SINGAPORE — Here’s one murder mystery where the butler is off the hook. That’s because there isn’t one — the only male character you’ll find here is already dead.

Sing’Theatre’s production of Robert Thomas’ play, 8 Women, is the second all-women play to hit the stage in two weeks. Better known as the French star-studded movie adaptation by Francois Ozon in 2002, eight women find themselves confined to a house as they resolve some issues.

But 8 Women presents the exact opposite of the former’s themes of sisterhood and bonding. Its scheming characters indulge in some nasty finger-pointing and back-stabbing as everyone — wife, daughters, sister, sister-in-law, mother-in-law, maids — is suspected of treachery. The fact that it’s an all-female whodunit may offer another layer to one’s enjoyment, but its implied commentary on the “nature” of women aside, it’s a genre that’s built on manipulation and intrigue regardless of the characters’ sex, anyway.

As a whodunit, it starts rather slowly. The discovery of the murder doesn’t elicit as much panic or tension as one expects. Details are divulged as the plot thickens — stolen bonds, forbidden loves, a will, rivalries — but for a type of story that encourages an audience to wilfully involve him or herself in the act of assembling the puzzle, there is an initial lack of immediacy.

It does, however, pick up as it progresses and we are treated to some enjoyable performances, particularly Daisy Irani’s animated Indian maid, Neo Swee Lin’s liquor-guzzling grandmother, and, most strikingly, Julia Abueva’s precocious bookworm of a younger daughter.

Director Samantha Scott-Blackhall also gets inventive, roping in in-demand sound artist Bani Haykal to provide live sparse instrumentation and lighting designer James Tan, whose flickering lights occasionally gives the play a noir-ish feel. Indeed, there seems to be an attempt to bring in some cinematic language here: Characters exaggeratedly huddling around a light as a kind of “close-up” moment, the use of voice-over narration, or shadows. It’s made more obvious via some movable parts of Wong Chee Wai’s set, pushing forward or revolving to emphasise a new focus or a different angle.

It’s admittedly a challenge to keep one step ahead of an audience well-versed in and inundated with increasingly complex murder mysteries on television or literature, but even if it doesn’t quite keep you at the edge of your seat, 8 Women somehow manages to pull off a big reveal that’s rather satisfying. Mayo Martin

3.5 stars

8 Women runs until April 7, 8pm, Sota Drama Theatre. With 3pm weekend matinees. Tickets from S$50 to S$60 at Sistic.