By Lorrinda Christensen
When someone mentions Steel Magnolias, my mind instantly travels back to the 1989 movie with Julia Roberts, Sally Field, Dolly Parton, Shirley MacLaine, Daryl Hannah, Olympia Dukakis and the red velvet armadillo cake. What most people don’t know is that before it was a movie, it was a play. Premiering in 1987, Steel Magnolias is about a group of Southern women in northwest Louisiana. The play, written by Robert Harling, is based on his experience with his sister’s death. Harling, wanting the audience to experience the ups and downs of his family’s experience, included humor and light-heartedness along with more serious moments.
The cast of Sugarhouse Factory Playhouse & West Jordan Theater Arts production of Steel Magnolias did an amazing job bringing this story to life. The play, set in the 80’s, takes place in a hair salon in Louisiana. Due to the size of Pioneer Hall, the building where the play was performed, I felt like I was sitting in the hair salon right along with the members of the cast. The set design included salon chairs, a hair washing sink and a manicure table, and had so much attention to detail – right down to the magazines with issues that were printed in the 80’s.
The performance of the cast made me feel like I was just another one of the girls sitting in the salon participating in their conversations. They had me laughing much of the time, though I found myself close to tears, as well, in the more poignant scenes. The transition between the funny moments and the serious ones was done very well.
JoAnn Galloway, who played Ouiser, had the audience laughing hysterically every time she walked onto the stage. Her comedic timing, along with that of other cast members, made the show fun to watch while dealing with the more serious topics of diabetes, kidney failure and death. Agnes Broberg, who played Clairee, was also hilarious and had me laughing the entire show. The cast seemed like they all got along really well and worked together as one unit, versus a group of six individuals. If I didn’t know any better, I would have believed that I was back in the South sitting in that salon with the rest of them. There was never a moment that I wasn’t fully engaged in the show.
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Denise Gull, in her director’s notes, mentioned that this show inspired her to donate one of her kidneys. She says, “When directing, I always look for a show that has heart and soul. This one has more than its fair share, along with a healthy dose of humor and inspiration.” She goes on to tell the story of how she became a donor, and was able to donate one of her kidneys to a wonderful stranger. In fact, the topic of kidney donation is so dear to her, that while at the show there is an opportunity to donate to the National Kidney Foundation, and get information about other organ donation organizations.
Steel Magnolias has one more performance left: Sept 20 7:30 pm at Pioneer Hall, 1137 W 7800 S, in West Jordan. Tickets are $8 at the door.
Presented by Sugar Factory Playhouse and West Jordan Arts Council at West Jordan Pioneer Hall
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