Marsha Mason Takes on Ouiser in B'way's Upcoming Steel Magnolias
Mason is a four-time Oscar nominee, having earned nods for lead roles in Cinderella Liberty, The Goodbye Girl, Chapter Two and Only When I Laugh. She has appeared on Broadway in Happy Birthday, Wanda June, The Good Doctor and The Night of the Iguana. Her other off-Broadway credits include Richard III, Old Times, The Big Love, Lake No Bottom, Love Letters, The Vagina Monologues and last season's Wintertime. In addition to her work as an actress, Mason owns the Resting in the River Farm, which produces herbal supplements natural products.
Steel Magnolias is set it a small-town beauty parlor in Louisiana and follows the lives of several women who often meet there. The story pays particular attention to M'Lynn Ebersole and her daughter Shelby Gayheart. Both a comedy and a tearjerker, there are eccentric characters galore in the play, including the ill-tempered Ouiser.
The original production of the play opened off-Broadway at the WPA Theatre in 1987 and quickly moved to the larger Lucille Lortel Theatre, where it ran for 1,126 performances. Mary Fogarty played Ouiser in the original company and Shirley MacLaine took on the role in the popular 1989 film version.
The Broadway production of Steel Magnolias, directed by Jason Moore, is set to officially open on April 4.
A production spokesperson could not confirm the casting of Mason.