Coming to an understanding: Five bridesmaids discover they share more in common than they thought

Published 11:33 am Friday, January 9, 2026

Grab your girlfriends this weekend and head to the ACTS Theatre for a play filled with love, tears and laughter.

“Five Women Wearing the Same Dress” is a comedy about five very different bridesmaids in the South who over the course of one afternoon discuss love and life.

The play was written in 1993 by Alan Ball, who also wrote the 1999 film “American Beauty,” which won an Oscar in 2000. Ball also created two HBO shows, “Six Feet Under” and “True Blood.” Allison Schnake will be making her directing debut after performing on stage for 20 years.

“When I was given the opportunity to direct,” Schnake said. “I looked at a lot of plays and I was looking for something that spoke to me and I felt passionate about, and as a woman who lives in the South, this play spoke to me, and I think I can see parts of myself in each of these women and I think a lot of other women will as well and even some men,” Schnake said.

The five women are serving as bridesmaids in a wedding, and while the reception is taking place at the bride’s house, the women find themselves upstairs in the bride’s bedroom hanging out, and this is where the entirety of the play takes place.

Schnake said the set for the play looks like something from an old, but wealthy ’90s bedroom with crown moulding and antique furniture, making it warm and inviting. Schnake said the play is about Southern women coming into themselves and some butting up against traditional Southern values and figuring out who they are as individuals.

“It’s five women all dressed in horrendous bridesmaids dresses, no one wants to be there, no one wants to be wearing that dress and they spend the afternoon in the room discussing their lives and getting to know one another,” Schnake said.

The five women come from contrasting backgrounds but are brought together by the bride. Over the course of the afternoon they discuss topics such as religion, dating, marriage and sexual abuse.

Schnake said all five women are dealing with internal struggles and then meet someone, wearing the same dress, who is opposite of them. At first they want to push back against that person but then can see the person as a human being, and after peeling beneath the surface, realize they have a lot more in common than they realized.

“You’ve got five women and one comes from a very sheltered and highly religious background, one that recently graduated college and is lost and trying to figure out where she’s going in life, one that’s a little bit older and everyone looks up to her and admires her then you find out she’s not just perfect, one that is married but her marriage is falling apart and then one that is gay and figuring out things about herself,” she said.

Schnake said all the women are so different but by the end of the play they find common ground, and while you can’t walk away thinking they’re all best friends, audiences will see all of their eyes have been opened to each person’s individuality and shared experience.

“I hope the audience leaves with a heartwarming feeling and with a sense of hope to see these women really come together over this wedding, that they really didn’t want to be at and after a lot of complaining they really have some wonderful human moments with each other that you find surprising because they are so different,” Schnake said, “and I hope when people leave they think about that and think about how no matter how different someone seems on the surface, when you really get underneath, we’re not all that different.”

Schnake said she’s fallen in love with each of the characters for their own reasons and how dress rehearsal week has been delightful to watch them navigate a set in a hoop skirt.

“When you put five women in really big hoop skirts — it is quite the circus and they are really putting on a great show,” she said.

Schnake said directing this play has made her realize how big of a team effort it takes to produce a show. She said the volunteers who work on the community productions are vital and selfless and how being on the other side for the first time has shown her what all it takes to bring a full production to life.

“It has been so incredibly rewarding to see how these productions go from idea to finished product on stage and I think my overall lesson has been that this is such a team effort,” she said.

“Five Women Wearing the Same Dress” will be playing at the ACTS Theatre at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday with a 2:30 p.m. Sunday matinee

If you miss it this weekend, catch it next weekend — Friday through Sunday — at the same times.

Doors open 30 minutes prior to the show beginning. Tickets can be purchased at the door or online at www.actstheatre.com.

The ACTS Theatre is located at 1 Reid St. in Lake Charles. The play is for adults with some course language, drug use and discussions of sex and sexual abuse throughout.