Stephen F. Austin State University

Jack Heifner's award-winning play "Vanities" will open on Broadway next spring, after having been reinvented as a musical.

Heifner is Stephen F. Austin State University's playwright-in-residence, and "Vanities" is his most popular play.

The show first opened in 1975, striking a chord with audiences at the height of the women's rights movement. The plot revolves around three Texas cheerleaders and the ways their lives change over a 10-year period characterized by the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, the height of the Vietnam War and the women's movement.

It is a play about personal change amidst social change, and it "struck such a chord with playgoers that it not only ran 1,785 performances at the Westside Theatre in New York, but blossomed in regional theatres," according to the on-line theatre publication, Playbill.

When the show opened in the '70s, Heifner said women would approach him and ask, "How dare you write this play?"

He would ask them if they thought it was a true depiction of the challenges they faced, and they would inevitably answer, "Yes ... but how dare a man write something like this?"

The play is actually based on his observations of both men and women, because Heifner said the issues men face are not so different from the issues women face.

Over the years, playgoers have asked him what became of the main characters, Kathy, Joanne and Mary, whom he described as "classic, southern, cheerleader sorority girls."

For three decades, Heifner resisted answering that question. But the musical version of "Vanities" will allow audiences to see what happened to the women as they entered their 40s.

"What happened to them, is they realized that friends are the backbone of life," he said. "The new ending is more touching and optimistic. There was a cynicism in 1974, when I wrote the play, that I don't quite agree with anymore. Above all, this is a play and musical about friendships."

Although the play may be reminiscent of another era, Heifner said it is not a piece of nostalgia. The dilemmas women face today are the same dilemmas they faced 30 years ago, he said.

"Women still wonder whether they can have it all," he said. "Can they have a career and a family?"
 "Vanities" addresses the myth of the "golden girl" -- the myth of "Miss American Pie," Heifner said.

Kathy, Joanne and Mary are popular, rich girls whose privileged upbringing did not prepare them for the real world, he elaborated, adding that, in many ways, the show is a sociological study. As the characters grow and evolve throughout the course of the play, one woman chooses a career path, one woman chooses family, and one woman observes her two friends as she tries to determine which path is
right for her.

Actresses such as Kathy Bates, Stockard Channing and Elizabeth Ashley have played the roles of the three women, he said.

Heifner said he initially had concerns about recreating the play as a musical, because he "didn't want to see it become 'Grease.'"

"It's not that kind of comedy," he said. "Characters in musicals break into song when their emotions overcome them to the point that they cannot talk. It had to be handled appropriately."

David Kirshenbaum was selected to write the music, and when it opened last year in San Francisco the musical was awarded the San Francisco Critics Circle Award for Best Music and Best Score.

"The best compliment I've received is, you can't tell where my words stop and David's words start," Heifner said.

Actress Judith Ivey, a two-time Tony award winner, has been hired to direct the New York performance, and Heifner said he will meet next week with the three actresses who have been cast for the show: Megan Hilty, who starred on Broadway in "Wicked" and is now starring in the Los Angeles production of the show; Leslie Kritzer, who is on Broadway now in "Legally Blonde," and Sarah Stiles, who was on Broadway and on tour in "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee."

Heifner began teaching at SFA 11 years ago, and he said he appreciates the fact that the SFA Theatre Department has a mix of professionals and academics on faculty.

Heifner said he is thrilled that his classes are always full, adding that "everyone can write, and everyone should write."

Many of his students are English majors, and he said he believes playwriting at SFA will grow as a result of the new creative writing degree that was recently added to the English Department.

"I'd love to offer a night class for community members who want to learn about playwriting," he said.

Heifner teaches one semester each year, spending the rest of his time traveling, working on shows.
 During the semesters he teaches grading is one of his most rigorous tasks.

"I have more than 80 students, and they write 15- to 50-page plays," he said. "My students write every time we meet, which teaches them to get over their fears very quickly. We write about things we read in the newspaper, we write about paintings, we write about photographs -- and we write about anything and everything else. Students quickly realize there are stories all around them."

Heifner is the author of more than 25 plays. He has written the book to six musicals and has also written for television and film. In addition to writing, Heifner has acted on Broadway, Off-Broadway and regionally. He is an accomplished producer and director.