Sine wowed them as Merton

In all the time I have known Walter Rhodes, with the exception of the renovation of the Walter Rhodes Memorial Chapel at the First Presbyterian Church, never have I seen him so dedicated to such a long term project as his direction of "Merton of Gesthemani: Hermits, Hippies and Poets, " which just ended a two performance run at the church. He and the play’s star, Jason Sine, have been rehearsing for the better part of a year. If you had a chance to catch it, you would understand why they had to put in all that work. The one-man-show was a mammoth effort by Mr. Sine, who I am sure has never previously undertaken such a role. All that rehearsing paid off. The play was wonderful; Sine was excellent as the controversial monk from the sixties.

Full disclosure: I’m sure regular readers of the Blog have noticed the promotion I have given this play over the past couple weeks. Given all the work Sine and Rhodes put into it, I felt they deserved it. I also received credit in the program, not only for the promotional support, but for other small stuff I did. However, you don’t have to take my word-for-it when I tell you what a great show they put on this weekend. Here’s what others are saying about the play:

We saw Jason Sine's excellent portrayal of Thomas Merton tonight. I hope he does it again. Great job, Jason! – Mike Triplett

Gary and I saw it last night it was excellent. Good production values, loved the wardrobe. Jason "lived" the role, as we say in the theater. Thanks to all involved who reminded us that theater is not a pale version of TV or movies. – Kay Reimers

I saw it Saturday night, I LOVED it. Kudos to Walter and Jason! - Carol Allin

Yes. Now that they have put in all the hard work, they should do it again. It deserves to be seen by more than the small numbers that have turned out thus far.

-vh