Were Critics Charmed by the Southern Ladies of Steel Magnolias?

Although Robert Harling's Steel Magnolias has never been on Broadway, it is already rather famous--thanks mostly to the 1989 movie based on the stage play. The show opened at the Lyceum Theatre on April 4 with Delta Burke, Christine Ebersole, Rebecca Gayheart, Marsha Mason, Frances Sternhagen and Lily Rabe. Did critics find charm in this tale set in a Louisiana beauty parlor?

Here is a sampling of what they had to say:

William Stevenson in his Broadway.com Review: "Fortunately, despite the poignant moments, director Jason Moore Avenue Q keeps the tone light most of the time. And his ace cast follows suit. As M'Lynn, Ebersole is magnificent... Sternhagen, who was so charming in the Roundabout's revival of The Foreigner earlier this season, is delicious as Clairee. The actress delivers her biting lines--including the famous 'If you don't have anything nice to say about anyone, come sit by me'--with aplomb. Delta Burke also gets her share of laughs as the lovable Truvy. Considering her years on the sitcom Designing Women, she is more low-key than one might expect and much subtler than Dolly Parton was in the movie. This may reflect the direction of Moore, who doesn't let the comedy get too broad. As for Mason, she isn't quite right for Ouiser. Mason looks too put-together and made up; she should be dowdier, not to mention wackier. Rabe is quietly believable as the born-again Annelle, and Gayheart is always appealing as the vivacious but sickly Shelby."

Ben Brantley of The New York Times: "I found myself feeling more like the curmudgeonly character who says, 'I don't see plays because I can nap at home for free.' Despite an ensemble featuring high-profile veterans of stage, film and television, sitting through Steel Magnolias, which is set in a beauty parlor in a small town in Louisiana, is like watching nail polish dry... Staged by Jason Moore, best known for directing the puppets and people of Avenue Q, the show has the feeling less of being brought to life than of having been taken out of storage like Christmas tree ornaments."

Clive Barnes of The New York Post: "Why pay good money to see something you can see on TV? That's the central problem besetting Robert Harling's Steel Magnolias--that and the fact that it's not a very good play... Directed with clunky predictability by Jason Moore, with an authentic but not especially pleasing setting by Anna Louizos and amusingly observed costumes by David Marin--as far as style is concerned, the production's high point--the play is hardly up to Broadway's standards... The cast works superhumanly hard to milk conventional humor out of Harling's sitcom stereotypes and cartoonish dialogue."

Howard Kissel of The New York Daily News: "There are a few easy laughs in Steel Magnolias, but the passage of time has shown what a finely constructed piece of theater it is, as resilient, as funny, as moving and as bracing as its marvelous title characters... Anna Louizos' set conveys the cozy charm of the shop with wry but warm humor. There is great subtlety in David Murin's costumes. Howell Binkley's lighting adds immeasurably to the play's shifting moods."

David Rooney of Variety: "A comforting blend of sitcom and soap, Robert Harling's play about the strength and solidarity of Southern women might not have been screaming for a Broadway berth, but it is brought enjoyably to life by director Jason Moore and his sassy cast. It's the theatrical equivalent of nestling under the warming cocoon of a hair dryer while your highlights set and flipping through a juicy gossip mag with a tearjerker installment... Moore at times lets the rhythms of the girl-talk slump and the play could stand to lose 10 minutes or so. But considering the amount of business the actresses have to attend to while keeping the chitchat flowing, it's perhaps no wonder some of the cast is still finding its groove."

Michael Kuchwara of The Associated Press: "Harling has savvily constructed a little slice of Southern life, that if cast reasonably well can offer considerable pleasure. This revival, directed with a light touch by Jason Moore, does just that… One of the joys of this production is watching a newcomer such as Rabe interact with theater veterans such as Marsha Mason and Frances Sternhagen as two of the shop's longtime customers. Both know how to get a laugh--and steal a scene. Mason plays Ouiser, the town's resident crab apple, and it's great fun watching her fuss and fume… [Sternhagen] turns what could be a throwaway part into one that provides much laughter--and applause."

Linda Winer of Newsday: "If there is a reason to revive Steel Magnolias--and you can't prove that by us--the justification must be right there onstage at the Lyceum Theatre. Six decor-devouring actresses, including some of America's old friends from TV, have been gathered into a single, economical and familiar setting to laugh a little, cry a little and zing a few one-liners that probably sounded newer off-Broadway in 1987 and in the 1989 movie... Burke is salty and straightforward as the proprietress, a woman who expresses the play's goal and philosophy: 'Laughing through tears is my favorite emotion.' Frances Sternhagen, with her buzz-saw voice and lamby face, gets most of the wittiest lines as the elderly widow of the town's mayor. Marsha Mason makes the most of the rich, cranky divorcee's comic cruel streak. The more serious plotline is gracefully handled by Rebecca Gayheart, the bride with more than pink nail polish on her pretty mind, and, especially by Christine Ebersole as her protective mother."