters of Hoboken find themselves in dire need of burial funds following an accidental convent-wide poisoning, they decide that the best way to raise the money is by putting on a variety show featuring the nuns’ various special talents. From tap dancing to ventriloquism and anyone’s guess in between, this classic audience favorite is guaranteed to be a night of nonstop laughs.

The show is set in a school auditorium, where the nuns have taken over a stage already set for an eighth grade production of "Grease." 

Footlight’s cast is led by Lisa Lovett as the Mother Superior and Jule C. Finley as her second-in-command, Sister Hubert. It also features Jennifer Schaffner as the sweet-but-forgetful Sister Mary Amnesia, Olivia Martinson as the aspiring ballerina Sister Mary Leo and Melissa Furbish as the streetwise (nun)derstudy Sister Robert Anne. The show is directed by David Bedard of Franklin, with musical direction by Christine Chiasson of Bristol and choreography by Hayley de Sousa of Belmont.

“When Franklin Footlight Theatre was founded back in 1995, their very first production was 'Nunsense.' It was so popular it was performed again in 1998,” explains Bedard. “A few years later, the Franklin Opera House reopened and became a permanent home for Footlight. The organization flourished and has been a staple of the community ever since. Now with the loss of the Opera House, Footlight has decided to get back to our roots and revisit this timeless show."

Tickets can be purchased online via franklinoperahouse.org.