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'Steel Magnolias' a real hit in real magnolia country

By BARBARA FREDRICKSEN
Published February 24, 2007

If you're a fan of the comedy-drama Steel Magnolias, you're in luck.

Richey Suncoast Theatre and Stage West Community Playhouse released their show schedules for the 2007-08 season this week, and both theaters are doing the popular play.

Stage West is doing it in the 159-seat Forum on weekends Oct. 5-18. Richey Suncoast is doing it Feb. 21-29, 2008.

The Early Bird Dinner Theatre is doing the show right now in its new digs on McMullen-Booth Road in Clearwater. The now-defunct Angel Cabaret Theatre in New Port Richey did it in 2003.

Even so, no matter how times the show is produced, audiences tend to flock to see it. Indeed, its warm mix of laughs and tears never seems to get old.

The rest of theaters' seasons cover familiar territory (see box), except for three intriguing entries: the military courtroom drama, A Few Good Men and the thriller Veronica's Room at Stage West, and the tragic musical Chess at Richey Suncoast.

Many people have probably seen the movie version of A Few Good Men with Tom Cruise and Jack Nicholson. The stage version, which came first, was the first significant script ever written by Aaron Sorkin, who went on to fame and fortune with The West Wing, Schindler's List and now, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip.

The lesser-known Veronica's Room is a four-person tale of fantasy and terror by Ira Levin, who also wrote Rosemary's Baby. The New York Times called it "an unrelentingly nasty play filled with incest, murder, necrophilia and stark insanity," which sounds like an interesting evening of theater if I ever heard of one.

Chess will be an altogether new experience for most theater-goers around here, including me. As far as I can tell, the 1988 musical has not been produced by any area theater or brought to any area venue.

It started out in London as a "concept" show with heavy involvement by Tim Rice (Evita, Jesus Christ Superstar) several years before it went to Broadway, where it was totally rewritten to be a regular "book" show with a linear story line.

Richey Suncoast is doing the American version, which is set at a championship chess match between a Russian and an American during the Cold War. There's a romantic triangle, which sets up the plot. Critics went wild for the musical score, which was written in part by a member of the Swedish rock group ABBA.

Despite critical acclaim, it ran for only 68 performances on Broadway and lost $6-million.

Richey Suncoast is brave to give it a try and is hoping that local audiences will appreciate that the theater is bringing something different to a local stage.

I know I do.

This season's playbills

Here are the rest of the shows:

Richey Suncoast Theatre

All six shows, $70; five shows (excludes the Christmas show), $60. Current season-ticket holders have until May 27 to retain their seats. Tickets may be purchased by phone at (727) 842-6777 or at the box office from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesdays through Saturdays during the run of a show. Leave a message and someone will call you back.

Sept. 6-23: Man of La Mancha, musical.

Oct. 18-Nov. 4: The Bad Seed, dramatic thriller.

Nov. 23-Dec. 2: Pasco Christmas: Scrooge Revisited, musical.

2008:

Jan. 10-27: Chess, musical.

Feb. 21-March 9: Steel Magnolias, comedy-drama.

May 8-25: Fame, musical.

Stage West Community Playhouse

8390 Forest Oaks Blvd., Spring Hill. Early purchase special through May 31, $60 for five shows; after that, $70 for five shows. Tickets go on sale April 1. Current season-ticket holders have until May 31 to retain their current seats. Call (352) 683-5113.

Sept. 6-23: Noises Off, comedy.

Nov. 1-18: Oliver!, musical.

2008:

Jan. 10-27: A Few Good Men, courtroom drama.

Feb. 28-March 16: Evita, musical.

May 1-18: Agatha Christie's Murder on the Nile.

The Forum at Stage West Community Playhouse

Early purchase until May 31, $20 for all three shows; after that, $25.

Oct. 5-14: Steel Magnolias, comedy-drama.

2008:

Feb. 1-10: Veronica's Room, thriller.

April 4-13: Death of a Salesman, drama.

ON THE WEB

For more stories and reviews of theater offerings around the North Suncoast and Tampa Bay, visit stage.tampabay.com.

[Last modified February 23, 2007, 20:59:54]