Laughter through Tears (Hayswood Theatre)

Steele Magnolias

By Robert Harling

Directed by Katie Hay

Review by Kate Barry

Entire contents are copyright @2025 by Kate Barry. All rights reserved.

Few things are more powerful than friendship. At Truvy’s salon, you can always find a friend. Steele Magnolias laid the blueprint for stories about strong bonds and how much they matter in times of joy and sadness. Hayswood Theatre’s production of the classic dramedy is a sweet reminder of caring for one another and community.

In case you never saw the classic 80’s film version with the star studded cast, here is a brief overview: Truvy (Rosemary Cundiff-Brown) owns a beauty salon. Her patrons consist of M’Lynn (Rae Hester) and her daughter Shelby (Gabby Higdon). Recently widowed Mayor’s wife Claree (Patty Rojan) and eccentric grump Ouiser (Emily Trinkle) frequent the shop and Truvy’s new employee Annelle (Emily Vergason) finds a place of belonging as well. Hair is cut and curled as Truvy’s shop buzzes with gossip and advice.

The set gives a true sense of a beauty parlor with bright pink, or “blush and bashful,” walls and floral prints galore. This is a beauty shop that did not spare on details including a working shampoo sink, countless bottles of shampoos and hairspray. The cast does well to show off curling and primping skills for more authenticity. This dedication to creating a realistic beauty parlor makes up the handful of missed sound cues or dropped lines of dialogue. While the production struggles to master the natural flow of casual chit chat and conversation, the performances rely on the personalities of these strong characters and their natural relationships. The one-liners made famous by this work about female solidarity still ring true and the emotional scenes stir the desired reaction.

The story focuses on the mother-daughter relationship between M’Lynn and Shelby. Gabby Higdon’s Shelby is a twinkle-eyed newlywed excited about starting a family. Rae Hester’s M’Lynn brings an appropriate amount of concern and worry for her daughter’s health as motherhood approaches. Higdon and Hester find a genuine rapport with bickering and compromise. Higdon’s optimistic portrayal makes Shelby’s death more tragic. More so, Hester’s second act speech about “the most precious moment of my life” and her “I feel fine” rant pack a heavier emotional punch because of the previous scenes with Shelby.

As you would expect in any salon, Rosemary Cundiff-Brown’s Truvy runs things with heart and empathy. Facing an empty nest, Cundiff-Brown presents a performance that channels a best friend and mother hen with style to spare. Emily Trinkle’s Ouiser is quite memorable with her complaints and no nonsense attitude. Her entrance in a bright green caftan and baseball cap lets her audience know who she is right away. Rounding out the cast, Patty Rojan brings a wise and even keeled performance as Claree while Emily Vergason’s Annelle finds growth and confidence from painfully shy new girl in town to expected mother.

So many things happen at Truvy’s salon. Weddings are celebrated and death is mourned. But the strong relationships between women grow deep with each passing day.

Steele Magnolias

Hayswood Theatre

October 16-26 2025

115 S Capitol Ave

Corydon, IN hayswoodtheatre.org