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Native Gardens


by Karen Zacarías
directed by John Nagle
produced January 25–February 12, 2017
Pablo, a high-powered lawyer, and doctoral candidate Tania, his very pregnant wife, are realizing the American dream when they purchase a house next door to community stalwarts Virginia and Frank. But a disagreement over a longstanding fence line soon spirals into an all-out war of taste, class, privilege, and entitlement. Gardens and cultures clash, turning friendly neighbors into feuding enemies, the hilarious results of which guarantees no one comes out smelling like roses.

This play is good fun for the avid gardener and the people that love them.

Cast
Lili Gamache as Virginia
Thomas Christopher Nieto* as Pablo
Jamie Rezanour* as Tania
Vince Rossano as Frank
John Hughes as Gardener
Jacob September as Surveyor

Production Team
Scenic Design: Jeff Modereger
Costume Design: Suzanne Kneller
Lighting Design: Jamien Lundy Forrest
Sound Design: Martha Goode
Props Master: Sue Wade
Technical Director: F. Patrick Orr
Stage Management: Kelsey Vivian

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NATIVE GARDENS is recommended for ages 12 & up. Some mild inappropriate language spoken in Spanish.


* Actor appears courtesy of Actors Equity Association. Images courtesy Lindsay Raymondjack Photography.

Behind the Scenes


Production Reviews


"Pablo calls Tania his “scholarly and vibrant wife” – she’s studying for her doctorate in anthropology, and her tendency is to analyze ideas of native vs. foreign. Those issues take shape in “Native Gardens” not just through the plant life but also the human life, as Zacarias dances dangerously but successfully along the hard-to-toe line of racism in America." - Burlington Free Press
"What makes Zacarias’s comedy refreshing is that all the usual stereotypes get mixed up until no one is quite sure whose is whose. What makes it compelling is that it’s authentically human, thus hilarious and even touching." - Rutland Herald
"The episodic script is designed for a brisk pace, and this production delivers the mildly exhilarating feeling that if you blink you'll miss a grimace or a spit take. Nagle harnesses the actors' ability to toss off rapid-fire exchanges, and their effortless precision is satisfying to behold." - Seven Days

Play Reviews


"Karen Zacarias’s latest play, “Native Gardens” offers a message of hope and common ground." - Journal-News
"'Native Gardens' is a play about racial, ethnic and social conflict. Zacarías dances her way through all this nastiness very gingerly, filling the script with light banter and laugh lines worthy of an Emmy-winning sitcom. She has a knack for wading into complex social issues without making us uncomfortable. ...Even when a battle erupts over a mistaken property line – it runs through Frank’s beloved flower beds – the conflict boils down to a war of increasingly humorous exchanges." - Cincinnati.com
"Zacarías uses comedy to explore some not-so-funny issues including racism and ageism, but she does it so deftly that you don’t even quite realize that the humor is revelatory of underlying prejudices. ...Audiences will laugh and gasp at Karen Zacarías’ amusing Native Gardens..." - City Beat

Join us for Talkback Thursdays, where we have a deeper discussion about some of the topics in our plays. For Native Gardens, we will be discussing native, non-native, and invasive plant species, as well as other fun and informative aspects of gardening.

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