PlayGuide - "Steel Magnolias"

NOVEMBER 9 – DECEMBER 5, 2021 | QUADRACCI POWERHOUSE

BY ROBERT HARLING DIRECTED BY LAURA BRAZA

www.MilwaukeeRep.com | 414-224-9490

NOVEMBER 9 – DECEMBER 5, 2021 | QUADRACCI POWERHOUSE

By Robert

Sponsored by

Harling |

Directed by Laura

Executive Producers Cheryl & Bill Guc

Braza Associate Producer Dr. Eric Durant

Table of Contents Synopsis.............................................................................................................3 Characters.........................................................................................................5

Mark Clements ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

Chad Bauman EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR PLAYGUIDE WRITTEN BY

Lindsey Hoel-Neds CONTENT WRITER

The Inspiration for the Play........................................................................6 Hollywood Descends on Hometown: Filming in the Real-Life Chinquapin........................................................7 An Iconic Story with Iconic Women.........................................................8 The Power of Female Friendships in Popular Culture...................10 The Higher the Hair, the Closer to God: The Singularity of Southern Beauty Standards................................12

PLAYGUIDE EDITED BY

Deanie Vallone LITERARY DIRECTOR

Lisa Fulton CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER

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Beauty Shops and Barber Shops: Sharing Gossip, Friendship, and Community....................................13 Health Topics in Steel Magnolias.............................................................14 Quotable Quips from the Mouths of Our Steel Magnolias...........16 Steel Magnolias – PlayGuide

SCENE I

Synopsis

Steel Magnolias takes place in a fictional small town in Louisiana called Chinquapin Parish, in the beauty parlor of Truvy Jones. At the start, young Annelle is doing Truvy’s hair in hopes of a job in a new town and hopefully a new life. Annelle passes the test and is hired, starting with their first clients, the local ladies who are getting ready for the wedding of Shelby Eatonton to Jackson Latcherie.

The first of the ladies to arrive is Clairee, the classy and sassy grande dame of Chinquapin. Next to arrive is the bride herself, Shelby, followed by her mother M’Lynn. As the women settle in to chatter about the wedding, the groom, and life in town, their gabfest is interrupted by a medical emergency. Shelby begins to have an extreme low blood sugar reaction, as she has Type 1 diabetes. After some help from her mother and the other ladies, Shelby recovers, much to her embarrassment at the incident.

As Shelby recovers, she and M’Lynn reveal that Shelby’s doctor has relayed that pregnancy and childbirth could be dangerous and should be avoided. This revelation led Shelby to tell her fiance the previous evening that they shouldn’t get married, but they talked and the wedding is still happening.

When Clairee goes to put some candy into M’Lynn’s purse, she discovers a gun that belongs to M’Lynn’s husband, Drum, who has apparently been shooting into a magnolia tree shared with the town’s crabbiest resident, Miss Ouiser Boudreaux. Just as M’Lynn is sharing the story of the drama between her husband and Ouiser, the woman herself arrives with her dog who is highly agitated from all the gunfire. After Ouiser’s arrival and subsequent prodding, Annelle shares the sad tale of her shady husband, his questionable dealings, and her escape.

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Lily Rabe as Annelle and Frances Sternhagen as Clairee in the 2005 Revival of Steel Magnolias. Photo Credit: Joan Marcus, Playbill.com.

The scene ends with Drum’s final rally against the magnolia tree birds, some sort of explosives or fireworks, which rile up both Ouiser and her dog, as they stalk off to give Drum what’s coming to him.

SCENE II Later that year, the week before Christmas, the ladies reconvene at Truvy’s to prepare for the town’s Christmas festival. Shelby enters the shop to find M’Lynn alone and all the lights off. Truvy and Annelle are out back fixing a blown fuse. Shelby has come home to visit as she no longer lives in town now that she’s married.

Shelby reveals to M’Lynn that she is pregnant. M’Lynn is shocked and concerned, considering the medical guidance Shelby had previously been given. An argument between the two ensues.

