The picket-fence-and-apple-pie appearances of the 1950s never told the whole story. 

The truth behind the era’s façade was rarely expressed, except perhaps around a table with close friends. And that disparity, between outer appearance and inner reality, was something that Jana O’Connor and Belinda Cornish found compelling to explore.

“A long time ago we talked about wanting to do a show with a ‘50s housewife aesthetic, that has the veneer of that, and then the reality of what life is like,” O’Connor explains.

That idea’s now seeing its day on the Rapid Fire stage: Three Ladies will adorn both comedy and commentary in the fabulous aesthetics of the ’50s. It features O’Connor, Cornish and a guest gathering for a juicy catch-up, a conversation that will spin off into improvised explorations of whatever subject matter arises. The third of the Three Ladies will be different every night, ranging from actor-playwright Beth Graham to Senator Paula Simons.

“We want to have real conversations,” O’Connor explains. “It’s a little bit talk show, it’s a little bit improv—within the conversation we’ll draw some inspiration, and then just go from there.”

The guests don’t have to improvise if they don’t want to, O’Connor notes. But they’re in excellent hands if they do: both O’Connor and Cornish are ace improvisers, Rapid Fire alumni with distinguished comedy pedigrees. The two have worked together for ages, sharing highs and lows on and off the stage—the very sort of connection Three Ladies is looking to celebrate.

“That’s a big piece of what excites me [about Three Ladies] is that idea of ‘What do you care about? What’s happening to you? How is your life?” It’s what we do around the table with our friends,” O’Connor says. “Belinda and I have certainly done that a million times over the years, in times of great joy, in times of great sadness. It’s just that beautiful connection that you have with friends around the table. 

“The great thing that I’ve always experienced—not exclusively with ladies, but certainly with ladies—is that you don’t even have to really know someone super well to have an amazing, often really deep conversation that gives you a whole other perspective on what someone’s going through, or makes you feel heard and seen and like, ‘Oh, that’s not just me.’” O’Connor continues. “I think there’s definitely room for things to get a bit real, but also to keep things light. I love the idea of walking that line.”

Three Ladies runs Fridays and Saturdays from February 7th until February 22nd, at 7pm. Tickets at https://rapidfiretheatre.com/shows/three-ladies/