By Regina Belt-Daniels
I’ve been in “Steel Magnolias” as Ouiser. I’ve even directed it, and thanks to the opportunity to show support for my acting friends, I’ve seen it innumerable times. But director Pat Henderson‘s production of “Steel Magnolias” at Steel Beam Theatre makes it something definitely worth seeing, experiencing, and enjoying again.
Because of the 1989 film with Julia Roberts, Sally Fields, and Dolly Parton, which is shown frequently on late-night cable and local channels, and the play’s popularity with professional and community theaters, I’m pretty certain most audiences are familiar with Robert Harling‘s beloved comedy-drama.
Based on his sister Susan‘s death, he wrote the play in 10 days. She died in 1985 from complications from type one diabetes. The result is a wonderful tribute to the bond between a group of Southern Louisianan women who are as “delicate as magnolias but as tough as steel.”
The two-act, four-scene production is set in Trudy‘s hair salon in Chinquapin, Louisiana in 1987. The salon, by the way, is an exquisite set design by Barry Norton. It has striking pink and mauve striped walls with photos hanging…and bubble hair dryers – everything that made me want to call and make an appointment!
Stage managers Jake Boucher-Merlo and Dipper Green keep the props and set pieces well organized and placed, which is complemented by the sound and lighting designs shared by director Henderson and Cassie Hanlin. The colorful costumes by Marge Uhlarik-Boller and wigs and hair design by Irene Garrett and Gina Petty are visually perfect for the 1987 era and the ladies onstage.
Henderson was adamant that the women in the show “create a community at the beauty shop like we often create during theater shows – they share their lives.” She wanted to establish real characters like the women who came to her mom‘s beauty shop outside her home where she grew up. On Saturdays, the women “would come early and be there for hours and they did talk and share recipes and gossip of course.”
Henderson cast an ensemble of six strong, talented women – expressive, attractive, and powerful. They’re all delightful in their characterizations.
Christy Doherty’s Truvy, the owner of the beauty shop, is kind, knows everyone’s business, and will share it with whoever will listen. Making her Steel Beam debut, Doherty dispenses shampoo and free advice, and gives Truvy a big heart and a sympathetic ear. She is definitely a southern belle who knows how to wisecrack and exhibit leadership along the lines of a mother figure – especially to Annelle. Doherty is perfect.
Also making her Steel Beam debut is Alexus Buford as Annelle Dupuy. Her portrayal is eager, especially initially as a quirky shy hairdresser newly hired by Truvy. She shares she’s from another Louisiana county, but doesn’t know if she’s married or not. Buford makes Annelle wear her heart on her sleeve and makes an interesting transition to a Bible-loving Christian in Scene Two; Buford’s sigh intake when she hears Ouiser pray almost steals Act Two. Buford is a charmer.
Shelby Eatenton is played by Maggie Liston. She is a spunky actress who takes on the role of a diabetic beloved by all, and a devoted fan of the colors blush and bashful, a.k.a., pink and pink. Liston makes clear her rebellious relationship with her mother.
She’s going to get married, and in Scene One Liston incredibly demonstrates all the tensions and anxieties of her impending wedding. Later on, Liston shows Shelby’s desire to have a child and the risk to her life because of diabetes clear in dynamic fashion.
Liston also knows how to deliver comedic lines subtly: “I love cloudy days. God’s not trying very hard, so I don’t have to either,” is one example. Or the reason why she fell in love with Jackson’s dancing: “There was something so attractive about how stupid he looked.” Liston is a spirited and confident actress.
April Noel is M’Lynn, the very protective mother of Shelby. She worries too much and has to have a firm grip on the world. Noel is brilliant whether she is delivering lines about the advantages of the Jaclyn Smith hairdo for Shelby’s wedding or dealing with Shelby’s diabetic reaction at Truvy’s. But her heartbreaking, shattering monologue in Act Two after Shelby’s death is a magnificent, poignant, captivating scene that started the audience’s tearful reaction.
And then there is the camaraderie and the productions’ best repartee that takes place between Jami Johnson’s Clairee and Julie Ultrup-O’Nan’s Ouiser. Clairee is the widow of the former mayor, and Johnson makes her an upstanding millionaire, who can be sarcastic, and loves to poke fun at Ouiser’s deserved expense – although she claims to “love her more than my luggage.” Johnson is a buoyant, engaging, and stylistically savvy actress.
O’Nan’s Ouiser is a lovable, blustery, miserable lady with a unique personality. Her sense of humor and entrances are a great relief. O’Nan is an engaging luminous actress, and her Ouiser delivers one of the best lines of the show: “I’m not crazy. I’ve just been in a bad mood for 30 years.”
What more can I say about such a virtuosic and fresh cast? Henderson also cast two fine actresses in the role of understudies: Trace Gamache and Audrey Gneich. Henderson did champagne casting!
But this isn’t completely a male-free environment. Although no male ever graces the stage, there is mention of Jackson “the good ole Southern boy” that Shelby is going to marry, M’Lynn’s husband Drum, Clairee’s husband Lloyd, and the “sofa slug” Truvy is married to, as well as the Act Two boyfriends of Annelle and Ouiser.
The feminist in me wonders how playwright Robert Harling was able to capture the true sensitivities, insight, and credibility of these women in a way that they could actually exist as our neighbors, family, and friends with the same problems that happened to ordinary people. But he did quite convincingly.
Whether this is your first time or your 100th time seeing “Steel Magnolias” (As Chicago Tribune critic, Chris Jones, once said “I reviewed Steel Magnolias so often I felt like I deserved my own chair at Truvy‘s Chinquapin Parish salon”), the Steel Beam production, thanks to the talented six women and their director, is well worth seeing. But I recommend that you better have some Kleenex handy.
Steel Magnolias plays Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays through May 12. Friday and Saturday performances are at 7:30 PM and Sundays are at 2 PM. The theatre is located at 111 W. Main Street in St. Charles. The second-floor theatre is chair life handicap accessible.
For tickets and information visit www.SteelBeamTheare.com or call the box office at (630) 587-8521.
Regina Belt-Daniels has directed and acted in over 50 theatrical productions for companies including TownSquare Players, WMTC, RCLPC, Black Box Theatre, Independent Players, Elgin Theatre Company, Black Box Theatre, and the Raue Center for the Performing Arts. She most recently directed “Love Letters” for Steel Beam Theatre and was a nominee for Broadway World’s Best Director for “I Hate Hamlet” and the recipient of the 2023 Heartstrings Award for Best Director. She is a retired Special Education and Reading Recovery teacher.
