September Welcomes Five Nickels Production
Contributed by Shari Hoelker

Now on stage at the Lofte, this production is actually five separate plays. The first is titled Five Nickels and comprises the first act while the second act consists of the following four shorter plays: Late Date, Oklahoma, Lilacs, and The Wedding.

Five Nickels is set in a Catholic Church with only two characters, Ed Maloney and Catherine Barber. Ed and ‘Katie’ are mature adults played by Bob Pinkerton of Weeping Water and Shari Hoelker of Omaha. This story displays the determination of a shy widow who uses five nickels as she attempts to discover the mystery behind the long-time bachelorhood of Ed. Mature audiences will be able to relate to the issues and the difficulties facing these characters. Life is filled with love and death and memories and moving on and making the best of what you have. Ed and Katie reveal themselves as they discover one another.

Late Date begins ironically with the revelation of a disastrous date between two young people, Jim and Carrie, played by Allen Clark and Stacey White—both from Omaha and both newcomers to the Lofte stage, though Stacey might be easily recognizable from her many comic roles at Mahoney State Park. This piece continues with their widowed parents, played by Kevin Colbert and Shari Hoelker, coming together, and concludes with, as the title suggests, a late date.

Oklahoma is essentially a monologue. Mary, played by Margie Pinkerton of Weeping Water, relates some very serious nursing experiences from WWII. However, in the midst of all the horror of war she recalls the great emotional lift she received when she attended a famous Rodgers and Hammerstein musical—once again the title of the piece.

Lilacs takes place in the 1920’s. This is a dialogue between two youngsters, played by Allen Clark and Stacey White. He presents the lilacs to his new friend and the sweet discourse discloses the childhood dreams of each. Will you recognize their identities? Each grew up to become quite famous—a true story of sorts.

The Wedding includes the entire cast of six and surrounds the issues of an ordinary wedding. Well, ordinary in the sense that the father-of-the-bride faces several confrontations with his daughter, only one of which being the Knights of Columbus Hall which falls short of being suitable in the bride’s eyes. After all, it has a unisex bathroom with a trough!! Humorously fast-paced, this piece brings a boisterous end to the evening.

Each piece has its own message, whether humorous or serious, but all five together give the audience an opportunity to explore a wide range of emotions. The simple set design allows the audience to focus on the characters and their stories. It will be extremely difficult to come away without being able to relate at least one episode to something in one’s own string of life experiences.