Steel Magnolias

by Robert Harling (August 15–18)

Vergennes Opera House

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, the outspoken, wise-cracking Truvy dispenses shampoos and free advice to the town’s rich curmudgeon, Ouiser; an eccentric millionaire, Miss Clairee; and the local social leader, M’Lynn, whose daughter, Shelby (the prettiest girl in town), is about to marry a “good ole boy.” The play is alternately hilarious and touching—and, in the end, deeply revealing of the strength and resolve that underlies the antic banter of its characters.

The New York Daily News raved, “Harling has given his women sharp, funny dialogue…The play builds to a conclusion that is deeply moving,” while Drama-Logue magazine called it “a skillfully crafted, lovingly evoked picture of eccentricity in the small-town South.”

An MCP Company Be production directed by Kush Sharma.

Cast: Avery Cutroni, Eryn Diehl, Annie Moore-Cox, Layne Sasser, Valerie Smith-Hastings, and Sarah Stone.