Originally published in 1989 and revised in 1997, Belles has entered the theatre canon as one of our most delightful and endearing plays about Southern women. Told in “two acts and 45 phone calls,” Belles visits six Southern sisters, who, over the course of an autumn weekend, seek to bridge the physical and emotional distance between them via the telephone, and in the process come to terms with their shattered family history. The six Walker sisters all hail from Memphis, but now they are scattered all over the country. Only Peggy still lives in Memphis, where she cares for Mama. When the play begins, Peggy is phoning her sisters with the latest about Mama... whether they want to hear it or not!
The gold standard among Mr. Dunn’s many plays about Southern women, and offering very strong roles for an ensemble of six actresses, Belles continues to pack an emotional punch. More and more theatre companies are revisiting this play, many setting it back when it was originally written – before cell phones and texting and the virtually free long-distance phone call became commonplace – a day in which a call to another city could be weighted with dramatic consequence and heartbreaking honesty.