Steel Magnolias
by Robert Harling
Directed by Victoria Helms
April 26-30, 2000
The action is set in Truvy's beauty salon in Chinquapin, Louisiana, where all the ladies who are "anybody" come to have their hair done. Helped by her eager new assistant, Annelle (who is not sure whether or not she is still married), the outspoken, wise-cracking Truvy dispenses shampoos and free advice to the town's rich curmudgeon, Ouiser, ("I'm not crazy, I've just been in a bad mood for forty years"); an eccentric millionaire, Miss Clairee, who has a raging sweet tooth; and the local social leader, M'Lynn, whose daughter, Shelby (the prettiest girl in town), is about to marry a "good ole boy." Filled with hilarious repartee and not a few acerbic but humorously revealing verbal collisions, the play moves toward tragedy when, in the second act, the spunky Shelby (who is a diabetic) risks pregnancy and forfeits her life. The sudden realization of their mortality affects the others, but also draws on the underlying strength—and love—which give the play, and its characters, the special quality to make them truly touching, funny and marvelously amiable company in good times and bad.
Cast
Truvy - Janet James Annelle - Julie Sparks Clairee - Sandra Smith Shelby - Jessica Sparks M'Lynn - Susan Grissom Ouiser - Mary Mills Crew Victoria Helms - Director Mary Dyer - Stage Manager JC Weeks - Lighting and Sound Richard Hammock - Set Design/Construction Nathan Hill - Set Design/Construction Scotty Kennedy - Set Design/Construction Tim Miller - Set Design/Construction Mark Richardson - Set Design/Construction Jane Williams - Set Design/Construction Clyniece Ledbetter - Hair and Makeup Jane Williams - Hair and Makeup Linda Jackson - Hair and Makeup Kathryn Cantrell - Hair and Makeup Vicki Self - Hair and Makeup Linda Gray - Costumes Anne Vinson - Costumes Anne Vinson - Props Denise Pierce - Props Nancy Frame - Box Office |