Arts & Entertainment
Belles and beauticians
Feisty but flawed, Keegan’s ‘Magnolias’ production revives classic ‘80s dramedy
‘Steel Magnolias’
Through Aug. 21
Keegan Theatre at Church Street
1742 Church Street, N.W.
$30-$35
703-892-0202
From left, Sheri Herren, Larissa Gallagher, Jane Petkofsky and Brianna Letourneau in Keegan Theatre’s production of ‘Steel Magnolias.’ (Photo by Jim Coates; courtesy of Keegan)
Before it was a hit film, “Steel Magnolias” won kudos and enjoyed a long and successful run as an off-Broadway play. Written by Robert Harling in response to his younger sister’s death, this drama wrapped in comedy explores solidarity in adversity and the resilience of women, particularly southern women. Keegan Theatre is now offering its own take on the popular work.
The story unfolds entirely in Truvy’s hair salon, a small town Louisiana beauty bastion inhabited exclusively by females, and while both stylists and clients frequently refer to their men who have names like Drum and Spud, the audience never actually meets them. At Truvy’s, women are able to let their hair down. In between shampoos and comb outs, they not only gossip but also share hopes and disappointments.
“Steel Magnolias’” more serious side concerns regular clients M’Lynn and daughter Shelby. The mother is justly worried about her diabetic offspring who marries young and proceeds to get pregnant against doctors’ advice. It’s a lot like a very long episode of the Atlanta-set sitcom “Designing Women” (fittingly Delta Burke was featured in Steel Magnolia’s all-star Broadway 2005 revival) with glib Southern white women dishing, bitching and commiserating. Only here someone dies.
Directed by Mark Rhea, the ensemble cast includes Sheri Herren and real life daughter Laura Herren as M’Lynn and Shelby. Linda High and Jane Petkofsky play cranky spitfire Ouiser and rich widow Clairee, respectively. As Truvy, Larissa Gallagher chats and does hair (in fact, she successfully tortures the big blonde wig that Herrin’s Shelby wears in act one into a respectable wedding up do); and Brianna Letourneau’s Annelle — Truvy’s anxious assistant — evolves markedly throughout the play’s four scenes but regrettably retains her questionable sartorial taste. She trades a frumpy polyester dress for a cowgirl getup.
There are some problems: The cast’s Louisiana accents are all over the place and the pacing of the show is inexplicably uneven. And while some of the actors have chosen to underplay their parts, others are going at it full throttle. Admirably, some of the cast are struggling to portray real characters and not simply caricatures, but given the material it’s not easy.
The play’s intimate setting is well-suited for the cozy Church Street Theater. Trena Weiss-Null’s set design isn’t the tacky beauty box one might expect, but rather a typical modest ‘80s salon with mint-green marbleized walls and black and gray stations. Similarly, costume designer Erin Nugent dresses the ladies in leggings, boxy power suits and other items totally redolent of the era.
A bona fide chick flick, the 1989 film version starring Sally Field and Julia Roberts as mother and daughter is also beloved by a lot of gay men, some of whom can irritatingly rattle off chunks of the film’s dialogue verbatim. Memorable lines include: Truvy’s “All gay men have track lighting and are name Rick, Mark or Steve,” and Ouiser’s “I’m not crazy M’Lynn. I’ve just been in a bad mood for the last 40 years!”
When “Steel Magnolias” opened in 1987 at the Lucille Lortel in Greenwich Village, theatergoers enjoyed meeting these feisty belles and their southern fried phrases, but certainly Shelby’s decision to fearlessly live life in the shadow of death’s specter must have resonated strongly with gay audiences who were around for some of the grimmest years of the AIDS crisis. More than two decades later, the play might feel a little stale, but that courageous spirit still resonates.
The 2026 Mr. Mid-Atlantic Leather competition was held at the Hyatt Regency Capitol Hill on Sunday. Seven contestants vied for the title and Gage Ryder was named the winner.
(Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)
Theater
Voiceless ‘Antony & Cleopatra’ a spectacle of operatic proportions
Synetic production pulls audience into grips of doomed lovers’ passion
‘Antony & Cleopatra’
Through Jan. 25
Synetic Theater at
Shakespeare Theatre Company’s Klein Theatre
450 7th St., N.W.
