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6.1 "Daughters of Heaven."
Forster, Michaelanne. "Daughters of Heaven." Victoria University Press, Victoria University of Wellington, PO Box 600, Wellington, NZ, 1992. ISBN 0 86473 240 6 (contact Fergus Barrowman, Editor, for ordering information).
Permision for performance may be obtained from: Playmarket, PO Box 9767, Courtenay Place, Wellington, New Zealand. FAX No: 011 4 3828 461
"Daughters of Heaven" received the Buckland Prize for Literature (NZ) in 1993.
**"Daughters of Heaven" is a play about the "Parker Hulme" murder, the trial, the incarceration and the eventual release of Pauline Parker and Juliet Hulme. The author of "Daughters of Heaven," ("DofH") Michaelanne Forster, began research on the "Parker Hulme" case in the relative calm before the publication of the scholarly book "Parker & Hulme" by Glamuzina and Laurie. "Parker & Hulme" had quite an impact in New Zealand when it was published. "DofH" was written, performed and published well in advance of "Heavenly Creatures," ("HC") and "DofH" created its own sensation in New Zealand when performed on stage and, later, TV. While starting from the same basic set of facts, of course, "DofH" presents a very different view of the case and the characters than does "HC." Partly, this arises from the different perspectives and goals of the playwright and the filmmakers, respectively. After reading the play, and Ms. Forster's comments (see below), my impression is that "DofH" is constructed in such a way as to transform the "Parker Hulme" case into a reflecting mirror or a refracting lens. The reader/audience is invited to view the two girls, their extraordinary, consuming passion, the society and times, and the issues raised by the murder from a vantage point outside the action, but through the startling optic formed by this extraordinary case. "HC," of course, is more concerned with presenting the view from within the girls' world, and through Pauline's eyes, in particular. The audience is guided and prompted through "DofH" by an 'everyman chorus' in the form of the Hulme's fictional, erstwhile house-keeper Bridget O'Malley, an 'insider' who nevertheless remains outside the action. We may be lulled and titilated by Mrs O'Malley's proximity to the case, and by her conspiratorial asides, but we may be fooling ourselves if we think we will be getting the inside scoop and the straight goods from her. By the end of the play, we come to realize that Mrs O'Malley has just as many agendas as the most manipulative characters in her story, and that her proximity is illusory--she may, in fact, know little more of the 'truth' than do we, and we could well be half a world and the better part of half a century away from the murder. Below, I have included quotations from some of the author's correspondence with me explaining the background to the play, information about performances, some reviews of the Christchurch premiere written by Christchurch journalists (which may also be used as mirrors or lenses by FAQ readers...) and some biographical information about the author. I was particularly taken by the author's suggested character-doubling scheme--it is diabolically clever and thought-provoking and, almost as an afterthought, it allows the play to be performed by only nine actors. [jp]
