After months of rehearsal and endless hours spent memorizing lines, the school’s mainstage play, “Steel Magnolias” brought a 90’s classic back to life.
Mr. Scott Lambert, head of arts at Kinkaid, directed the classic “Steel Magnolias” play for the third time. While plays at school typically have been directed by theatre teacher, Mrs. K’lynn Hocker, Mr. Lambert decided to take on the challenge.
“Steel Magnolias was the first show I directed at Kinkaid and it’s my 35th year here, so it’s cool to revisit the show,” Mr. Lambert said.
The performance differed from normal theatrical productions on the mainstage, given that there was a single set throughout the show and six leading women on stage.
“I knew we had six exquisite young actors who could handle that show, and it’s a great group,” Mr. Lambert said.
“Steel Magnolias” featured seniors Payton Daly, Cami Culbertson and Reese McMullen, along with juniors Irene Pletcher, Saya Malek and Lia Zitvar.
Due to the small cast, the show gave a more connected feeling than previous productions with larger companies.
“It’s nice to have a small, intimate cast,” Daly said.
“Steel Magnolias” was a hit movie in the 80’s, leaving the storyline easier to follow for the many people in the audience who watched the original movie with Dolly Parton.
“I love the movie so watching the play live was really accurate and cool,” junior Saharsra Thakkar said.
The challenging aspects of playing best friends on stage for two and a half hours left the rehearsal progress rigorous and cast bonding a necessity.
“One day, we all went to the zoo together to observe animals for a Lee Strasberg character development exercise,” Daly stated.
Spending time together allowed for a more realistic feel during the production, given that the main theme in “Steel Magnolias” is unmatched friendships.
“We spent so much time together outside of actual rehearsal, which was so helpful for putting together the show,” Pletcher stated.
The many lines and stage directions portrayed on stage seemed like a rigorous task for audiences, but the seasoned actors handled the challenge easily.
“I didn’t have to review them much outside of rehearsal,” Pletcher said.
The show was filled with heavy emotional scenes. The cast played a variety of ages, from young women in their 20’s to elderly women in their 70’s and 80’s.
“It was fun to navigate M’Lynn’s complexity and moral dilemmas from a mom’s perspective and I just played my mom in a way,” Payton stated.
The show also incorporated understudies, featuring sophomores Sienna DeSimone and Hudsen Tellepsen and freshman Kate White.
Each girl was an understudy for two of the characters in the show and were expected to come to the majority of the rehearsals and all of tech week.
“I’m so grateful that I was able to watch such talented actors on stage and learn from their acting methods,” Tellepsen said.
