Steel Magnolias – The Connection Between Hair and Emotion

Disclaimer: Community Editor Sierra Lidén appears as a featured actress in Antrim Playhouse’s production of Steel Magnolias. 

Steel Magnolias, running at Antrim Playhouse from February 7th to February 23rd, follows a group of Southern women whose lives spin on the axis of their local beauty shop. While this show tackles a variety of themes (infertility, diabetes, aging and loss to name a few), one theme rises again and again – beauty. More specifically, hair. 

Throughout the show, nearly every character undergoes dramatic changes to her locks. Up, down, long, short, curled or straight, these women use their hair to communicate with the world.  

Society paints attention to beauty as frivolous. Steel Magnolias portrays beauty as a meditation, as an armor, as a prayer to your highest self. It is honoring yourself and others. 

In Jewish mysticism, hair is seen as a conduit for profound energy, one that is so powerful it cannot be communicated with something as trite as mere words. Hair is only meant to be uncovered in a home with only those directly related to you.

Many Native American Tribes see braids as a source of strength that connects them to the Earth. The three strands that twist together to create their braids represent body, mind and spirit. No one outside of their immediate family is permitted to touch their hair, as it may transfer negative energy. 

In other Indigenous cultures, cutting hair is seen as a loss of a piece of the individuals’ relationship with themselves. In this culture, Indigenous people will cut their hair following the death of a loved one. As the hair grows back, so will the teachings of that loved one. These strands of hair mark the strands of time.

When Shelby gets her hair cut off, she shyly asks her hairdresser Truvy if she can keep it. Truvy says that people ask to keep their hair all the time, to which Shelby responds “I’ve had it for so long, I guess it represents an era or something.” 

Our hair holds memories, wishes and dreams. When Shelby chops her hair off, she is hoping for a new start, a chance to make new memories. It is not vanity. It is a symbol of the mourning she is undertaking for the life she had planned and anticipation of her life to come. 

Those well-versed in the language of hairspray, bobby pins and slick magazine pages will find themselves connecting easily with the six women that make up this salon. Hair is an emotional piece of our loves, and with whom we share our hair with we share our hearts. 

This show will take place at the Antrim Playhouse in Tappan, NY opening February 7th. Learn more at antrimplayhouse.com.