Published: November 17, 2009 11:31 am      

Gusto Theatre preps second production

For most women older than 25, life changed when they watched M’Lynn Eatenton, played by Sally Field, standing in the cemetery after burying her daughter, Shelby.

In one of the most heart-wrenching moments in movie history, she turns to her friends in tears and says, “I am fine! I can jog all the way to Texas and back, but my daughter can’t! She never could! Oh God, I am so mad I don’t know what to do. I wanna know why. I wanna know why Shelby’s life is over. I wanna know how that baby will ever know how wonderful his mother was.”

Yes, any woman who is any woman knows lines from “Steel Magnolias” from a mile away. And, as of Thursday, those lines will come to London courtesy of the new Gusto Theatre Company.

Director and Gusto Theatre Manager Doug Salyers is in charge of the show, which is being putting together at warp speed. Rehearsals started Nov. 2, with Heather Dyche (M’Lynn), Katie Ann Burr (Shelby), Judy House (Truvy), Brooke Cole (Annelle), Jayna Alexander (Ouiser) and Pam Owens (Clairee) working hard to put on a first-class production.

“The ladies have really stepped up,” Salyers said. “When I first asked them to do it, I had to explain to them what kind of schedule we work on. We work very fast in this theater. They accepted the challenge. Within a week, the ladies are already off-script for half of the show.”

That show, for people unfamiliar with the plot, features six spirited women from Chinquapin, La., who are, at once, each other’s best friends and, in the case of Ouiser and Clairee, worst enemies. The story centers around M’Lynn’s daughter Shelby, who suffers from diabetes. As Shelby gets married and has a baby, the women are there for her and M’Lynn, who worries constantly for her daughter’s health. When Shelby loses her battle with her disease, the women hold onto one other with characteristic humor, frankness and love.

“I love the line in the show when Truvy says, ‘laughter through tears in my favorite emotion,’” Salyers said. “I think that holds true for the entire show.”

For more information, call Gusto Theatre Company at 864-8786.

Staff writer Tara Kaprowy can be reached by e-mail at tkaprowy@sentinel-echo.com.