Review: HILDA'S YARD at The Lofte Theatre is a Good Place to Hang Out

Back in the 1950s back yards were the heart of the family. It was where children played. It was where the women of the household hung the laundry on clotheslines. It was where the men grilled and where everyone chatted with their neighbors over the fence.

Today it is not the same. Laundry isn't normally hung out to dry. Children are more likely to be on their tablet, or parked in front of the television, or even running from one organized activity to another. People are less willing to get to know their neighbors. Fences are real or implied.

In The Lofte Theatre's production of HILDA'S YARD by Canadian playwright Norm Foster, we see a typical family from mid 1950s. Sweet but tough mother Hilda (Betty Colbert) hangs the laundry and hangs onto her sanity by talking with a neighbor over her back fence. Her factory worker husband, Sam (Kevin Colbert), is worked up about buying a television...the first they have ever owned. The first show he wants to watch is Gunsmoke, although Hilda calls it "Sun Stroke." The TV is a symbol of their independence as recent empty nesters.

Over the fence and into their nest climb their adult children. Son Gary (Joshua P. Smith) is in his 30s, but has yet to have a decent job. He has just been fired from delivering pizzas on bicycle, but has grand plans to start a vinyl siding business. Daughter Janey (Shakeida Bullis) married just six months, has left her husband, and has plans to see the world by becoming a travel agent.

Inexplicably climbing over the fence are also a bookie, Beverly Woytowich (Rob Carrera) who is after Gary for a $390 unpaid betting loss, and the trombone-playing-Beatnik who is the object of Gary's affections, Bobbi Jakes (Renae Koehler).

Matters are more complicated than they first seem. Sam fears losing his job cutting paper at the factory where he has worked for 27 years because he spent company time buying the television. Gary fears the bookie will send large men to collect his debt. Janey fears revealing her secret to her father.

The only one with no specific problem is Hilda...but then again, she does talk to the neighbor (who doesn't exist.)

Kevin Colbert directs as well as performs, which he always manages to do effortlessly. The set designed by Ken Snyder and costumes designed by Janet Sorensen are appropriate for the time and pleasing to the eye.

Betty and Kevin Colbert have a palpable on stage chemistry, which is understandable given that they have been married in real life for several years.

Betty as Hilda is a likable character, warm and loving, but fiercely protective of her children while wearing no rose colored glasses. She sees her children for what they are, but she loves them. Kevin's portrayal of Sam grows in depth as he agonizes over his ability to provide for his wife, the cost of beer and bread, and his desire for his children to have a stable future, sometimes at the expense of their happiness.

HILDA'S YARD is a light comedic escape into the past, yet has relevance to now. We don't stop worrying about our children once they grow up and leave the house. Still, we cherish our empty nest.

HILDA'S YARD runs through September 16, Thursdays-Saturday at 7:00 pm and on Sundays at 2:00 pm.

Photo Credit: Teresa Frields

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