Rogue Machine presents “Saint Megan”

If you had told me in the past that I’d appreciate and admire a play about an ex-member of the Westboro Baptist Church, I’m not sure that I’d have believed you. The “church,” an almost seventy-year-old hate group, is infamous for protesting soldiers’ funerals and its viciously homophobic views, such as wearing “God Hates Fags” t-shirts to protests, among other unpleasant things. Playwright Joy Gregory, however, has written a play about one of the kids brought up in that toxic environment and her eventual rejection and departure from it. It turns out to be fascinating, smart and even hopeful. The world premiere production of Saint Megan by Rogue Machine is uncomfortable but surprisingly funny, and it’s superbly acted by a terrific cast.

In the Midwest of 2011, 19-year-old Megan (Caitlin Zambito) and her family are members of Westboro Baptist Church. Her grandfather was the founder, and her mother Shirley (Rachel Sorsa) organizes and runs protests, which includes the participation of Megan’s sisters, Grace (Meg Cain) and Bekah (Cordelia Leigh). Megan runs the Twitter account, and while trying to stir up controversy one day, she’s contacted by Chad (Zack Rocklin-Waltch), a Jewish man who manages through conversation to make her question her beliefs. She quickly discovers that disagreeing with her mother on anything is very much unwelcome, and she has to decide if leaving the church and her family is in her immediate future.

Zambito is such a likeable and skilled performer that even though Megan says any number of horrible, cruel things during the show, the audience can still become sympathetic to her plight. Her portrayal displays both the character’s trained skill at conflict but also the decent person underneath that was born into this family. Sorsa is very good as the manipulative Shirley, keeping her family in line, but also shows hints of a person who has been badly abused in her own turn. Rocklin-Waltch is smart and funny as Megan’s opponent/savior, and Cain shines as Megan’s trusting sister, Grace. Leigh brings a simmering tension to the unhappy Bekah, and Shannon Lee Clair is strong as both Chad’s girlfriend Amy and writer Theresa.

Director Lina Patel gets excellent work across the board from her cast, and she stages the show with vibrant energy. Gregory’s seeming purpose in writing this play is to find redemption for the misguided, and she succeeds in that, but whether or not Megan is a candidate for sainthood seems debatable. Gregory’s examination of the church’s methods (say very offensive things to draw attention to their group) and its results (many of the family members eventually leave) is compelling, and her insight into the family is humanizing (the teenage girls are worried if they can get their favorite yogurt after the End of Days, they take every opportunity to sing and dance). Her dialogue is sharp (“I don’t trust academics. I don’t need Satan peering at me over his little glasses”), but her attempt to connect this situation with the history of the Shakers doesn’t quite come off. One wishes that more time had been used instead on the final conflict between Megan and Shirley, which works now but seems more rushed than it could be.

Saint Megan is a brave, powerful and entertaining production. Rogue Machine has done it again, bringing us great theatre.

Saint Megan is presented by Rogue Machine at The Matrix Theatre through November 22, 2026. Tickets are available at https://www.roguemachinetheatre.org/