By JON WOODHOUSE

For The Maui News

When some middle-aged British women decided to tastefully pose nude in 1999, for a benefit calendar to raise money for leukaemia research, it was such a hit, even Queen Elizabeth II and the Queen Mother were presented with copies at Buckingham Palace.

The calendar’s success spawned a hit movie, a hit play, and a subsequent musical. Directed by Sally Sefton, “Calendar Girls,” the play, will open on Oct. 11 at MAPA’s Living Room.

“What attracted me is I love true story plays,” says Sefton. “This one also is rare, because it has such great, complex parts for women. It’s one of the most produced plays all over the country.”

A review of a British production of the play in “The Telegraph,” praised: “It makes you laugh, it makes you cry, and it leaves you feeling better about life than you did when you entered the theater.”

After one of their husbands died of leukaemia, women from a Yorkshire branch of the Women’s Institute decided appeared in a nude calendar to raise money to buy a sofa for their local hospital’s visiting room. They were photographed discretely covering up with pianos, flowers, teapots, and sewing. It became a phenomenon.

Founded in 1915, the Women’s Institute was initially led by women who were involved in the suffrage movement. One of the leading campaigners for women’s issues in the U.K., Queen Elizabeth II was a member.

The calendar first became available in April 1999. None of the women’s husbands had not been allowed to see the pictures before they were made public. “The menfolk of the quiet hamlet of Rylstone will be choking over their Cornflakes this morning,” read a report in The Yorkshire Post. “Their wives have boldly bared all in a calendar which will set middle-aged pulses racing. The models are pillars of society, including interior designers, practice managers, businesswomen and artists.” In time, the calendar raised close to $8 million for Blood Cancer UK.

“There is so much about this play that inspires me,” says Sefton, who teaches acting for senior citizens at MAPA, and an annual Shakespeare unit at King Kekaulike High School for sophomores. “There’s not a better time to do a play about women realizing their own potential than this year to me because of the election.”

The cast features Kathleen Schulz, Annie Wilder, Lou Young, Peggy Harmon, Beth Daigle King, Barbara Sedona, Elizabeth Fellows, Virginia Sandell, Jan Toth, Vickie Conmy, James Morrison, Adam Lightplay, and Tobias Hiram.

“As I step into my 70th year, I am becoming more aware of how much women, as they age, become increasingly invisible and marginalized,” Sefton notes. “This play bravely explores this issue, giving a voice and visibility to older women. The characters in the play step into the spotlight, literally and figuratively, reclaiming their space and asserting their presence in a world that tends to overlook them.”

While the action takes place in Northern England, none of the actors are attempting to cope with a Yorkshire accent, and while there is partial nudity, “it’s all tastefully done,” says Sefton.

Mixing humor with touching moments of loss, Sefton says she hopes audiences, “become so engaged in the story of these women’s lives that they forget any of the cares that they have and they’re touched also by the courage of these women. I want people to feel the courage that it took for these women to pose in this calendar and how, after feeling invisible, they had this moment when they owned themselves, owned their bodies and became brave women. I want people to feel empowered by this.”

“Calendar Girls” opens on Oct. 11 at MAPA’s Living Room, a performance venue in the Promenade building at 2050 Main Street, Wailuku. It runs Oct. 11 to 13, Oct. 18 to 20, and Oct. 25 to 27. Friday and Saturday shows at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday shows at 3 p.m. Due to partial nudity, the show is recommended for adult audiences only. Tickets are available online at mauiacademy.org.