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Synopsis (cont.)

Truvy and Annelle re-enter once the lights are recovered. They share that Annelle has moved into an apartment over Truvy’s garage and has developed quite a crafting hobby. Annelle also shares that her former husband is in jail and she celebrated by kicking up her heels, but has come down from that adventure through her discovery of faith. Annelle has become quite the catch and is doing some catching of her own, dating Sammy DeSoto.

Clairee arrives and tells Shelby about her newest venture, ownership of the local radio station, which also gives her the privilege of doing color commentary for the local football team. After some gossip, Ouiser arrives full of her characteristic spit and vinegar. Shelby mentions to Ouiser that she has met one of Ouiser’s old flames from long ago and that he remembers her fondly.

Shelby then reveals to the group that she is pregnant.

The ladies are much more excited about the prospect than M’Lynn, as they do not have a mother’s worry to temper the joy. After Shelby has gone to the car to get some donations to give to Annelle’s church, M’Lynn and the women talk about the reality behind the news.

ACT II

June, eighteen months later, and Shelby, Clairee, and Truvy are at the salon. Truvy is finishing cutting Shelby’s hair into a short pixie cut. When Truvy reveals the cut, Shelby begins to cry, but rallies and espouses the practicality of having easy hair with a baby around the house. Shelby asks for a “day of beauty” including a manicure, which is not the norm.

Clairee shares some local gossip and Annelle prays to herself. As she leaves the room, Truvy tells about Annelle’s extreme piety and devotion to her bornagain church. Ouiser stomps into the beauty parlor with tomatoes in tow, because she is an old Southern woman who is “supposed to” garden. Ouiser later shares that she and Owen, the suitor that Shelby reintroduced her to, have been seeing each other on occasion.

M’Lynn arrives at the shop and is shocked by Shelby’s new look. She mentions that the entire family is home “just to get together.” After Truvy pushes up Shelby’s sleeves for her manicure, what she sees makes clear that there is more to the story than that. Shelby explains that having her baby put too much stress on her kidneys and she has been on dialysis. To alleviate the need for the regular procedure, Shelby will need a kidney donation. Shelby does not need to wait on a transplant list, because M’Lynn will be giving her a kidney and they are going in for the surgery the following day.

The ladies offer their support, prayers, and food to help their friends get through this ordeal, and they will continue to do so as the rest of the play unfolds, no matter what happens..

Rosemary Prinz as M’Lynn and Betsy Aidem as Shelby in the 1987 Broadway production of Steel Magnolias. Photo Credit: Carol Roesegg, Playbill.com.

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Steel Magnolias – PlayGuide

Characters SHELBY

Phoebe González

One of the two younger women in the beauty salon circle and daughter of M’Lynn. The show opens on her wedding day. She is a headstrong and stubborn young woman who is a fighter.

Shelby has Type 1 diabetes, which creates complications throughout the play.

M’LYNN

Janet Ulrich Brooks

TRUVY

Rebecca Hirota

The proprietor of the local beauty salon. Sassy and talkative, she provides fabulous Southern hair with a side of gossip while also always being there for her circle of friends.

She is a calm and positive force which makes her beauty shop a safe haven for all who enter.

OUISER

Meg Thalken

ANNELLE

Maeve Moynihan

The new gal in town, only 19, who flees from a shady husband and goes on a journey to find herself. She is hired as an assistant to Truvy at the start of the play and becomes one of the gang as the story progresses. She discovers a new love and a new love for religion, as well as a support system in the other women.

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Mother of Shelby and an administrator at a local counseling center. She would do anything for her family or her friends, but is also a mother through and through, worrying about Shelby’s health and decisions throughout the play.

She is the emotional core of this group of women.

Ornery and full of one-liners, Ouiser is the antithesis of the sweet old Southern granny. She is often on edge and yet loves her friends fiercely and has a soft spot for these women with whom she convenes at the beauty parlor.

