Nunsense Jamboree

"Nunsense 3: The Jamboree" is but isn't a sequel to the first two staged TV films of "Nunsense." The extent to which it is, is in the characters of the cast. Four women, all amateur actors but one, play nuns in costumes that are habits worn by nuns. That it isn't a sequel is that the entire cast is different, it has a male character added, and it's not I the original setting at all. Instead, this is a jamboree setting and in the Grand Ole Opry of Nashville, Tennessee.

Otherwise, its still a musical and comedy revue format, which is a natural type of entertainment that Nashville stages regularly. The star addition to this cast is actress Vicki Lawrence from The Carol Burnett Show. She plays Sister Mary Amnesia. The billing for this production lists Rue McClanahan, returning as Mother Superior, but she's nowhere to be seen in this show. The other new cast members include Deborah De. Mastro as Sister Robert Ann and Nancy Johnson as Sister Mary Wilhelm. She's a new character who replaces Sister Mary Hubert from the first two shows. Then, Jennifer Smith is Sister Mary Leo and Scott Wakefield is Father Virgil Trot. He is supposed to be from the Franciscan Fathers of Fort Wayne.

The show was also written by Dan Goggin, and it has a Grand Old Opry band. The comedy tends to be along the corny type common to Country Western shows. Vicki Lawrence does one take out when she come back out as Mrs. Thelma Harper from The Family sketches of the Carol Burnett Show.

The older audience seemed to enjoy the show, and it's like others one would see in Nashville or Branson, Missouri, or community theaters with non-professionals. In keeping with the usual tend of sequels, this third production has less comedy and entertainment. The copyright is 1998 held by Network Enterprise, Inc., and Bristol-Myers Squibb Co.

I don't understand the IMDb title listing as "Nunsense Jamboree." Especially when the image it's Web site has shows the VHS cover photo with the title, "NUNSENSE 3: The Jamboree." My 1998 copyright DVD has artwork with the "Nunsense 3" title, and the film itself opens with this title and the credits list it as such. IMDb doesn't show another title listing as a.k.a.. it might have been called "Nunsense Jamboree," but the film title, all the artwork and all the marketing have the title as "Nunsense 3: The Jamboree." I tried to submit this as a correction on the IMDb Web site, but it wouldn't - the instructions for this are way over my head.

This is the third entry so far in the "Nunsense" installment and by far the weakest of them. Don't get me wrong, it is not bad to watch, but something is missing in this installment. I think what is missing is the nuns from the first two specials--in this one, we have a whole new bunch of nuns and a priest that we have to get to know. The funniest moment is when Vicki Lawrence comes out on stage in her "Mama's Family" character and the whole auditorium gives her a standing ovation and applauds wildly!! It was something to see "Thelma Harper" make a surprise appearance. But, all in all, it is not that bad a special.

I love Nunsense and Nunsense 2. The blend of fresh humor, excellent acting and music, and the respectful tone the ladies take while still poking fun at life as a nun, make them a joy to watch. So when I saw there was a third one, even though it didn't have the original cast, I was excited to check it out.

It was a big letdown. I have enjoyed Vicki Lawrence over the years, but she should have turned this role down. The gags are stale and forced, and just about everybody has to overact in compensation. Especially disappointing was Deborah Del Mastro as the new "Robert Ann," who overdid the New York accent and mannerisms to caricature proportions. Semina De Laurentis was very believable as Sister Amnesia, but Lawrence never quite slipped into the character. The script may have had a lot to do with that, because it was by far the weakest of the three. Also, the DVD had a big blurb on the case about Rue McClanahan appearing in this installment, but her appearance was maybe 15 seconds long. That hardly qualifies.

If you liked the first two, skip this one. Go back and re-watch the others instead, you'll enjoy it a lot more.

As a longtime fan of music theater, I'm always looking for new shows to perform in or listen to. However, when the director of a local theater group called me and sprung the words, "Nunsense Jamboree", I agreed to play Sister Mary Leo without seeing the script.

This is Dan Goggin's third installment of Nunsense, and the notably weaker plot involves Sister Amnesia's country western tour that is now stopped at the Grand Ole Opry. Nunsense 3 is basically a musical revue with a tiny script that barely charts Amnesias's rise to fame.

While Amnesia and Sister Robert Anne are back from the previous Nunsense shows-three new characters are just being introduced. Sister Wilhelm is "second in command" to Reverand Mother and serves as the nurse on the tour, as well as keeping Robert Anne and her puppet Mary Annette in line. Father Virgil and Sister Mary Leo are siblings from the Mississippi Delta-this plot line is one of the most ludicrous as Virgil is a former football captain and Leo still dreams of being a ballerina.

With jokes that surely only Goggin himself finds funny, the humor is second rate and average, the only laughs are probably from the cast themselves. Nunsense Jamboree is alright for fans, but everyone else will be sitting there boredly through endless songs like "A tribute to St. Catherine" and "Do Unto Others."