Playwright John Shanley had doubts about 'Doubt' as an opera, but not anymore

“Doubt,” written by playwright John Patrick Shanley for theater and later for film, won a Pulitzer Prize and a Tony Award, and Meryl Streep, Viola Davis, Philip Seymour Hoffman, and Amy Adams, all received Oscar nominations for their roles in the movie.

Now, according to a Jan. 25, National Public Radio report, “Doubt” will have another world premiere – this time, as an opera.

"Doubt" the opera premieres Jan. 26 at the Minnesota Opera and runs through Feb.3, 2013.

As the opera opens, Father Flynn (sung by baritone Matthew Worth), asks, "What do you do, when you are not sure?"

Father Flynn "A sermon about Doubt" from the opera "Doubt" Father Flynn "A sermon about Doubt" from the opera "Doubt"

The question not only is the theme of “Doubt,” it was the question on Shanley’s mind when composer Douglas Cuomo approached him about adapting the play to opera.

Shanley told NPR, "Being a mook from the Bronx, my initial attitude to opera was like Bugs Bunny's, which was, 'Why are those people singing that way?'"

But today, Shanley says he sees things differently after writing the original play, the screenplay, and now the libretto.

"With opera, I have a new set of materials available to me in addition to the ones I have employed so far," he says. "So I took the materials of film and of stage and of music, and can tell an ever more three-dimensional story — and that's a fun and compelling challenge," he said.

So it appears, at least in Shanley’s mind, all doubt has been eliminated about the opera “Doubt.”