CLAIREE

Tami Workentin

The widow of the former mayor of the Parish, Clairee is the elder stateswoman of the town. She is always down for gossip, but also is constantly finding new projects to keep herself busy.

Clairee is best friends with Ouiser, and as such, tries her darndest to drive Ouiser crazy as often as possible . . . but it’s all done with love.

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The Inspiration for the Play Harling waited until a week before the show went into rehearsals to tell his parents about the play. In an interview, Harling relayed the story of sharing it with his mother, who was the inspiration for M’Lynn:

Susan Harling Robinson and her son, Robert. Photo Credit: Robert Harling.

Steel Magnolias was penned by Robert Harling in just ten days’ time as a tribute to his sister who died of kidney failure due to complications with diabetes. Harling has said, “I wrote it to somehow get this true story off my chest and to celebrate my sister in the process.” Harling was inspired by the story of his sister Susan, but he also paid tribute to his mother Margaret’s close circle of friends. The comedic tone of the story with such a tragedy at the center developed straight from those women: “All the women I knew were really funny. They all love one-liners and they talk in bumper stickers, and they’re sharp, funny women.”

The resulting play and subsequent film adaptation became a love letter to family, the power of female friendship, and to Harling’s hometown of Natchitoches, Louisiana.

When Mama asked me if she could read it, I said, ‘You don’t want to. It’s about you and Susan and the whole thing.’ But she’s a Steel Magnolia—she was going to read it. I gave her the script, and I’d walk past and she’d be sobbing, and I felt terrible. Afterward, I said, ‘Mom, we’ll just kill it, I can’t put you through this.’

And she said, ‘It’s wonderful because it’s true.’ She just closed it and that was it, end of topic.

The original Broadway production ran for almost three years at the Lucille Lortel Theatre. A Broadway revival played at the Lyceum in 2005. Community theatre, regional theatre, and international productions have abounded over the past thirty years. Several film adaptations have been made. Harling’s goal of letting Susan’s story live on has surpassed even his wildest dreams.

Harling has said about the strong, go-getter women in the play and in his life: “Whether you say that in 1988 or now, these women got it done. We’ve managed to encompass that in our vocabulary, but it’s always been, where I’m from, about getting it done. Now there’s a lot more Internet involved with it. But its basic force is: ‘I am woman, hear my roar.’ That’s been with us for decades.”

Playwright Robert Harling on the stage set of Steel Magnolias with Constance Shulman (L) and Rosemary Prinz, 1987. Photo Credit: Getty Images.

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Steel Magnolias – PlayGuide

Julia Roberts and cast filming a scene from Steel Magnolias in Natchitoches. Photo Credit: The Advocate.

HOLLYWOOD DESCENDS ON HOMETOWN: FILMING IN THE REAL-LIFE CHINQUAPIN Natchitoches (Chinquapin in the play) is so much a part of the story that filmmakers decided after campaigning from local residents and Harling himself that the small town was the only place that a film could be shot. When producer Ray Stark approached Harling after seeing the play, the appeal of filming in Natchitoches and the promise of a huge cast of “superstars” convinced Harling to develop the film six months after the play opened. So, celebrities and film crews descended on the tiny Louisiana town for several months in the summer and fall of 1988.

Robert Harling Sr., Julia Roberts, and Margaret Harling during filming of Steel Magnolias. Photo Credit: Legacy.com.

by a recession and the town was struggling. Bringing the film to the town not only brought an influx of economic growth during the shoot, but reinvigorated the town’s economy through the subsequent tourism that followed the movie. Steel Magnolias became a modern classic after its release, and tourists have made pilgrimages to Natchitoches for the ensuing thirty years to stay, shop, and visit filming locations. For the thirtieth anniversary of the film, Natchitoches even had a special festival complete with an armadillo cake contest, Easter egg hunt, special panel discussions, a film site tour, and a character lookalike contest. The home used in the film has even been turned into a popular bed & breakfast inn.