Synetictheater.org
A spectacle of operatic proportions, Synetic Theater’s “Antony & Cleopatra” is performed entirely voiceless. An adaptation of the Bard’s original (a play bursting with wordplay, metaphors, and poetic language), the celebrated company’s production doesn’t flinch before the challenge.
Staged by Paata Tsikurishvili and choreographed by Irina Tsikurishvili, this worthy remount is currently playing at Shakespeare Theatre Company’s Klein Theatre, the same venue where it premiered 10 years ago. Much is changed, including players, but the usual inimitable Synectic energy and ingenuity remain intact.
As audiences file into the Klein, they’re met with a monumental pyramid bathed in mist on a dimly lit stage. As the lights rise, the struggle kicks off: Cleopatra (Irina Kavsadze) and brother Ptolemy (Natan-Maël Gray) are each vying for the crown of Egypt. Alas, he wins and she’s banished from Alexandria along with her ethereal black-clad sidekick Mardian (Stella Bunch); but as history tells us, Cleopatra soon makes a triumphant return rolled in a carpet.
Meanwhile, in the increasingly dangerous Rome, Caesar (memorably played by Tony Amante) is assassinated by a group of senators. Here, his legendary Ides of March murder is rather elegantly achieved by silver masked politicians, leaving the epic storytelling to focus on the titular lovers.
The fabled couple is intense. As the Roman general Antony, Vato Tsikurishvili comes across as equal parts warrior, careerist, and beguiled lover. And despite a dose of earthiness, it’s clear that Kavsadze’s Cleopatra was born to be queen.
Phil Charlwood’s scenic design along with Colin K. Bills’ lighting cleverly morph the huge pyramidic structure into the throne of Egypt, the Roman Senate, and most astonishingly as a battle galley crashing across the seas with Tsikurishvili’s Antony ferociously at the helm.
There are some less subtle suggestions of location and empire building in the form of outsized cardboard puzzle pieces depicting the Mediterranean and a royal throne broken into jagged halves, and the back-and-forth of missives.
Of course, going wordless has its challenges. Kindly, Synectic provides a compact synopsis of the story. I’d recommend coming early and studying that page. With changing locations, lots of who’s who, shifting alliances, numerous war skirmishes, and lack of dialogue, it helps to get a jump on plot and characters.
Erik Teague’s terrific costume design is not only inspired but also helpful. Crimson red, silver, and white say Rome; while all things Egyptian have a more exotic look with lots of gold and diaphanous veils, etc.
When Synetic’s voicelessness works, it’s masterful. Many hands create the magic: There’s the direction, choreography, design, and the outrageously committed, sinewy built players who bring it to life through movement, some acrobatics, and the remarkable sword dancing using (actual sparking sabers) while twirling to original music composed by Konstantine Lortkipanidze.
Amid the tumultuous relationships and frequent battling (fight choreography compliments of Ben Cunis), moments of whimsy and humor aren’t unwelcome. Ptolemy has a few clownish bits as Cleopatra’s lesser sibling. And Antony’s powerful rival Octavian (ageless out actor Philip Fletcher) engages in peppy propaganda featuring a faux Cleopatra (played by Maryam Najafzada) as a less than virtuous queen enthusiastically engaged in an all-out sex romp.
When Antony and Cleopatra reach their respective ends with sword and adder, it comes almost as a relief. They’ve been through so much. And from start to finish, without uttering a word, Kavsadze and Tsikurishvili share a chemistry that pulls the audience into the grips of the doomed lovers’ palpable passion.
Out & About
Love board games and looking for love?
Quirk Events will host “Board Game Speed Dating for Gay Men” on Thursday, Jan. 22 at 7 p.m. at KBird DC.
Searching for a partner can be challenging. But board games are always fun. So what if you combined board games and finding a partner?
Picture this: You sit down for a night of games. A gaming concierge walks you through several games over the course of the night. You play classics you love and discover brand new games you’ve never heard of, playing each with a different group of fun singles. All while in a great establishment.
At the end of the night, you give your gaming concierge a list of the folks you met that you’d like to date and a list of those you met that you’d like to just hang out with as friends. If any two people put down the same name as each other in either column, then your gaming concierge will make sure you get each other’s e-mail address and you can coordinate a time to hang out.
Tickets cost $31.80 and can be purchased on Eventbrite.
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