SINGAPORE — How would you react if you came face-to-face with the paedophile who murdered your child?

It’s a tough call for actresses Janice Koh and Karen Tan, who are both mothers appearing in Pangdemonium’s latest heavy-hitting play, which is exactly about that.

Written by Bryony Lavery, the 1998 Tony-nominated psychological thriller Frozen follows three individuals whose lives are tragically linked. Tan plays Nancy, who is trying to cope with the disappearance of her 10-year-old daughter, while Koh plays Agnetha, a psychiatrist interested in the motivations of the criminal mind. In the middle of this dramatic triangle of confrontations is the paedophilic serial killer Ralph, played by Adrian Pang.

“To have to imagine my children just disappearing in what must be horrible circumstances would be very hard. I think words would definitely fail us. As a mother, I’m protecting my children not just from paedophiles but a whole lot of other things — from bullies and drugs to molesters and rapists,” said Tan.

“There are certainly schools of thought out there that suggest (criminals) can be rehabilitated rather than be simply locked away, but to be honest, as a parent, you just want them to be locked away. Sometimes, it’s being a parent that makes me conservative — especially when it comes to paedophilia,” said Koh.

Working on the play has offered much food for thought for the two actresses — who incidentally performed together earlier this year in the arguably less stressful Rant & Rave — as they seemingly take on diametrically opposing roles in Frozen.

“In a way, my character is Logic in the show,” said Koh of Agnetha. The character’s controversial view is that the deeds of criminals, such as those of the serial killer-cum-paedophile, are the result of “faulty wiring … (it’s) due to neurological disorders that are beyond their control”. In other words, they’re not liable for their actions.

Koh’s character is based on a real-life psychiatrist named Dorothy Lewis, who worked with criminals —and even defended the likes of John Lennon’s murderer Mark Chapman and notorious serial killer Ted Bundy. Koh also read Lewis’ book and another titled The Murder Of Childhood, which goes into the mind of real-life serial killer Robert Black, on which the character Ralph is based. Hard stuff — but pretty riveting, too.

“Reading about the work of Dorothy Lewis was like reading a crime novel — I couldn’t put it down,” admitted Koh. “It’s a push-pull thing. You’re disgusted but you’re also very curious why they do what they do, and in particular serial killers — what makes them do it over and over again, and how victims can be so (easily) charmed into their web. It was fascinating — but it’s still too gritty. It’s okay if you watch it on Nat Geo,” 
she laughed.

Tan, whose character Nancy was also based on a sibling of a victim of real-life serial killers Fred and Rosemary West, has likewise been mulling over notions of evil that lurk in the hearts of men, and in how society perceives and accepts its different forms.

“The thing about Ralph is he’s a murderer and a paedophile — which comes first in terms of outrageousness is up for discussion,” she said. “I think we can actually talk about murder a lot more regularly because it comes in larger numbers. We can even easily say ‘I could kill that guy’ but paedophilia is a very specific kind of perversion and mental state. No one is going to stand up and say ‘Aiyah, give them a chance’.”

For Tan, Frozen opens the door for some pretty tough discussions. “I personally feel that paedophilia is a choice but in the play, there’s research that shows it’s not their choice. To have a character (like Agnetha) say that maybe this guy didn’t mean to be like this, in itself (speaks of) a certain courage. This piece is about humanity. We need to understand the complexities of human nature.”

Frozen is from Oct 23 to Nov 9, 8pm, Esplanade Theatre Studio. With 3pm weekend matinees. Tickets at S$35 and S$40 from SISTIC. (Advisory 16: Mature theme and coarse language)