For a few short months, stars such as Dolly Parton and Julia Roberts shopped at the local Piggly Wiggly, rented houses around town, and got to know the real people of Natchitoches. The experience was surreal for residents, many of whom ended up appearing in the film as extras. The beauty of the town and the special magic of bringing the story of Harling’s sister to life in the town where it happened was unparalleled. A book called Steel Magnolias Scrapbook details the journey of those months of Hollywood coming to Natchitoches.

At the time of filming, Natchitoches had been hit hard Steel Magnolias House Bed and Breakfast, Natchitoches. Photo Credit: Southern Living.

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An Iconic S tory with Iconic Women Shortly after the stage play of Steel Magnolias premiered in 1987, plans for a film adaptation were launched. Harling himself wrote the film adaptation from the play script, but the story was expanded beyond Truvy’s beauty parlor to the whole of Chinquapin Parish, also including other members of the ladies’ families and community. The cast of the original film was full of iconic and soon-to-be iconic actresses.

In 2011, Lifetime announced it would be remaking the film with an all-Black cast of powerhouse women who would bring new life to the modern classic. The film premiered in 2012 with a more contemporary setting, but no less of an emotional impact.

While these film adaptations may be the most far-reaching portrayals of these women, the women who played these characters in the two Broadway productions are no less notable.

A look at the stage and screen icons who have inhabited these steel magnolias’ shoes:

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Character

1989 Film

2012 Film

1987 Original Broadway Production

Truvy

Dolly Parton

Jill Scott

Margo Martindale

Delta Burke

M’Lynn

Sally Field

Queen Latifah

Rosemary Prinz

Christine Ebersole

Shelby

Julia Roberts

Condola Rashad

Betsy Aidem

Rebecca Gayheart

Ouiser

Shirley MacLaine

Alfre Woodard

Mary Fogarty

Marsha Mason

Clairee

Olympia Dukakis

Phylicia Rashad

Kate Wilkinson

Frances Sternhagen

Annelle

Daryl Hannah

Adepero Oduye

Constance Shulman

Lily Rabe

2005 Revival

Steel Magnolias – PlayGuide

1989 Cast (Clockwise from top left) Sally Field, Julia Roberts, Dolly Parton, Shirley MacLaine, Daryl Hannah, and Olympia Dukakis. Photo Credit: Library of Congress.

2005 Broadway revival cast: Frances Sternhagen, Delta Burke, Rebecca Gayheart, Christine Ebersole, Marsha Mason, and Lily Rabe. Photo Credit: Pinterest.

2012 Cast (Clockwise from top left): Condola Rashad, Queen Latifah, Alfre Woodard, Jill Scott, Phylicia Rashad, Adepero Oduye. Photo Credit: IMDb.

Original Broadway cast with Joan Rivers backstage. From left to right: Mary Fogarty, Rosemary Prinz, Margo Martindale, Constance Shulman, (Rivers), Betsy Aidem, and Kate Wilkinson. Photo Credit: Getty Images.

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The Power of

Female F riendships in Popular Culture

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Thelma and Louise Girls’ Trip The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants Ladybird Girlhood The First Wives Club Ghostbusters (2016) Hidden Figures 9 to 5 The Joy Luck Club Now and Then Waiting to Exhale Pitch Perfect Real Women Have Curves Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion Set It Off Bridesmaids Booksmart Moxie!

