What: Mother Dolores Hart, a Hollywood actress turned cloistered nun in Bethlehem, Connecticut, to give talk at Fairfield University about her life and the spirituality of acting

When: Wednesday, Oct. 29, 8 p.m.

Where: The Quick Center

Background: When Rev. Mother Dolores Hart walked away from her life as an actress in Hollywood to become a nun in Connecticut, she thought she had put acting behind her forever. For the actress formerly known as Dolores Hart, who starred opposite Elvis Presley, Montgomery Clift and Anthony Quinn, acting would eventually come back into her life. She now sees it as part of her vocation as a Benedictine nun, although her role is solely backstage. At the Abbey of Regina Laudis in Bethlehem, she has helped cultivate a passionate theater community as an artistic director. In a 200-seat outdoor theater, The Gary-The Olivia Theater, built on the grounds, a play is presented each summer by the community, which has made Mother Dolores see that the arts can bring one closer to God.

This Wednesday, Mother Dolores will discuss how spirituality and theater are entwined in a talk, "The Gary-The Olivia Theater: An Expression of Benedictine Monasticism's Contribution to the Arts." Mother Dolores, who received an honorary doctorate from Fairfield in 2004, will share the story of her early life as an actress, her calling, and the theater's unique origins (involving an Oscar winner) with the ways in which she understands that theater can be to some degree an expression of the Benedictine spirituality.

Presented by the University's Center for Catholic Studies, the event is the 3rd annual Catholicism & The Arts Lecture. It is free and open to the public.

Posted On: 10-28-2008 10:10 AM

Volume: 41 Number: 108