In the award-winning play, Frozen, the lives of three people swirl around the horror of pedophile serial killings. It's not a play you really want to get involved with, but excellent writing, acting and directing pull you into its subject. Surprisingly, the juiciest of the three roles is Ralph, the serial killer. In a number of monologues, he reveals some -- but not all -- of the experiences which may/or may not have led to his despicable crimes.
Actor Lee Ernst cannot make the audience sympathetic to Ralph, and he doesn't try to force it. But he does bring us closer to acceptance of how/why such people exist. Ralph chafes against all the injustice done to him over the years. Even the slightest whiff of disrespect -- intentional or not -- can send Ralph into a vengeful fury. In the creepiest of Ralph's monologues, he recreates his actions that led to the sexual abuse and death of a 10-year-old girl, Rhona. It is almost too much to watch. Far easier to digest is the relatively light back story of how Ralph obtained the many tattoos on his arms and legs.
The main character, Nancy, is an English mum with a husband and two daughters. One of the girls, Rhona, takes a pair of gardening shears to her grandmother's house. She never makes it. Nancy's 20-year-odyssey of pain, denial, grief and acceptance is fascinating, if difficult, to watch. It is heartbreaking to see her crumble after learning the fate of her long-gone daughter. Nancy is such a multi-faceted character that it's easy to see why it would be attractive to actors such as Swoosie Kurtz, who performed the part on Broadway several years ago. Here, the part of Nancy is handled in somewhat haphazard fashion by Actor Deborah Staples. The character doesn't really become convincing until the final scenes. By that time, the audience has had to cope with Staples' on-again, off-again British accent, and the screeching which signals Nancy's emotional meltdowns. Staples does have a number of good scenes, though. The best is her visit to see Ralph in prison. He is so shaken by the sincerity of her forgiveness that he doesn't know how to respond.
The third character is Agnetha, an American and criminal psychologist. She sometimes addresses the audience as a lecture group who've come to hear her speak on the criminal mind. In clipped, sterile fashion, Agnetha hypothesizes that such killers are the result of early neurological damage, neglect and abuse. Ralph is a star example: He admits that, as a toddler, his careless mother dropped him in a kitchen sink. He also fits the rest of the profile, which Ralph reveals in rather crude fashion. Although all three actors must become emotionally "unfrozen" by the play's end, it is most difficult for Agnetha to pull this off. Actor Laura Gordon typifies the "ice queen" image to perfection. Inside, however, she must demonstrate that she's an emotional mess. The death of a male co-worker with whom she has worked closely for many years strikes Agnetha far harder than she could have imagined.
Gordon is superb in her first scene, in which she breaks down completely. That's a rather tough position to recover from, although Gordon does it nicely. One of her best scenes is also in prison with Ralph. He asks her a question. "Remorse
what is that?" Her gentle answer and his reaction are priceless.
Director Kate Buckley maintains a slow, steady pace throughout the play (perhaps to allow the audience to digest the material?). The glacial setting, all lit in cold blues, is a dynamic backdrop. Projected images of different locations emanate from the icy shards.
The floor is similarly patterned, as if the actors are walking on pieces of broken glass. Or perhaps the set is a visual reminder of the "unthawing" the actors must do in order to become "human" once more.
