Theatre is a Family Affair for Hilders

Between busy schedules and multiple technological distractions, it seems that quality time for the modern family has been reduced to gathering together on the couch and staring at monitor, but Ian Hilder and his family are looking to change that— one play at a time.

The Hilders first moved to Needham from the United Kingdom four years ago, and Ian became involved in community theater shortly thereafter. After several local performances, Hilder introduced Needham community theater-goers to a piece of British stage tradition, when he organized, wrote, and directed a performance of Cinderella as an English "panto" play.

Pantos (short for pantomime) are family friendly plays where classic stories are retold using song, dance, audience participation, silly humor and usually a fair amount of cross-dressing. 

"It's very comedic. If you imagine a little bit of Monty Python, a little bit Benny Hill, and then take it a bit farther, you're on the right track" he said. "The lead male roles are played by females, and the lead female roles are played by men and, being British, we love that," he joked.

Based on the success of Cinderella, Hilder wrote and directed a local panto production of Jack and the Beanstalk, which recently ran for three shows at the Christ Episcopal Church in Needham. Included in the cast and crew were his wife Allison and the couple's three daughters. 

"Pantos have something for everybody, as far audiences go. There's a lot of interaction and shouting for the kids, but there's jokes for the parents as well," he said. "But on the other side, this last production was dominated by families in the cast, as well as the audience. We had at least four families involved, parents and kids getting out and doing something together, which is a wonderful thing." 

Jack and the Beanstalk was the debut performance of the Fringe Theater, a community theater group based mainly in Needham, which Hilder created to put on plays and performances not usually staged by community theater groups. 

"We want to do some original plays, and maybe even a cabaret style show," Hilder said. "We've got plenty of ideas bouncing around our heads for the future, it's very exciting."