E-Mail This Article to a Friend Clerical error Sin: A Cardinal Deposed comes to town BY SALLY CRAGIN

For Chicago actor Jim Sherman, the key to playing Bernard Cardinal Law in Michael Murphy’s new drama based on the Church abuse scandal, Sin: A Cardinal Deposed, is the hands. Whether he’s pointing his finger at the attorneys or thoughtfully handling the letters he wrote to Fathers Geoghan and Shanley "thanking them for their great service," Sherman lets his twitching hands channel the emotion that the cardinal, who’s "a consummate bureaucrat," won’t reveal.

Based on testimony drawn from the cardinal’s deposition, Sin was produced by Bailiwick Repertory in Chicago, and the original company will reprise the work at the Regent Theatre in Arlington starting on Wednesday. "The power of the play comes from the great balance Michael Murphy provides," explains director David Zak. "Watching the cardinal squirm as well as the impact from the testimony of the survivors."

Sin compresses and organizes the story — a sprawling and appalling epic in real life — into two acts. The first concerns Father Paul Geoghan, who was prosecuted by attorney Mitchell Garabedian; the second focuses on Father John Patrick Shanley, who was pursued by Roderick MacLeish. "The priests don’t appear," explains playwright Murphy. "And it came to the point where the play wasn’t, if you will, about them. It’s really about Cardinal Law."

Murphy, who has also written another play based on real-life events, The Debating Society, about Columbine High School, was fascinated by the scope, depth, and bizarreness of the case as it unfolded in Boston in 2002. He began his writing process with the depositions. "I took them on vacation with me with the full intention of not reading them, but that’s not what happened. The story was there." He pasted up pictures of the personalities on his walls, then began tacking copies of deposition dialogue under the images. "There are so many people mentioned in the thing. Trying to keep my O’Reillys, O’Sullivans, and O’Haras straight was a job in itself." And Law’s sparring with the lawyers was enthralling. "You can feel both sides thinking several questions ahead all the time, so there are a lot of non sequiturs you wouldn’t understand right away."

As for the actors, portraying actual living persons has been a "surreal" experience for many. Mark Steel, who plays MacLeish, hasn’t yet met the attorney but has spoken to him on the phone. "I truly am humbled every night. Not only do I have a sense of responsibility to convey what MacLeish might have been thinking and feeling, but I feel a great sense of responsibility to try to give a voice to the pain of these victims that he represented. These are people who have suffered extraordinary betrayal; I pray that I can convey their pain."

Among the events scheduled around Sin is the "Focus on 10,667" Program, which aims to raise money for abuse victims and their families. (The number refers to the number of children that the John Jay College report commissioned by the Catholic Church states have "credible allegations" of clergy sexual abuse dating from 1950 to 2002.) There will be a special benefit performance on Monday June 14 aiming to raise at least $10,667; it will feature a post-show discussion with the playwright, director, and cast along with Mitchell Garabedian and other invited guests. There will also be a benefit performance on Monday June 21 at the Palace Theatre in Manchester, New Hampshire.

Sin: A Cardinal Deposed will be presented by Bailiwick Repertory at the Regent Theatre, 7 Medford Street in Arlington, June 9 through 27. Tickets are $30 and $40; call (781) 646-4849 or visit www.acardinaldeposed.com