Alicia Gian, left, and Chelsie Shipley rehearse a scene from The

Alicia Gian, left, and Chelsie Shipley rehearse a scene from The

Complex, challenging, complicated and layered is how the cast and director of “The Maids” describe the upcoming University Theatre show.

The play, which lays bare the complaints of the working class, tells the story of two sisters – maids – who murder their mistress in a gruesome manner. After the murder, the sisters go to bed together, to await the arrival of the police the next day.

Director Mechele Leon, assistant professor of theater and film, says the show challenges the traditional way society views women.

“I think it’s really about coming in with an open mind,” she says. “My hope is audiences coming into this play will come in ready to experience a different idea of what the relationships between women are.”

“The Maids” stars three women, who form the entire cast. Alicia Gian, of Garden City, plays Madame; Cali Gilman, of Olathe, plays Claire; and Chelsie Shipley, of Lakin, plays Solange.

Leon says she chose the show because it’s a fabulous vehicle for students actors. But it hasn’t been simple.

“It’s an actor’s show,” she says. “I didn’t know how difficult it really was until we got into it.”

Shipley says she was shocked at how manipulative the women can be. All the actresses agreed that their characters were incredibly challenging, perhaps the most challenging roles they’ve ever played.

“I’m amazed at how many levels they have. They have more layers than I’ve ever played,” Gilman says. “This is a really difficult, really heavy piece.”

That density has earned the show a “mature” label. Leon says “The Maids” is not appropriate for children, but audience members shouldn’t be overly concerned about the label. The play doesn’t include excessively coarse language or nudity, but rather deals with adult themes.

“I don’t think I’m directing this in any way differently because it is a mature audience play,” Leon says. “The label, here, is more an awareness of our community.”

The show’s plot is based on a true story from 1930s Paris, which French playwright Jean Genet first brought to the stage in 1947. The women’s crime initially had been denounced by the French press while simultaneously being upheld by the French Communist Party as evidence of discrimination against the working class.

Despite earlier controversy, when Martin Crimp’s translation of Genet’s script debuted in 1999 in London, it met with great commercial success.

“This is daring for the University Theatre,” Leon says. “We do different kinds of shows for different reasons, but this is the most complicated show of the season.”