I'm going to admit right off the bat that I've never seen the movie "Steel Magnolias." The only phrase I have ever heard to describe it is "chick flick," which is a genre I avoid like the plague. I was apprehensive going into Gothic Productions' play, expecting to be bored to tears by a manipulative weepfest. I was pleasantly surprised to find myself watching a comedic drama, with emphasis on the "comedic."

For those who, like me, are clueless about the plot, "Steel Magnolias" by Robert Harling is about a young woman named Shelby (played by Stephanie Blaze) and the effect she has on the lives of the people around her: her mother, M'lynn (Rebecca Hanes Pillsbury); salon owner Truvy (Bianca Jansen); former mayor's wife Clairee (Theresa Secor); the salon's new employee Annelle (Jaclyn Miller) and next-door neighbor Ouiser (Suzanne McNabb Tobin). Opening on Shelby's wedding day in April, the play is four scenes over 31 months, and the audience gets to see the changes each character has made over the months since the previous scene.

The entire cast is energetic and, with a few exceptions, Jim Diderrich's direction kept the pace quick and the comedy believable. The audience feels more like they're watching a group of old friends chatting and gossiping than like they're watching a group of actors saying lines.

Blaze is sweet and bubbly as Shelby, whose love of the color pink is almost a running gag. You can feel her excitement when she tells her friends that her wedding colors are "blush and bashful," and it's easy to see how she affects the people around her. Shelby is one of those characters who doesn't seem to have an unkind word to say about anybody, and Blaze does a great job making the character likable, even when she's insisting on having the last word with her mother.

Truvy is the perfect caricature of the nosy, gossipy salon owner. She knows everything about everybody and won't think twice about telling everybody else. Jansen's performance is spot-on, driving conversations this way and that, and her reactions are fall-out-of-your-chair funny. Miller goes from being the "girl with a past" to "born-again Christian" to "overthetop bornagain Christian" as smoothly as the script allows (the gaps in time make it a little jarring), and it's a lot of fun to watch.

Clairee and Ouiser are the show's "two old ladies," women who have been friends for so long one can't seem to stand the sight of the other, but they probably wouldn't know what to do without each other. Clairee is a cheerful, football-loving woman who is looking for a purpose after the passing of her husband. Secor keeps her performance light, even in the most dramatic scenes. Tobin is a joy to watch as the frazzled, cranky Ouiser, and she and Secor play off of each other beautifully.

Pillsbury's performance gets a little lost in the shuffle. With so many quirky characters around her, M'lynn seems to be the eye of the storm, the one sane woman in a world of crazy people. As in any comedy, it's tough to make the straight man (or, in this case, woman) stand out, and Pillsbury doesn't seem to quite have the energy for the job, playing the character a little too straight.

"Steel Magnolias" is great fun, even for those of us who don't like dramas or "chick flicks." Be prepared to laugh. But do take a handkerchief, just in case.

"Steel Magnolias" is playing at 8 p.m. Thurs., June 18 through Sat., June 20 and at 2 p.m. Sun., June 21 at the Hillcrest Center's Theatre on the Hill, 403 W. Hillcrest Drive, Thousand Oaks.

Tickets are $20 for adults, $15 for seniors and students. Call (805) 381-1246.

The show is presented by Ventura County Gilbert & Sullivan Repertoire Company and Gothic Productions.