Hale Centre Theatre: The Time Machine

My friend Mony has generously given me tickets to several Hale Centre Theatre productions this season, the first of which was May We All in April, and more recently, we saw The Time Machine, playing on the Sorensen Legacy Jewel Box Stage. I was unfamiliar with the premise of The Time Machine before seeing it, and as a world premiere, it is a new drama that requires careful attention to keep up with the plot. Its fast pace, clever weaving of storylines, and believable acting captivated me and kept me on the edge of my seat.

Local playwright Michael D. Fox drew inspiration from H.G. Wells’ science fiction novella of the same name, but he reworked the source material into a brand new adventure with several creative twists. His story begins in the present day when a mysterious puzzle box arrives at Bradley Mason’s (Tavnir Carey) home. The deliveryman explains that he had strict instructions to deliver the box to that address on that date for Helene Briggs (Lori Rees), who is Bradley Mason’s mother-in-law — sort of. The deliveryman also expresses that his office has had the package for a very long time, 70 years, in fact. That, combined with a photograph attached to the box of a much younger Helene that appears to be from the nineteenth century, piques Bradley’s curiosity about what is going on. Bradley’s daughter Skye (Mariah Grace Bowman) comes home from school, perplexed that she had earned a low grade on a paper about time travel, even though her scientist grandmother Helene had helped her write it. Skye turns her attention to the puzzle box, and being curious and over-eager, she insists on opening it despite Helene’s not being home yet. The box contains a hand-written manuscript of H.G. Wells’ novella. When Helene comes home and sees the manuscript and photograph of her younger self, she panics, thinking that the package is a warning that she is in danger. She proceeds to explain that the story in the manuscript is not a work of fiction, but rather her own story of having traveled far into the future in a machine she invented. (Her existence in the “present day” as Skye’s grandmother is a function of her time travel and having wanted a family and adopting Skye’s mother, now deceased, as a daughter a couple of decades prior.) Helene’s story takes the audience back in time to the nineteenth century when a young Helene (Amber Dodge) studied science at Oxford and later became H.G. Wells’ (Dallin Suman) fiancée. The young Helene regales a group of contemporaries about her time traveling adventures that took her many centuries into the future and allowed her to capture a powerful energy source from a group called the Morlocks. Helene worries about what may happen if the power source falls into the wrong hands, so upon advice from friend Gregory (Kaden Caldwell) and fiancé H.G., she decides to take and hide it in the twentieth century, setting in motion her establishing herself in a modern-day family. Additional time travels teach Helene that she can only visit a particular moment in time once, and thus, she chooses to stay in the current century instead of returning to the 1800’s. The warning across time that she receives from H.G. alerts her to the fact that evil-doers are still seeking to acquire the energy source, so Helene must act quickly to keep it and humankind safe. Thus, Helene and her inquisitive granddaughter embark on their own adventure to keep the source out of the wrong hands.

Michael D. Fox’s blending of H.G. Wells’ source material with an original plot is very creative and insightful. Multiple shifts in setting and story development risk being confusing, but I found the work overall to be more cohesive than not. Dave Tinney’s casting brings together an evenly matched ensemble that delivers convincing performances, particularly Lori Rees and Amber Dodge as Helene. I appreciated subtle details in the costuming that give Helene the same teal color palette regardless of the century she is inhabiting. Her clothing becomes part of identifying her and telling her story. The setting includes movable panels that reflect mechanical parts projected on them, effectively conveying the ability to move forward or backward in time. Lighting effects and original music, written by 15-year old composer Cameron Dietlein, enhance the mood of the action. While H.G. Wells’ original novella is a cautionary political tale, Fox’s play is a lighter exploration of embracing and enjoying the current moment. I thoroughly enjoyed the production and recommend seeing it.

The Time Machine runs through July 20, 2024 at Hale Centre Theatre in Sandy, Utah. Click here for tickets and information.