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    Lorilei: A Study In Grace

    Written by: Aiza Azam
    Posted on: December 17, 2015 |

    Nimra Bucha as Lorilei

    “Do you know what Lorilei means? I’ve been told it’s the name of a river spirit in Germany who draws men to their deaths with her beauty and charms.”

    Play 'Lorilei' at PNCA Islamabad

    Jeremy James Guillory

    Thus begins the heartbreaking re-telling of a true story. In 1992, Lorilei Guillory’s 6 year old son Jeremy disappeared from the tiny community they lived in on the outskirts of Louisiana. Three days later, his strangled body was found in the closet of Ricky Langley, a convicted pedophile in violation of his parole. Lorilei would go on to fight against Ricky’s execution by the state for the murder of her son.

    Put together by Olomopolo Media in collaboration with Justice Project Pakistan, the play is a one woman act scripted by Thomas Wright, who based his work on verbatim transcripts of interviews with Lorilei herself. Having been staged in Pakistan a couple of years ago with Nadia Jamil and Sania Saeed alternatively playing the roles of Lorilei and Ricky, this time around it consisted of a performance in English by Nimra Bucha and in Urdu by Sania Saeed.

    A minimalist set and the alternating use of shadow and light centers your entire attention on Lorilei’s description of her harrowing ordeal, heightening the narration of a tragedy. Beginning with the day of Jeremy’s disappearance, she describes the events surrounding it. A single mother pregnant at the time with her second son Brock, Lorilei shares some brief details of the trial and Langley’s quick conviction for murder. In the years that followed, she succumbed to alcoholism and drugs, sinking further and deeper. “I was in hell. It’s not just a phrase; I really was in hell.” One day, a decade later, she stood thinking about the details of Langley’s life revealed at trial: subjected to radiation from X-rays and the effects of countless medicinal drugs, while still in the womb; a distraught mother who wanted him to be the first son she had lost before his birth; a childhood of repeated sexual abuse; the constant failed attempts at suicide because he didn’t want to be the pedophile he was. Lorilei realized she didn’t want him to die, but she did need to understand the reasons for what he had done. Ten years after her son had been taken, Lorilei visited Langley in jail and faced him to ask why. She left him with the promise that she would fight to have his sentence commuted to life in prison or a psychiatric institution. Little did she know, she would soon face the beginning of an uphill battle against the vested interests of people who wanted Langley executed, and even the censure of her own family.

    In Islamabad the play was staged for two nights at PNCA; Nimra Bucha and Sania Saeed, who also directed the play, gave two very different performances. Bucha’s Lorilei was quieter, more reflective and conveyed a deeper inner strength. Her depiction of a woman broken by a loss she never fully recovered from, was an intimate re-living of pain already suffered. Sania Saeed is known for her powerhouse performances. Her insistent Lorilei, in contrast to Bucha’s, was emotionally overwrought, swinging between anger and anxiety, grief and hatred. Her masterful inflections of voice and tone effectively matched a Lorilei swearing revenge one minute and crumbling into helplessness the next.   

    The difference between the two performances was marked. Bucha managed to effectively take the audience back over the years, creating the sense that they were following closely on Lorilei’s heels as she remembered each moment, enabling them to visualize every scene and absorb the ambience of each memory. Sania Saeed’s delivery, however, was not able to transport the audience beyond the momentary. Her depiction felt like a narrative Lorilei had repeated many times before, almost conveying a sense that the emotions she was bringing out were meant solely to emphasize that her ordeal was still fresh inside her but without being very convincing.   

    Clive Stafford Smith, the lawyer who represented Ricky and with whose efforts Lorilei eventually allied herself, had come to Pakistan for the play (Lorilei has been staged multiple times in the West as well). When the lights came on, he engaged in an interactive discussion with the audience, giving his views on a number of pertinent issues and relating Lorilei’s present circumstances. This was a clever inclusion by the organizers, because it made the entire experience about Lorilei’s story and not about a particular actor or director.

    The play opens in Karachi tonight. Go see it! Proceeds from ticket sales go to Lorilei Guillory.

    Clips from the play


    As the new year begins, let us also start anew. I’m delighted to extend, on behalf of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and in my own name, new year’s greeting and sincere wishes to YOULIN magazine’s staff and readers.

    Only in hard times can courage and perseverance be manifested. Only with courage can we live to the fullest. 2020 was an extraordinary year. Confronted by the COVID-19 pandemic, China and Pakistan supported each other and took on the challenge in solidarity. The ironclad China-Pakistan friendship grew stronger as time went by. The China Pakistan Economic Corridor projects advanced steadily in difficult times, become a standard-bearer project of the Belt and Road Initiative in balancing pandemic prevention and project achievement. The handling capacity of the Gwadar Port has continued to rise and Afghanistan transit trade through the port has officially been launched. The Karakoram Highway Phase II upgrade project is fully open to traffic. The Lahore Orange Line project has been put into operation. The construction of Matiari-Lahore HVDC project was fully completed. A batch of green and clean energy projects, such as the Kohala and Azad Pattan hydropower plants have been substantially promoted. Development agreement for the Rashakai SEZ has been signed. The China-Pakistan Community of Shared Future has become closer and closer.

    Reviewing the past and looking to the future, we are confident to write a brilliant new chapter. The year 2021 is the 100th birthday of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Pakistan. The 100-year journey of CPC surges forward with great momentum and China-Pakistan relationship has flourished in the past 70 years. Standing at a new historic point, China is willing to work together with Pakistan to further implement the consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries, connect the CPEC cooperation with the vision of the “Naya Pakistan”, promote the long-term development of the China-Pakistan All-weather Strategic Cooperative Partnership with love, dedication and commitment. Mohammad Ali Jinnah, the founding father of Pakistan said, “We are going through fire. The sunshine has yet to come.” Yes, Pakistan’s best days are ahead, China will stand with Pakistan firmly all the way.

    YOULIN magazine is dedicated to promoting cultural exchanges between China and Pakistan and is a window for Pakistani friends to learn about China, especially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. It is hoped that with the joint efforts of China and Pakistan, YOULIN can listen more to the voices of readers in China and Pakistan, better play its role as a bridge to promote more effectively people-to-people bond.

    Last but not least, I would like to wish all the staff and readers of YOULIN a warm and prosper year in 2021.

    Nong Rong Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of
    The People’s Republic of China to the Islamic Republic of Pakistan
    January 2021