The Royal Theatre will welcome the ever popular and always hilarious comedy Steel Magnolias to the stage in Castlebar this autumn. Hollywood actress Mischa Barton, star of The Sixth Sense and The OC, makes her Irish stage debut as Shelby Eatenton, and Anne Charleston, who played Madge Bishop in Neighbours, plays Ouiser Boudreaux in this production. They will take to the stage in the Royal Theatre, Castlebar, on Thursday, October 18, and Friday, October 19.
Directed by Ben Barnes, the original play tells the heart-warming story we came to love on film. An enduring tale of love, loss, and friendship, we follow the lives of six Southern women who come together in Truvy’s exclusive beauty parlour.
Full of wise-cracking repartée, the women are witty, intelligent, and sometimes slightly crazy. Annelle, who is not sure if she is still married, is the eager new assistant to the outspoken romantic Truvy who dispenses shampoo and free advice to the town’s rich curmudgeon and dog-loving Ouiser, eccentric millionaire Miss Clairee, and classic Southern mother M’Lynn, whose pretty daughter Shelby (a diabetic ) is about to get married.
Opening on Shelby’s wedding day, the story moves towards tragedy when she risks pregnancy. The beauty and fragility of her life has a profound effect on all the women, and their underlying strengths of love and friendship make this play truly touching to behold.
Packed with 1980s nostalgia and memorable one-liners, Steel Magnolias is the funniest play ever to make you cry. Tickets are available at €25.65 from the Royal Theatre Box office on 0818 300 000 or 094 9023111. Also from www.royaltheatre.ie or Ticketmaster.
