“In Medieval Times…” Well, no. That’s not the line, not exactly. But that’s what got said. And since it was Hollie saying it, I get a sudden image of Hollie’s Agnes at Medieval Times, brandishing a turkey leg, smiling an angelic, goofy smile and cheering on the black knight to victory. I smother a bout of church giggles, and move on. The giggles happen to me when my mind can’t handle something ridiculously awful. When I was in school, they bubbled up at the sight of a mentally disabled girl who hobbled into class on a crutch one day- because the powers that be decided one handicap just wasn’t enough. In this case, it isn’t Hollie so much as the situation in which her character finds herself: Agnes is a young innocent, unschooled, who truly believes she must loose weight or God won’t love her. Add to that an unexplainable traumatic event, and it makes it all just a bit much. This whole play runs the risk of all being just a bit much, of course. It’s not; It wouldn’t be so we regarded if it was simply over-the-top melodrama, but all the blood and agony and secrets and hypnotism scenes for goodness’ sake!- It reminds me that every moment of Agnes of God must be examined, and performed as it’s own separate point in time, without any preconceptions or expectations. And if we giggle a bit, well, stranger things have happened.

– Nate Beynon