Audiences soar to new heights with "Nunsense"

Once again members of the Mullingar Charity Variety Group (MCVG) played to a packed house when they staged their latest production 'Nunsense' in the Mullingar Park Hotel.Nine 'nuns' in total graced the stage, displaying their unique talents, in an attempt to raise funds for the burial of their recently departed sisters, who were now resting coldly in the freezer.The bulk of sisters had been, unfortunately, killed off by Sister Julia"s 'Child of God Soup', and in order to bury the nuns, Mother Superior (Veronica MacDonagh) and Sisters Mary Amnesia (Eleanor MacDonagh), Mary Hubert (Elaine Purdue), Mary Robert Anne (Siobhan Cahill) Mary Leo (Maedhbh Hughes), Mary Rodriguez (Joanna Daly) Mary Ignatius (Mave Dolan Corroon), Mary Teresa (Pauline Carr) and Mary Joseph (Leah Finnane) decided to put on a variety show to pull in the punters and their devine money.As always with a MCVG production, a stunning set provided the backdrop to the action on stage at 'Nunsense', featuring the diner from Grease, as well as novice Mary Leo"s bedroom. This is down to the hard work and skill of set team, overseen with a keen eye by producer Ray McDonnell.However, let us not forget the main reason why the Charity Variety Group shows are such a hit with Mullingar audiences, and that"s solely because of the music.Musical director, Petrina Mills has directed all the Charity Variety Group shows to date, and with tremendous success. Those who shone on stage for their great singing voices were Siobhan Cahill, who stood out in her role as Sister Mary Robert Anne, when she wowed audiences with 'I just want to be a Star', as did Elaine Purdue for her 'Holier Than Thou' number.For comical value alone, Veronica MacDonagh was outstanding in her role as Mother Superior. With her natural flair for the stage, Veronica had the audience rolling in the aisles when she accidentally took a sniff of 'Rush', which does exactly what it says on the tin. Maedhbh Hughes also had the crowd laughing out loud as Sister Mary Leo, a wanna-be ballerina who provided some twinkle-toed performances, together with hilarious facial expressions.Eleanor MacDonagh had to be the star of the show however, providing endless comic enjoyment as Sister Amnesia, called so because she could not remember her name, let alone much else, since a crucifix fell on her head.Joanna Daly, Maeve Dolan Corroon, Pauline Carr and Leah Finnane made up the rest of an all-star cast, shining in their number "The Drive In'.Overall, "Nunsense" was a harmless evening of good old fashioned family entertainment, another show-stopper for Mullingar Charity Variety Group.Mullingar Charity Variety Group Grand Draw results: 1st Joan Purdue, Dublin (€1000); 2nd Majella Moody, Mullingar (€500); 3rd Aoife Feery, Delvin (€200); 4th Claire Smullen, Gaybrook, Mullingar (€200); 5th William Leonard, Delvin (€100). The Mullingar Charity would like to thank everyone for their continued support.