Andrew Govey, left, Chris Juckes, Tim Fraser and Christine Smith are appearing in Moonlight and Magnolias, a play about writing the screenplay for Gone With The Wind in five days.

Daring, desperate and damn funny – a behind-the-scenes look at the filming of Gone With The Wind, and some of the problems encountered, form the basis of Limelight Theatre’s first production of 2017.

Written by Emmy Award-winning screenwriter Ron Hutchinson and directed by Carryn McLean, Moonlight and Magnolias is loosely based on the fact that, in 1939, Gone With The Wind producer David O. Selznick shut down production after three weeks of filming because he was unhappy with the screenplay.  

With his reputation and bank balance on the line, Selznick enlists his trusted friend Ben Hecht as a somewhat reluctant script doctor – possibly the only person in the US not to have read the novel.

New director Victor Fleming is poached from the set of The Wizard of Oz and the three are locked in Selznick’s office with nothing to eat but a stockpile of bananas and peanuts to sustain them. 

What follows is a hilarious clash of egos as they try to complete the script within five days with Fleming and Selznick telling the story and acting out the roles with Hecht typing up the screenplay. 

FURTHER INFORMATION

Moonlight and Magnolias plays at 8pm February 23, 24, 25, March 1, 2, 3 and 4 with a 2pm matinee February 26. Tickets are $21, $18 concession and $15 children – book at the Limelight Theatre website or on 0499 954 016 between 9am and midday, Monday to Friday. You can also check out the Facebook event page.