Sister Act (film) When a second-rate lounge singer in a Reno casino, Deloris Van Cartier, accidentally witnesses a murder at the hands of her mobster boyfriend, Vince LaRocca, she finds herself on the run. A smart cop out to nab LaRocca places Deloris in the witness protection program, hiding her out in a convent of nuns. The Mother Superior insists that Deloris—now Sister Mary Clarence—take a job in the convent and she becomes the new choir director. In no time at all she has the group singing hymns with a 1960s beat, spurring unheard of attendance at Sunday Masses. When Deloris is kidnapped and taken back to Reno, the nuns effect a rescue in the heart of the gambling city. With LaRocca captured, Deloris is free to go on her way, but she stays with the nuns long enough to appear in a special performance for the pope. Released on May 29, 1992. Directed by Emile Ardolino. A Touchstone film. 100 min. Stars Whoopi Goldberg (Deloris), Maggie Smith (Mother Superior), Harvey Keitel (Vince LaRocca), Kathy Najimy (Sister Mary Patrick), Mary Wickes (Sister Mary Lazarus). Filmed in Los Angeles and San Francisco, California, and Reno, Nevada. Released on video in 1992. On October 24, 2006, a stage show, Sister Act the Musical, based on the motion picture and licensed by Disney, opened at the Pasadena Playhouse, starring Dawnn Lewis, directed by Peter Schneider, and with music by Alan Menken and Glenn Slater. It was co-produced by the Alliance Theatre Company in Atlanta. On April 20, 2011, a new adaptation opened on Broadway, after previews beginning March 24; it closed on August 26, 2012.
