Photo courtesy of Evon Photography

Ouiser, played by Lesley Abrams, gossips with Glenda Young as M'Lynn in the Arizona Repertory Theatre's rendition of "Steel Magnolias.' The play re-opened Wednesday and continues through Sept. 9.

Friday August 31, 2001

'Steel Magnolias' tickets selling out fast

The Fine Arts box office's phone rings and rings. It seems everyone on campus wants tickets to the re-release of "Steel Magnolias."

The Arizona Repertory Theatre performed the popular play in June and is re-releasing it now. Though the production reopened Wednesday, it already promises to be a financial success.

"We sold out (Wednesday) night and we're almost sold out for the weekend as well," said Fine Arts marketing associate Helen Bernard.

For hopeful viewers, people sometimes change their ticket dates, which could lead to an open seat.

"It's best to call ahead," said box office manager Kat Armstrong. "Even if a show is sold out, we often have a waiting list."

Every year, the theatre presents a show that runs in the summer, closes and re-opens in the fall. These shows alternate annually between a community production - such as "Steel Magnolias" - and a Masters of Fine Arts production.

UA assistant theater arts professor Bobbi McKean plays Clairee - the "grande dame" of Louisiana's Chinkquin Parrish, the play's setting.

"There are still folks around in the summer," McKean said, "and it's a good time for when we don't want to do a great big production but still give students who are here a chance to participate."

And when the fall semester starts, "there's just not enough time to mount a whole show before the (Arizona Repertory) theatre's season starts," McKean explained.

Playwright Robert Harling wrote "Steel Magnolias" in only 10 days as a tribute to his sister Susan, who died of diabetes. Harling hailed from the South, and used women he knew as character sources.

The film version, which premiered in 1989, won a People's Choice award in 1990. Julia Roberts was also nominated for an Oscar that year for her role as Shelby.

Director Deborah Dickey said the play's message is the sanctity of female camaraderie.

"This is a story about the shared intimacy between women," she said, "especially Southern women, who come together and support one another with wit and intelligence through their major milestones, like birth, death and marriage."