Steel Magnolias at HCT

Before Steel Magnolias was a popular movie, it was a play written by Robert Harling as a way for him to deal with the death of his sister from complications resulting from diabetes. I loved the movie so I was really excited to see Hale Theatre's production of the play last night. I laughed out loud many times and I admit that I wiped a tear from my eye. The story is about the bond a group of women, including Truvy Jones (Michelle Linn Hall), Annelle Dupuy (Amy Ware), Clairee Belcher (Teri Cowan), M'Lynn Eatenton (DeLayne Bluth Dayton), Shelby Eatenton (Madison Ford), and Ouiser Boudreaux (Jayne Luke), share in a small town in Louisiana and how they cope with the death of one of their own. The action takes place over several years in Truvy's beauty shop where the women meet to discuss the triumphs and challenges of their lives. Through it all the women support each other saying that they might be as delicate as magnolia flowers but, when it comes to adversity, they are as tough as steel. All six of the actresses are superb and very well suited to their roles but my favorite was definitely Luke! Ouiser has some of the best dialogue in the show ("I'm not crazy! I've just been in a very bad mood for forty years.") and Luke's delivery is absolutely hilarious with lots of physical comedy. The characters are very well known and I associated them with the actresses who portrayed them in the movie so I was pleasantly surprised that each actress in this production was able to make the character her own. The set is a lot of fun with all of the accoutrements of a real beauty parlor and they actually work! Annelle literally washes and sets M'Lynn's hair during one scene. I loved all of the wacky seasonal decorations, made by Annelle after she discovers arts and crafts, to denote the different time periods. The 1980s period costumes are a hoot and I especially liked all of Shelby's outfits in different shades of pink (her signature color). The best thing about this show is the message that you can get through anything with the support of your friends! I really enjoyed this heart-warming production and I highly recommend it (especially if you are a fan of the movie). It runs at HCT through June 1 (go here for tickets and information).