Preview: Agnes of God, at the Plaza Theatre, Romsey

Summoned to a convent, Dr Martha Livingstone, a court-appointed psychiatrist, is charged with assessing the sanity of a young novitiate accused of murdering her newborn. Miriam Ruth, the Mother Superior, determinedly keeps young Agnes from the doctor, arousing Livingstone's suspicions further. Who killed the infant and who fathered the tiny victim?

The title of American screenwriter and playwright John Pielmeier’s Agnes of God is actually a pun on the Latin phrase, “Agnus Dei”, or “Lamb of God”. It’s a good pun, and quite appropriate, as Sister Agnes is as innocent as a lamb and appears on the way to slaughter unless the Mother Superior and the psychiatrist can put away their differences long enough to solve this rather unusual murder mystery and save Sister Agnes from a life spent in prison or an asylum.

Despite the weighty issues, Pielmeier’s script is sprinkled with comic moments that help break the tension on the way to a dramatic, compelling climax.

This is a Green Room studio production. Tickets available online at www.plazatheatre.com or from the Romsey Tourist Information Centre on 01794 512987.