The Hatpin

Bijou Creative is a theatre group committed to providing good strong roles for women. Directors Charlea Edwards and Karen Kluss brought a bleak and harrowing true life story to Hobart with The Hatpin, in an appropriate theatre space. The Peacock Theatre, with a rock face as the rear wall of the stage, was a suitably stark backdrop against which to tell this sad but brave tale.  

The Hatpin is an Australian musical based on the 1893 Sydney case of baby Horace Murray, and tells the story of his teenage mother, Amber, and the women who helped her.

Karen Kluss, a founding member of Bijou Creative, was blessed with a play with four female leads, and the females to bring this shocking piece of history to life. Grace Ovens (Amber Murray), Nicole Farrow (Harriet Piper), Anna Kidd (Agatha Makin) and Cassie Ogle (Clara Makin) are equally capable and talented actors who share equal billing. Anna Kidd does a wonderful job of bringing understanding to the complex role of the villainous wife, and Jeff Keogh (Charles Makin) gave another strong performance.

Designer William Dowd used minimal sets – a hanging strip curtain and aided by a clever lighting design – to convey the sombreness of the subject matter. Costumes constructed by Dowd and Nicole Ottrey, using mainly black, grey, navy blue and brown accentuated the solemn aspects of the play. The ensemble, a fine cast of experienced actor/singers, dressed in black overcoats, came across as unfriendly, forbidding, and judgmental to the entreaties of the heroine. Colour and contrast was introduced in the clothing of Amber and Harriet, and in the clever use of lights.

Ensemble work was especially tight and controlled. With a large cast, the action could have felt too crowded, but good use of aisles, with the comings and goings of the ensemble, overcame that problem and kept the action moving. Musicians Craig M. Wood on piano and Alicia Watkins on violin provided atmospheric tension throughout. 

The Hatpin is a powerful show. The theme of trying to protect mothers and children still has resonance today, as shown in current criminal cases, and highlights the need to protect the vulnerable in our society. A wonderful cast in a clever play! Well done.

Merlene Abbott