Theatre has alwaysTheatre has always been a forum for sensitive issues people are hesitant to talk about. Exploring controversy in a fictitious and ‘safe’ environment often opens the way for frank and serious discussion about issues that may otherwise remain submerged and voiceless. Jane Martin’s play Keely and Du, being staged at The Fringe Club from November 14th to 18th, is a case in point.

Keely is pregnant after being raped by her ex-husband and is on her way to an abortion clinic when nurse and Christian
anti-abortionist Du and her accomplice Walter kidnap and hold her captive until she comes to term. But though Keely and Du are on opposite sides of the abortion divide and the circumstances extreme, they forge a relationship that eventually leads to friendship.

While abortion is often a proverbial hot potato in many Western countries, in Hong Kong the debate, if there is one, is muted. Suwan Law at Mother’s Choice puts it down to the stigma that still surrounds unwed mothers in Chinese society. Often parents and young pregnant women, not seeing the other options open to them, think abortion is their only way out.

Government statistics from 2001 that showed a third of Hong Kong pregnancies end in abortion. It’s an astoundingly high rate, but could be even higher because many women choose to go across the border to the Mainland where the procedure is cheaper and fewer questions are asked.

Adam West, producer of Keely and Du, is hoping the play will be an initial spark that will ignite discussion around abortion: “This play just hit me as being wonderfully written and very brave as it takes an issue and deals with it in a very sensitive way… I hope that people will debate it – that they will go home and be forced to confront the issue and talk about it.”

However, he didn’t pick the play to stir things up. Rather a lack of good theatre in Hong Kong convinced him of its merits. “There’s a lot of entertainment in Hong Kong, entertaining theatre. But there are also a lot of intelligent people in Hong Kong, and there should be a theatre scene that makes people think,” says West.

With that in mind, Keely and Du is not just a play about abortion. Its subtlety is only revealed when looking beyond the attention-grabbing issue to its exploration of the human condition through adversity, religion and relationships.

“For me, this play is far more about the relationship between two women. The play is called Keely and Du because it is primarily about this relationship that evolves between these two women in very difficult circumstances,” says director Linda Davy, as she points out that, surprisingly, it almost becomes a mother/daughter intimacy. It is the understanding, and in
many scenes the tenderness, between the two characters that draws the audience into both the relationship and a sympathy for both.

Kate Bulling plays Du, and she had to draw on her own life experiences to fully realise what drives the character. “I hold the opposite view to Du,” she says. “I’m pro-choice. But I’m also a mother, and all those things she says about bringing up little children – little hands, little feet – that has meaning for me. If I think of myself as a mother and forget about what Keely is feeling and going through, I can imagine how someone would just think about bringing children into the world as the most important thing.”

Vince Matthew Chung who plays Cole, Keely’s ex-husband, echoes the sentiment. “For me you look at circumstances in your life, when you have had certain thoughts or feelings that are stronger than others and what that makes you feel like. So I use that to help put my character in perspective.”

Meanwhile, Bianca Gio, was attracted to the depths of her character Keely. “It’s really rare for actors to get a proper role in Hong Kong theatre, especially women… It’s also a challenging role which is why I chose to do it and it’s been personally very rewarding,” she says.

Keely and Du is a new kind of theatrical venture for Hong Kong. Is the city ready for serious theatre on a controversial topic? Adam West is unsure – it’s all experimental, he says – but he had to try. He’s not done anything like this before, but whether audiences like it or not, he’s given them something to chew on. He can only hope they will fully digest it – and then come back for more.

Keely and Du is showing at The Fringe Club at 8pm, from Tuesday 14th to Saturday 18th November. Tickets are available at HK Ticketing (Tel: 31 288 288) and cost $190 and $170 for Fringe Members. Enquiries: adammwest2@hotmail.com. Please note the performance is not suitable for people below 15 years of age.

been a forum for sensitive issues people are hesitant to talk about. Exploring controversy in a fictitious and ‘safe’ environment often opens the way for frank and serious discussion about issues that may otherwise remain submerged and voiceless. Jane Martin’s play Keely and Du, being staged at The Fringe Club from November 14th to 18th, is a case in point.

Keely is pregnant after being raped by her ex-husband and is on her way to an abortion clinic when nurse and Christian
anti-abortionist Du and her accomplice Walter kidnap and hold her captive until she comes to term. But though Keely and Du are on opposite sides of the abortion divide and the circumstances extreme, they forge a relationship that eventually leads to friendship.

While abortion is often a proverbial hot potato in many Western countries, in Hong Kong the debate, if there is one, is muted. Suwan Law at Mother’s Choice puts it down to the stigma that still surrounds unwed mothers in Chinese society. Often parents and young pregnant women, not seeing the other options open to them, think abortion is their only way out.

Government statistics from 2001 that showed a third of Hong Kong pregnancies end in abortion. It’s an astoundingly high rate, but could be even higher because many women choose to go across the border to the Mainland where the procedure is cheaper and fewer questions are asked.

Adam West, producer of Keely and Du, is hoping the play will be an initial spark that will ignite discussion around abortion: “This play just hit me as being wonderfully written and very brave as it takes an issue and deals with it in a very sensitive way… I hope that people will debate it – that they will go home and be forced to confront the issue and talk about it.”

However, he didn’t pick the play to stir things up. Rather a lack of good theatre in Hong Kong convinced him of its merits. “There’s a lot of entertainment in Hong Kong, entertaining theatre. But there are also a lot of intelligent people in Hong Kong, and there should be a theatre scene that makes people think,” says West.

With that in mind, Keely and Du is not just a play about abortion. Its subtlety is only revealed when looking beyond the attention-grabbing issue to its exploration of the human condition through adversity, religion and relationships.

“For me, this play is far more about the relationship between two women. The play is called Keely and Du because it is primarily about this relationship that evolves between these two women in very difficult circumstances,” says director Linda Davy, as she points out that, surprisingly, it almost becomes a mother/daughter intimacy. It is the understanding, and in
many scenes the tenderness, between the two characters that draws the audience into both the relationship and a sympathy for both.

Kate Bulling plays Du, and she had to draw on her own life experiences to fully realise what drives the character. “I hold the opposite view to Du,” she says. “I’m pro-choice. But I’m also a mother, and all those things she says about bringing up little children – little hands, little feet – that has meaning for me. If I think of myself as a mother and forget about what Keely is feeling and going through, I can imagine how someone would just think about bringing children into the world as the most important thing.”

Vince Matthew Chung who plays Cole, Keely’s ex-husband, echoes the sentiment. “For me you look at circumstances in your life, when you have had certain thoughts or feelings that are stronger than others and what that makes you feel like. So I use that to help put my character in perspective.”

Meanwhile, Bianca Gio, was attracted to the depths of her character Keely. “It’s really rare for actors to get a proper role in Hong Kong theatre, especially women… It’s also a challenging role which is why I chose to do it and it’s been personally very rewarding,” she says.

Keely and Du is a new kind of theatrical venture for Hong Kong. Is the city ready for serious theatre on a controversial topic? Adam West is unsure – it’s all experimental, he says – but he had to try. He’s not done anything like this before, but whether audiences like it or not, he’s given them something to chew on. He can only hope they will fully digest it – and then come back for more.

Keely and Du is showing at The Fringe Club at 8pm, from Tuesday 14th to Saturday 18th November. Tickets are available at HK Ticketing (Tel: 31 288 288) and cost $190 and $170 for Fringe Members. Enquiries: adammwest2@hotmail.com. Please note the performance is not suitable for people below 15 years of age.