Did he or didn't he?

That will be the question after audiences see the Tony- and Pulitzer Prize-winning drama "Doubt," by John Patrick Shanley, when it makes its Hawai'i debut on Wednesday at Manoa Valley Theatre.

In it, a charismatic young Bronx priest, Father Brendan Flynn, is suspected of molesting the school's lone black student, though the 12-year-old's mom says the accused is the one figure who gave the youth guidance, kindness and hopes of success.

Flynn's superior, Sister Aloysius, is a fierce patrician of a principal who wants the priest out of the picture so she can proceed with damage control.

The situation reflects a Catholic scandal that has roiled the nation. The 90-minute play (without intermission) is taut, with wavering and alternating proof of guilt and innocence, of right and wrong.

The actors portraying two of the four key roles anticipate buzz and even some controversy over the subject matter during the next few weeks, but hold that the play is thought-provoking. They hope audiences don't view the work as sensationalizing a crisis within the Catholic church, but rather as a see-sawing probe of morality issues, tapping tidbits of certainty but laced with reasonable doubt.

"When I read the script, I said, 'Wow, it's a feast for an actor,' " said Russell Motter, who plays Flynn. He was on sabbatical in New York at the height of "Doubt"-mania, when the play caused a sensation, and tried, unsuccessfully, to get a ticket to see the show. "I'm sort of glad I didn't see the play. I'm finding more and more about this character, and I'm not yet satisfied I know everything," said Motter, who teaches American history and African-American studies at 'Iolani School.

Jo Pruden, who plays Sister Aloysius, is facing the challenge "in a role I think any actor would give his eye-teeth to play. Aloysius is a multilayered character who keeps digging, digging, digging, uncovering more and more."

Pruden saw the show during a 2006 New York visit. "I dropped off my bags at the hotel (the Best Western, across the street from the Walter Kerr Theatre where 'Doubt' was playing), and I bought a ticket at 1 p.m. and was sitting in the theater, on the aisle, in the fourth row, with great expectation."

The play, described as a parable, is a dizzying ride with more twists and turns than the old Pali Road. It's urgent and complex, and will likely set off debate in support of each character.

"It gets you to think, and talk — what a play should do," Pruden said.

For those who wonder, the alleged victim never appears on stage.

Motter, a product of a Catholic upbringing, said, "One of the things that attracted me to the play was the 1964 setting, an interesting part of our history, after the Second Ecumenical (Council of the Vatican) in the Catholic Church, and ... the death of President Kennedy — events which shook (Flynn) up and changed the direction of his own mind and his ability to do good in a world that may not be good. I remember those '60s days."

Motter remembers the Latin Mass, standard before Vatican II overhauled many church practices. He was a pre-teen after the shift, "when the church took away the railing from the front of the church that separated the people and the priest from the altar boys. ... That interesting tone is part of the play."

Aloysius is pre-Vatican II, Pruden said, and doubtlessly resentful of lost traditions. "She's old school, resentful of changes and the easing of reflection, so she fights that," she said. "My God, she's frightening."

Meanwhile, Motter said, "Father Flynn is an optimist."

Motter attended Catholic school in Atlanta, and served as an altar boy without incident. "I had to go crosstown to this church, where the church really was part of the neighborhood — something I didn't have where I lived. But it was a thrill to don the vestment, to miss class in the morning."

Pruden, a veteran community actress, did not attend Catholic school but has played several nuns in her long career on stage and on TV. She currently is box-office manager at Army Community Theatre.

"The habit part is comfortable," she said of her robes. "But the headpiece is an interesting challenge, trying to keep it out of your face. You put on the habit, see yourself in the mirror, and your whole demeanor changes. You feel holier and more powerful.

"Then again, Sister Aloysius has many shadings. I have a vague outline of what she's about and am striving to get a sharply defined picture of her. But a play is never a single actor's responsibility; everything and everyone's intertwined. It's the reason fellow actors are so important. They can teach you an awful lot about your own character."

Pruden expects people to come to the play with their own expectations. "The play is extremely topical," she said. "A lot will come to the show with preconceived notions, since there's been so much in the headlines (about inappropriate relationships between priests and students). They will take away what they bring to it. Some will say he's guilty. That's possible."

Anette Kauahikaua, Motter's real-life wife, plays Mrs. Muller, the mother of the black student. "She was one of two black actors who auditioned, and the other applicant was a little too old to be believable playing the mom of a 12-year-old," said Vanita Rae Smith, who is guest-directing at MVT from her usual producer-director's role at Army Community Theatre.

"I had my fingerprints on this one and asked Dwight (Martin, MVT's producing director) if I could do it," Smith said.

Ten men sought the Flynn role, but the Motter-Kauahikaua casting was not "a package deal," Smith said. One other actress tried for the part of Sister Aloysius, "but Jo was just perfect for this one."

The fourth cast member is Melanie Garcia as Sister James, who reveals the alleged molestation.

"(Smith) is very excited about this one," Pruden said. "Faith is very much a part of her foundation; she can make transitions that relate to any kind of faith — and the strength of one's faith is how doubt can enter into the picture."

Pruden said there are a series of "aha" moments, when a viewer will take sides, then switch positions, as more details are revealed in the process of the play.

In addition, body language of the accused and the accuser contribute significantly in polarizing support.

So did he or didn't he?

That question is never answered, and the pondering continues well after the final curtain.

Said Pruden: "I think for me, the way I'm thinking, to arrive at a conclusion about his guilt or innocence, you need to have a conversation with someone else, to backtrack. (Sister Aloysius) is a pretty tough customer. She makes you want to sit up straight, eyes up front, be on good behavior ... but I don't want to make her a hard-nosed school principal. The character is pretty much convinced (of the priest's guilt).

"The actor has to walk this narrow line about that guilt or innocence (and let the audience decide)."

Reach Wayne Harada at wharada@honoluluadvertiser.com.