Top photo: Dorothy Collier Best, left, and Connie Bools reprise their roles as dear friends Elaine and Rita in the comedy The Lost Virginity Tour at HCT, May 28-30.
Hickory – The Lost Virginity Tour, a benefit show for Hickory Community Theatre produced with Well Behaved Women Theatre Company, has tickets on sale now for just three performances, this Thursday through Saturday, May 28-30, at 7:30pm in the Fireman’s Kitchen. Originally produced last year here in Hickory with great success, it again features well-known local actresses Dorothy Collier Best, Connie Bools, Chrissy Colavecchio and Shawna Wilson. Pam Livingstone, Artistic Director Emerita of Hickory Community Theatre, directs.
The heartfelt, laugh-out-loud comedy follows four close friends from their retirement homes in Surprise, Arizona, across the country to revisit the locations of their ‘first time’. Their relationships deepen and blossom along the way, and wine helps soften some memories.
Written by Cricket Daniel, the play has been performed to enthusiastic audiences all over the country, nominated for many awards, and was a Los Angeles Times’ “Critic’s Choice – Pick of the Week” in 2019.
Dorothy Collier Best plays the wise and witty Elaine. Collier Best has a lifelong passion for the theatre, beginning in grade school in television and theatre in Los Angeles. Since 2011 Dorothy has performed in numerous productions in the Hickory area, including Frau Blucher in Young Frankenstein, and Marilyn in Ripcord, both at HCT. Most recently Collier Best appeared in The Thursday Night Bridge Circle at The Green Room, directed by WBW Artistic Director Shawna Wilson.
Connie Bools plays Rita, a sharp, funny yet practical woman married for 40 years. A veteran of over 30 productions at HCT, she’s collected seven Kay Awards and a Willy Award from Foothills Performing Arts. Some of her memorable roles include M’Lynn in Steel Magnolias, Aoife in Outside Mullingar and Sonia in Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike.
Bottom Photo: Shawna Wilson, left, and Chrissy Colavecchio return to ‘Lost Virginity’ at HCT, May 28-30.
Chrissy Colavecchio is smart-mouthed Viola, who’s funny in a sometimes R-rated way and pulls the tour together as fast as she drives her golf cart. Chrissy Colavecchio Schramm was part of Well Behaved Women’s debut production of Love, Loss and What I Wore in 2024, as was the whole Lost Virginity cast. She recently appeared in The Thursday Night Bridge Circle at The Green Room.
Kitty, often the target of Viola’s teasing, is played by Shawna Wilson. The only never-married one in the group, Kitty’s sweet story of her first time kicks off the tour with a tale of ‘sex on the beach’ on Hatteras Island, NC. Although gentle Kitty says, ‘it wasn’t sex, it was beautiful.’ Shawna has been directing plays in Hickory since 2013, including Love, Loss and What I Wore; Exit Pursued By A Bear; The Drowning Girls and Rip Cord.
*Trigger Warning: The play contains a brief account of sexual violence in one character’s story. While the play’s overall tone is comedic and uplifting, WBW and HCT recognize the importance of informing the audience about sensitive content in advance.
Well Behaved Women Theatre Company is producing the show in association with The Hickory Community Theatre. Tickets are $22 each, reserved seating, and available at hickorytheatre.org, or call 828.328.2283. The theater is located at 30 3rd Street NW, Hickory, 28601.