TELEVISION

FILMS

Popular culture has often highlighted friendships and partnerships between men from the buddy comedy to the superhero and sidekick dynamic. This bond is often looked over in popular culture when the relationships are between women, with stories centering around competition, “mean girls,” and many times the pursuit of a heterosexual relationship that takes priority over the story of friendship. So much so, that feminist scholars have created barometers of a type to evaluate media based on whether it centers the cisgender male at its core, such as the Bechdel-Wallace test. Steel Magnolias is one of those magical films that centers female friendship and the importance of that social circle in one’s life. In Steel Magnolias, the group of women are also intergenerational, which is not as common in media as relationships between peers. If you’re looking for more amazing female friendships, check out these films and television shows next time you’re looking for something to stream:

Grace and Frankie Girlfriends Alexa and Katie Parks and Recreation The Bold Type Laverne and Shirley Living Single Gray’s Anatomy Crazy Ex-Girlfriend Good Girls Never Have I Ever Insecure Broad City I Love Lucy Golden Girls Sex and the City

Steel Magnolias – PlayGuide

Susan Sarandon and Geena Davis in Thelma and Louise. Photo Credit: American Film Institute.

Queen Latifah, Kimberley Elise, Vivica A. Fox, and Jada Pinkett Smith in Set It Off. Photo Credit: New Line Cinema.

Loretta Devine, Robin Givens, Angela Bassett, and Whitney Houston in Waiting to Exhale.

Photo Credit: Hollywood Reporter.

Isabel May and Paris Berelc in Alexa and Katie. Photo Credit: Netflix.

The cast of The Joy Luck Club. Photo Credit: American Film Institute.

Rashida Jones and Amy Poehler in Parks and Recreation. Photo Credit: NBC.

Tracee Ellis Ross, Jill Marie Jones, Golden Brooks, and Persia White on an episode of Girlfriends. Photo Credit: Paramount Television.

Amber Tamblyn, Blake Lively, America Ferrera, and Alexis Bledel in Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. Photo Credit: MTV.

Golden Girls promotional photo: Rue McClanahan, Bea Arthur, Estelle Getty, and Betty White. Photo Credit: Medium.

Lee Rodriguez, Ramona Young, and Maitreyi Ramakrishnan in Never Have I Ever.

Photo Credit: Netflix.

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The

Higher the Hair, The Closer to God To be born a Southern woman is to be made aware of your distinctiveness. And with it, the rules. The expectations. These vary some, but all follow the same basic template, which is, fundamentally, no matter what the circumstance, Southern women make the effort. Which is why even the girls in the trailer parks paint their nails. . . And why you will never see Reese Witherspoon wearing sweatpants.

Or Oprah take a nap.

Julia Roberts as Shelby and Dolly Parton as Truvy during a salon session filming Steel Magnolias. Photo Credit: Amazon.com.

THE SINGULARITY OF SOUTHERN BEAUTY STANDARDS In Steel Magnolias, Truvy says her personal philosophy is that “There is no such thing as natural beauty.” This statement seems to pervade pop culture and societal norms for Southern women and their hair. The association of Southern hair with bigger and blonder is definitely a stereotype that has deep roots, not to mention the centering of whiteness in beauty standards.

Big hair has dominated the images of Southern women in popular culture from Dale Evans in the 1950s to Dolly Parton throughout her whole career to some drag queens who pride themselves on their persona of Southern belles.

Steel Magnolias capitalizes on that tradition, as Truvy’s is a place where hairspray is used liberally and the teasing comb is moving all day long.

In an article entitled “Redefining the Southern Belle,” author Allison Glock describes Southern women thusly: 12

It also means never leaving the house with wet hair.

Not even in the case of fire. Because wet hair is lowrent. It shows you don’t care, and not caring is not something Southern women do, at least when it comes to our hair.

This is less about vanity than self-respect, a crucial distinction often lost on non-Southerners. When a Southern woman fusses over her appearance, it does not reflect insecurity, narcissism, or some arrested form of antifeminism that holds back the sisterhood.

Southern women are postfeminism. The whole issue is a nonstarter, seeing as Southern women are smart enough to recognize what works—Spanx, Aqua Net—and wise to the allocation of effort. Why pretend the world is something it isn’t? Better to focus on what you can control (drying your hair) and make the best of what you have. Side note: Southern women do not capitalize on their looks to snag men, though that often results. The reason we Southern women take care of ourselves is because, simply, Southern women are caretakers.

