Review: Hale Centre Theatre's HELLO, DOLLY! is Infused with Joy

HELLO, DOLLY! on Hale Centre Theatre's Centre Stage in Sandy defies you not to have a good time as it woos you with its winning personality and jubilant disposition.

HELLO, DOLLY! (book by Michael Stewart, music and lyrics by Jerry Herman) was winner of 10 Tony Awards in 1964, including Best Musical, and subsequently adapted to an Oscar-winning film in 1969. Dolly Gallagher Levi is a widow making her way in the world as a jack of all trades and matchmaker extraordinaire, but she's ready to move on with her life, and she knows just the way to do it, constantly making opportunities to open up panoramic possibilities for herself and all she meets.

As Dolly, Mack (double cast with Jennifer Parker Hohl) is warm, natural, funny, bold, and moving - simply a delight to behold.

Her co-stars are equally up to the task, with wonderful performances from Brian Neal Clark as Horace Vandergelder (double cast with Michael Hohl), Landon Horton as Cornelius Hackl (double cast with Darick Pead), Justin Gibbs as Barnaby Tucker (double cast with Oakley Thacker), Shae Robins as Irene Malloy (double cast with Rachel Woodward Hansen), and Amanda Baugh as Minnie Fay (double cast with Je Eun Jun).

The exhilarating choreography by Afton Wilson is danced brilliantly by the graceful ensemble.

Director Ryan Simmons has leaned into the presentational aspects of the script, with design choices following suit. While the production occasionally leans over the top, for the most part it works because joy is infused into every element.

The floral red, pink, and green color combinations of Kacey Udy's set coordinate and pop; Joy Zhu's costumes are lovely, even if the hemlines are a bit short for the period; and Jaron Kent Hermansen's lighting design ties it all together.

This production of the classic musical is sincerely entertaining through and through.

HELLO, DOLLY! plays through June 10, 2023. For tickets, call the box office at 801-984-9000 or visit www.hct.org.

Photo Credit: Hale Centre Theatre.

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