By Whitney Sorensen
The short drive from Orem to Heber was more than worth it to enjoy Timpanogos Valley Theater’s production of Holes. This stage adaptation of Louis Sachar’s Newbery Award-winning novel Holes retains the charm of the original source material, likely because the author himself penned the stage version. Fans of the book (or the 2003 Disney film) should make Timpanogos Valley Theater’s Holes a must-see show. 
Like the book that preceded it, Holes centers on Stanley Yelnats (Ethan Scott), a young teenager who is sent to a work camp after he’s caught with a valuable pair of sneakers. At Camp Green Lake, which lies in a dried-up lake bed, Stanley must dig a hole every day “to build character.” As he and his fellow campers dig, two stories connected to Stanley’s play out on stage as well.
During Act 1, Stanley’s great-great-grandfather, Elya Yelnats (Corbin Malan) earns his reputation for being a no-good, dirty-rotten pig-stealer. During Act 2, the citizens of Camp Green Lake 100 years ago reenact the events that led to the lake drying up and their school teacher 
becoming outlaw bank robber Kissin’ Kate Barlow (Carly Delbridge). In the play’s final scenes, these two stories intertwine with Stanley’s own and lead to a satisfying conclusion–nearly as effective onstage as it is in the book.
The stage version of Holes was originally performed by the Seattle Children’s Theatre in 
April through June of 2002. Sachar also wrote the screenplay for the film adaptation, and it’s a credit to his skill as a writer and his inventive story that it varies significantly from page to screen to stage. Each version highlights different elements of Stanley’s journey and finds new ways to tie together the simultaneous storylines. As a long-time fan of the book and the movie, I found myself comparing the live performance to both other versions. I went in already in love with the story, and I came away thinking about new layers of meaning I hadn’t considered.
My date was less familiar with Holes in any form, only vaguely remembering having seen the film. He missed some of the richness of the interwoven timelines but still enjoyed the performance as a whole. If, like him, you are new to this tale, don’t pass up this fun stage version of Holes. Just use it as motivation to finally get between the pages of this new classic.
My date was also new to Heber, but he needed very few directions from me to find the 
playhouse, which is just off Heber Main Street. The Timpanogos Valley Theater feels both open and cozy. You aren’t too close to your neighbor, and I only missed a few small bits of the action that took place in the right or left aisles–nothing that would leave even a newbie to the plot confused.
My favorite element unique to the stage adaptation is that Director Julie Doud had Stanley and his fellow bunkmates from D Tent remain onstage while the two pivotal stories from the past are portrayed. In both book and film, those scenes occur as flashbacks between Stanley’s adventures. It could easily have been distracting to have six bodies lifting shovels and throwing dirt while the audience’s attention needs to be focused elsewhere, but the blocking, and the lighting by Lighting Designer Brenna Wall were surprisingly effective at making sure I paid prime attention to the flashback storyline.
Credit to the technical team of Wall, Levi Larsen, Daniel Clegg, Ava Magalei, and Jarom Magalei for that achievement. In fact, seeing Stanley’s hard work while witnessing his great-great-grandfather’s story or Camp Green Lake’s origins actually emphasized the amount of effort required to dig a hole in the hot Texas sun better than the other two versions.
Holes does feel like it takes a few minutes to reach full steam, due to some necessary 
exposition, but it gets through this as quickly as possible. When Stanley arrives at Camp Green Lake, the real fun begins, thanks to the performances of Stanley’s fellow campers and the counselors. Each actor plays his or her role with gusto, particularly Caleb Wall as Mr. Sir and Kristine Bethers as the Warden. Sachar has written some of the juiciest character roles ever, and both actors take full advantage of the humorous lines and unique ticks they can use to bring those roles to life.
For me, the wiliest villain in Holes has always been the counselor at Camp Green Lake, Pendanski also called Mom (Jessica Wall). That fact remains true onstage. Wall’s female Pendanski cut me to the core every time she treated Zero (Ben Burrow) as less than his fellow campers. As a counselor, Pendanski should know the kids the best but still believes Zero is unintelligent, unteachable, and unimportant.
Unlike the humorous villains, the play’s younger cast members bring a level of innocence to their parts, a contrast which is much-needed, especially during the heavier second-act flashback sequences. With his Zero, Burrow makes you care about him before he even speaks a line. Similarly, X-Ray (Kael Redwine), Magnet (Cole Nord), Armpit (Aaron Gabel), and Zigzag (Avery Rognan) each find moments to shine with both humor and surprising tenderness. I did find myself wishing the play featured more camper-to-camper interaction, but the core friendship between Stanley and Zero is still given the prominent placement it requires.
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Costumes by Freyja Miller brought color and definition to the show. Each character was clearly marked with costuming—orange jumpsuits for the prisoners, black and white costumes for the wardens, etc. Miller’s props and costumes and Kristine Bethers’s hair and makeup design also added delightful elements to these characterizations. Be sure to watch the Warden’s shoes—they gave me a few chuckles and suited her perfectly. Although they all don identical orange jumpsuits, you can tell them apart through both their distinct mannerisms and perfectly matched hair and makeup.
Kyle Loertscher is vocal director for the pig lullaby—which plays an interesting and important part relating to the plot. Luis Laffey and Doud provided the sound design. Bluegrass musical selections are played throughout the show, which added to the Western feeling of the production as a whole.
The set design also creates enough visual interest to get you excited before the curtain falls without giving away too much of the magic that follows. I appreciated that the moveable piles of dirt added both simplicity and versatility to the southwest Texas landscape that serves as a backdrop.
Toward the end, Holes again has a few pacing problems while Stanley and Zero wander alone in search of God’s Thumb (a rock formation miles from the camp), but I couldn’t help but internally cheer when they finally reached that peak. The closing monologue, delivered by Hayley Loertscher in another of the play’s great character roles (Madame Zeroni), effectively wraps up the story and ties the three plot lines into a tidy bow.
Timpanogos Valley Theater’s Holes is definitely a family show, suitable for kids 8 and up, but if you have any attachment to the other versions, this is a don’t-miss show, regardless of your age. A round of applause to Director Doud and Assistant Director Christie Delbridge for bringing Sachar’s story to the stage in Utah. Bring your kids and your grandma and your neighbors and friends to see Holes in Heber. Its message of hope and the serendipity of life is one no-one should miss. This front-row reviewer is a big fan.
Timpanogos Valley Theater presents Holes by Louis Sachar
Timpanogos Valley Theater, 90 N 100 W, Heber City, UT 84032
September 28-30 and October 4-7 7:00 PM
Tickets: $8-17 ($8 for seniors, children, and students; $12 for adults; $17 for premiere seating in the first two rows with free popcorn and a water bottle)
Contact: 435-654-2125
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