Dallas Cowboys cheerleader alum Michelle Keys explains the Southern commitment to beauty: “Like my grandma.

She wakes up every day, rolls her hair, does her makeup, has polish on her nails, and she’s not even going anywhere.

It’s tradition.” Former Dallas Mavericks dancer Hunter Blackwell adds: “Sometimes I don’t care. But I wouldn’t show up to a place I take seriously and not be put together.

It’s just a respect thing.”

Steel Magnolias – PlayGuide

barbershops and salons are not only a gathering place, but a centerpiece of the neighborhood, especially in Black communities. (For more on beauty and barbershop culture specifically in the Black community, see resource list at the end of this guide.)

A scene from Beauty Shop (2005) with Golden Brooks, Queen Latifah, and Alfre Woodard. Photo Credit: Nylon.

DaNae Couch, a former Miss Texas, also illuminated the ideas of Southern beauty standards: “You’ll hear people say they want to look like they woke up like this,” she says.

“I want to look like I put effort in.”

For a bit of fun, check out “Southern Hair the Year You Were Born” at SouthernLiving.com.

BEAUTY PARLORS, SALONS, AND BARBERSHOPS: SHARING GOSSIP, FRIENDSHIP, AND COMMUNITY Robert Harling said about setting Steel Magnolias in a beauty salon: “When I was a kid, the mystique of the beauty parlor was that guys were never allowed. You didn’t know what went on in there, and they all came back different somehow. I realized this hermetically sealed environment would be the best place to have these women express their true feelings.”

Salons have long been a place where people connect with each other and develop relationships deeper than client and stylist. While many salons are now for people of all genders, the traditional separation of beauty parlors and barbershops by gender led to the mystique that Harling describes. Many people have stories of long-standing relationships with their hairstylist or barber and sitting down to chat in the chair is just a natural part of going into the salon or barbershop. In many communities, www.MilwaukeeRep.com

While most people would have a story or two of anecdotal evidence of the community created by hair salons and barber shops, researchers have also been intrigued by the unique culture and role of these institutions in society.

From Candacy Taylor’s ethnographic interviews for the Library of Congress in 2012 to the documentary film Good Hair to commercial films such as Steel Magnolias and the Barbershop franchise, hair establishments provide fascinating fodder for both cultural commentary and entertainment.

For many, their hairstylist becomes a neutral person with whom to share their frustrations, hopes, daily life, and sometimes bigger personal issues. In some states, certified cosmetologists have to take trainings in responding to disclosure of domestic partner violence or sexual assault.

Stylists and barbers are often trusted not only with one’s looks, but one’s stories as well.

Writer of Beauty Shop Politics: African American Women’s Activism in the Beauty Industry, Tiffany Gill, said in an interview with BBC Culture, “I think the personal act of beautification combined with the opportunity to gather with other women and where you are essentially a captive audience allows for the free sharing of ideas and information.” That free sharing is the hallmark of salon and barbershop culture.

Rosalind Russell in 1939’s The Women where the beauty parlor is the center of all the gossip that fuels the action of the film. The Women is thought to be one of the first films to show women’s beauty parlor culture. Photo Credit: Kosak’s Classic Cinema.

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Health Topics

in Steel Magnolias

Image Credit: iStock.

In Steel Magnolias, several health topics are highlighted.

Shelby’s Type 1 diabetes as well as the importance of live organ donation are issues that are central to the story.

While many people are vaguely familiar with both of these health topics, they are often misunderstood until one’s life is touched by them directly.

30.3 million people in the U.S. have some form of diabetes (9.4% of the U.S. population). Another 84 million people have prediabetes.

TYPE 1 VERSUS TYPE 2 DIABETES Type 1: In Type 1 diabetes, one’s pancreas completely stops making insulin. It is considered an autoimmune disorder because the body starts attacking the beta cells that create insulin until it destroys them almost completely.

