WHITE ROCK — To be a convincing actor, some say, you have to really identify with the character you're playing. You have to connect to the story, feel the emotions of the role and relate to the plot.
For the six women acting in Peninsula Productions' upcoming play Steel Magnolias, their lives seem almost parallel to that of the characters they'll be performing.
Directed by PP's artistic director, Wendy Bollard, Steel Magnolias features Carrie Anne Fleming, Sarah Green, Robyn Bradley, Becky Hachey, Lori Tych and Barbara Pollard as six women helping each other through life's tribulations at a local hair salon.
"I read it as a love letter to women, it's a really lovely piece of theatre," Bollard said during an interview at the group's rehearsal space, on North Bluff Road.
"(Robert Harling has) written these women in a really loving, kind way. They're friends through thick and thin. Through this hair salon, they take care of each other."
As it turns out, Bollard herself likes to look out for her fellow females, which is why shedecided to cast an all-women play for her spring production.
"There's way more parts for men than there are for women, so every time I can do a play with more parts for women, I love it," she explained.
The role of Truvy, a beauty shop owner in small-town Louisiana, is played by Fleming.
"I am incredibly supportive of women, and my character really enjoys women and enjoys touching them and doing things and making them happy and making them pretty," she said.
"I've always been encouraging of women, because that leaves you so much more open to an experience. It shuts you down if you're insulting women... it's just more fun to be helpful and supportive."
Green, who plays Annelle, the shy-at-first new girl in town, echoed the sentiment.
"I think that all of the characters are super relatable," she said.
"In some way, I relate to each one of them. Everybody knows a Ouiser, or a Clairee or a Truvy or an Annelle in some way, which is kind of neat. I just love the story, and I love working with all these wonderful women, too."
For Bradley, who plays Clairee, a recent widow who leans on her friendship with the curmudgeon-y Ouiser, her goal was to work alongside Bollard.
"My motivation was that I wanted to work with Wendy," she admitted. "The film, I saw back when it came out, and when I heard they (Peninsula Productions) were doing Steel Magnolias I was excited about it, it's a great show."
Fleming was quick to jump in and attest that, "the director is a plus!"
What Bradley didn't know coming into the play was how attached she would be to her fellow cast members.
"It's a great team. You sit onstage and look around and there's just so much talent. Bits that weren't even funny are hilarious because of the way the actors deliver the line," Bradley said, exuberantly.
Fleming affectionately describes the group's interpretation of Steel Magnolias as "Sex and the City, but if it was in the south, and in the '80s, and if we were all Christian."
Meanwhile, Peninsula Productions, which has operated as a non-profit organization since 2010, recently approached the City of White Rock for funding. The group requested $25,000 for theatre rentals and other costs.
"We spend at least $20,000 a year in rent in the city, if not more," said Bollard, noting that this is the first time the company has asked for city funding since its inception.
Steel Magnolias runs from March 4 to 14 at Coast Capital Playhouse in White Rock. Tickets range from $13 to $25 and can be bought at the box office or at Peninsulaproductions.org.
Peninsula Productions is now casting its summer production of The 39 Steps, the Monty Python-esque whodunit by Patrick Barlow and John Buchan, with show dates from July 8 to 25.