Over the River and Through the Woods at HCTO

Even though it is a bit of a drive to get there from my house, I am so glad that I discovered Hale Center Theater Orem last year.  Every show that I have seen there has been outstanding including their current production, Over the River and Through the Woods, which I saw last night.  This delightful play is full of laughter and heart and I thoroughly enjoyed it.  Nick Cristano (Will Ingram) is offered a big promotion at work but this means that he will have to relocate from New York to Seattle.  His overprotective Italian grandparents (Mark Pulham, Karen Baird, Larson Holyoak, and Melany Wilkins) don't want him to leave so they plot to find a reason for him to stay.  They decide that he needs a girlfriend which involves a painfully awkward set-up with Caitlin O'Hare (Kelly Cook), the attractive and single niece of his grandmother's canasta partner.  Hilarity ensues!  In addition to the humor, of which there is plenty (I was laughing out loud all night), there are some really tender moments involving generational differences. The main theme of the play is that people, especially immigrants, work hard their whole lives in order to give their children and grandchildren a better life but, in so doing, they pave the way for them to leave them behind for lives that are incomprehensible to them.  An especially poignant scene involves Nick's grandfather telling him about coming to America for a better life and then realizing that Nick wants to move to Seattle for the exact same reason and that he needs to let him go.  I was lucky enough to have all four of my grandparents (and my great-grandfather) in my life until my mid-twenties and I recognized many of the situations portrayed in this play, especially when Nick's grandmother tries to feed him all of the time (my grandmother also tried to send me home with food whenever I visited).  The entire cast is fantastic, but I particularly enjoyed Ingram's overwrought portrayal of Nick (I also enjoyed him in The 39 Steps).  His facial expressions are absolutely hilarious, especially as he gets more and more exasperated with his grandparents during the blind date with Caitlin and during their game of Trivial Pursuit!  I am, once again, really impressed with what HCTO is able to do with such a small space because the stage looks just like the fussy living and dining room of an older couple.  I particularly loved all of the little details such as the plastic fruit in a bowl on the table (both of my grandmothers had plastic fruit on their tables).  This is a show that old and young alike are sure to enjoy and I highly recommend it.  It runs through Ferbruary 12 so get your tickets (go here) soon!