Those with Type 1 diabetes must take insulin every day for the rest of their lives in order to keep their blood sugar in safe ranges. There is currently no cure or reversal of Type 1 diabetes. Type 1 diabetes can lead to many other health problems if blood sugar is not controlled.

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Background Image Credit: Intelligence Pharma.

Type 2: In Type 2 diabetes, the pancreas still produces insulin, but one’s body doesn’t process it correctly (insulin resistance). In this case, the pancreas should make more insulin to compensate, but it does not. The combination of these two factors means that glucose does not effectively get moved from the blood into the cells. Type 2 often develops in people over the age of 40 or with other risk factors. Depending on the severity of deficiency, Type 2 can sometimes be managed with diet, exercise, and medication. If necessary, people with Type 2 may also need to take insulin if other treatment plans do not work.

WAYS TO HELP PREVENT DIABETES Type 1 is an unpreventable autoimmune disorder. Most people with Type 1 have a genetic predisposition to the disease and it is often, but not always, diagnosed in children, teens, and young adults.

Type 2 diabetes is a more preventable disease, although genetic predisposition does factor into the equation.

Some ways to reduce your risk of Type 2:

• Exercise • Healthy Diet • Keep a healthy body weight • Increase whole grains and fiber • Regular check-ups with your doctor

Steel Magnolias – PlayGuide

Image Credit: Cedars-Sinai Hospital.

ORGAN DONATION As of this writing, 107,869 people in the United States need an organ transplant with over 65,000 on active waiting lists. Almost 6,000 live donor transplants occurred in 2020, with over 39,000 transplants occurring across the country from both live and deceased donors.

Indicating that you wish to be an organ donor on your driver’s license and letting loved ones know your wishes in the case of your death is a vital piece in the organ donation puzzle. You can also register on the National Organ Donor Registry at donatelife.net.

• Every 10 minutes someone else is added to a transplant list.

• If you were to donate your organs you could save up to 8 lives.

• 7,000 deaths occur in the U.S. each year because an organ donation is not made in time.

• If you were to donate your corneas - you could restore sight to up to 2 people.

• 85% of patients waiting are in need of a kidney.

• If you were to donate your tissue - you could heal the lives of 75 people.

MOST DONATED ORGANS

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Kidney

Liver

Heart

Lung

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Quotable Quips

from the Mouths of Our Steel Magnolias Many of the turns of phrase from Steel Magnolias have been cemented into pop culture vernacular and it is one of those plays and films that is infinitely quotable. Some favorite “words of wisdom” from the ladies of Chinquapin . . .

a en in e b t s ju . . I’ve r ty years.” . y z a ot cr ood for fo n m ’ I “ ad m - O uiser ver y b

on. And “Time marches realize it’s eventually you your face.” marching acrossy - Truv

“I would rather have thirty minutes of wonderful than a lifetime of nothing special.”

- Shelby

“The o from nly thing t the a nima hat separ ls is o ates acce ssori ur abilit y us to - Clai ze.” r ee

I od side. o g y m on .” r y to get “Don’t t longer have one no r - Ouise

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Steel Magnolias – PlayGuide

“If you don’t have anything nice to say about anybody . . . come sit by me.”

“Smile ! It your f increases ace va - Truvy lue!”

- Clairee

woman. We’re “I am an old Southern nny looking supposed to put on fu and grow hats and ugly dresses Don’t ask me vegetables in the dirt. rules.” why. I don’t make the - Ouiser

“I have a stric cries alo t policy that no o ne in my presence ne .”

- Truvy

k. I will support “I’ll write a chec want to see it.” ar t. I just don’t iser - Ou

cloudy days “I love cloudy days. On very hard, so I I feel God’s not trying don’t have to either.”

- Shelby

thing o such n s i e r uty.”

“The ral bea u t a n s a Truvy

“Laughter through tears is my favorite emotion.”

-

- Truvy

NEED TO NERD OUT WITH MORE INFO? Are you so obsessed with the classic 1989 film that you say the entire film aloud when you watch?

