Steel Magnolias at Limelight Actors Theater

"Steel Magnolias" 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.

Limelight Actors Theater, Gilroy's Downtown Theater, breaks new ground in South County Theater with their approach to this production. Directed by K. DaVette See (most recently known for directing "Inherit The Wind" at South Valley Civic Theater), the show has been developed with two casts. Each cast will have a consecutive run of seven performances. Twelve Bay Area actresses are involved in the play including Limelight Alumni Rosalind Farotte, JoAnna Evans, Jen Ellington, Betsy Andrade, Dana Morgan and Donna Knippen. Newcomers (to Limelight) Denee Lewis Bohnsack, Joanne Engelhardt, Robin Harris, Deanna McGill, Roberta Vinkhuyzen Rasmussen and Rachel Perry, round out the casts. A total of four matinees will be available for this popular show. "Steel Magnolias" opens September 14th and runs through October 12th at the Gilroy Center for the Arts, 7341 Monterey St, Gilroy (on the corner of 7th and Monterey). Tickets are $18. Friday and Saturday performances are "Bring Your Own Dinner" theater. Wine and non-alcholic beverages are for sale at concessions, and you can bring your own bottle of wine for a nominal corkage fee. All proceeds from concessions and corkage are donated back to the Center for the Arts. 

The Beehive Cast:

Denee Lewis Bohnsack, JoAnna Evans, Joanne Engelhardt, Robin Harris, Deanna McGill, and Roberta Vinkhuyzen Rasmussen

Performing Sept 14,15,16,21,22,23,28

The Bouffant Cast:

Betsy Andrade, Jen Ellington, Rosalind Farotte, Donna M. Knippen, Dana Morgan and Rachel Perry

Performing Sept 29,30  Oct 5,6,7,11,12