Winter Performances...

Daughters Of Heaven

Last night I ventured to The Dukes Theatre in Lancaster to see the University Theatre Group's version of 'Daughters of Heaven', directed by third year student Jacqueline Baker. It is a play that was written in 1991 by Michaelanne Forster, and is based upon the true story of the Parker-Hulme murder that took place in Christchurch, New Zealand in 1954.

The main plot of the play revolves around two young girls; Pauline Parker and Juliet Hulme. The girls develop a close friendship that grows into obsession as they engross themselves in fiction, creating make-believe worlds and their own religion. They call each other by the names Deborah (Juliet) and Gina (Pauline) and write elaborate stories, with dreams of running away together to America to become famous. Although it is never confirmed, their relationship hints that the pair may be lesbians, which at the time was a serious offence that was seen as a form of mental illness.

When it becomes apparent that their relationship is beginning to have an unhealthy effect on their lives, Pauline's mother Honora Rieper (Louise Turner) tries to prevent them from seeing each other, so the girls plot to murder her. Following a walk in the park, the pair bludgeon her to death by hitting her forty two times with a brick concealed inside a stocking.

The two girls that played Juliet and Pauline, politics student Leigh Coghill and first year theatre studies student Jade Beaty, were cast perfectly, as their on stage chemistry was brilliant. Undeterred by the potentially awkward kissing scenes, the pair showed a devotion to each other that made it entirely believable that they would go to such lengths to be together. Beaty is tiny, which not only made it easy to imagine her as an impressionable young girl, but also created a sense of surprise when she was so horribly nasty to her mother and finally killed her, as at first glance she looked too innocent to be capable of such malice. Coghill portrayed a girl so used to getting her own way that she had no problem making Pauline practically worship her, and even after being imprisoned, she continued to believe with complete conviction that they had done nothing wrong.

Providing a commentary on the whole play was Holly Francis who played Bridget O'Malley. She showed the situation from an insider's perspective as the Hulme's housekeeper, as well as giving the audience an idea of what it appeared like from the outside by divulging the gossip and rumours circulating the area. This gave a good three dimensional effect to the piece, as the audience had the opportunity to forge their own opinions using her evidence. Francis played the

part very well, treading the fine line between a likeable mother figure and bossy head of the household with great control. At the end of the play, O'Malley tricked the girls into believing that they no longer wanted anything to do with each other, ensuring that they remained separated upon their release from prison.

Having seen a fair few LUTG productions in the past, I have to say that I was very impressed with this piece. Tackling such taboo subject topics as murder, adultery and homosexuality was an ambitious task to approach on stage, one which I felt was performed with credibility and focus. There wasn't a weak link in the cast, as all evoked emotion from their performances (I felt especially sorry when Mrs Rieper was murdered, as Louise Turner played her as such a lovely woman) and together they retold a chilling tale that is almost too horrible to imagine really happened; but which was wonderful to watch.