The Steel Magnolias Scrapbook “30 Steel Magnolias Secrets That Might Not Make You Cry” Need to hear the story straight from the source?

Q & A with Robert Harling “The Story Behind Steel Magnolias 30 Years Later”

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Is your teasing comb on fire with your love of Southern hair?

“Higher Love: A Look at the Culture of Big Hair in Texas” “Blonde Ambition: On Dismantling the Southern Beauty Ideals of My Upbringing” Is your beauty or barber shop your safe haven and cultural touchstone?

“Making Waves: Beauty Salons and the Black Freedom Struggle” “Hairdresser and Beauty Shop Culture in America”

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VISITING

MILWAUKEE REP Milwaukee Repertory Theater’s Patty and Jay Baker Theater Complex is located in the Associated Bank River Center downtown at the corner of Wells and Water Streets.

The building was formerly the home of the Electric Railway and Light Company.

VISITING THE REP

TheRepertory Ticket Office is visiblePatty on the leftJay upon entering theComplex Wells Street doors. The Quadracci Milwaukee Theater’s and Baker Theater is located in the Milwaukee Powerhouse is located Mezzanine andStreets. can be accessed via escalator or elevator.

Center downtown at the corneron ofthe Wells and Water The building was formerly the home of the Electric Railway and Light Company.

The Ticket Office is visible on the left upon entering the Wells Street doors. The Quadracci Powerhouse is located on the first level.

FINANCIAL SUPPORT MILWAUKEE REP TO: THE ENABLES REP VALUES YOUR SUPPORT

Financial support enables The Rep to: Maintain our commitment to audiences with Advance the art of theater with productions ✯ Advance art of theater with that inspirespecial individuals createour community dialogue; thatthe inspire individuals andproductions create community needsand through Access Services that ✯ Provide a richer theater experience by hosting Rep-in-Depth, TalkBacks, PlayGuides to better dialogue. include Americanand Signcreating Language interpreted productions, captioned theater, infrared inform our audiences about our productions; listening systemsarea andwith scriptRep synopses to ensure ✯ Educate over a21,000 at 150+ schools in the greater Milwaukee Immersion Day Provide richer students theater experience by hosting that theater at Milwaukee Rep is accessible to all. experiences, studentTalkBacks matinees, workshops, tours and by making connections with their school curriculum Rep-in-Depth, and creating PlayGuides through classroom programs such as Reading to better inform our audiences about our Residencies; productions.

Educate the next generation of theater ✯ Maintain our commitment to audiences with special needs through our Access Services that include professionals our EPR Program whichand script American Sign Language interpreted productions, captioned theater,with infrared listening systems gives newly degreed artists a chance to hone synopses to ensure that theater at The Rep is accessible to all; Educate over 20,000 students at 200+ schools in their skills at Milwaukee Rep as they begin to ✯ Educate nextMilwaukee generationarea of theater professionals our EPR Program which gives newly degreed thethe greater with Rep Immersion with pursue their theatrical careers. We value our artistsDay a chance to hone their skills at The Rep as they begin to pursue their theatrical careers. experiences, student matinees, workshops, supporters and partnerships and hope that you and by making connections with their that you We valuetours our supporters and partnerships and hope help to expand ways Milwaukee willwill help us us to expand thethe ways Milwaukee RepRep school curriculum through programs community. has a positive impact on theater andclassroom on our Milwaukee has a positive impact on theater and on our such as Reading Residencies.

Milwaukee community.

Donations can be made on our website at Donations can be made on ourat website at www.MilwaukeeRep.com or by phone 414-290-5376. www.MilwaukeeRep.com or by phone at 414-290-5376 THE REP RECEIVES SUPPORT FROM: MILWAUKEE REP RECEIVES SUPPORT FROM:

The Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation The Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation The Richard & Ethel Herzfeld Foundation The Richard & Ethel Herzfeld Foundation The Shubert Foundation