Playhouse to stage comedy

ESSEX — The Ivoryton Playhouse will be staging the comedy, “Native Gardens” by Karen Zacarias beginning May 19.

This new comedy of “good intentions and bad manners,” has played coast to coast with “unparalleled” success, according to a news release. The show was originally planned, scheduled and cast for the 2020 season, but had to be postponed due to the pandemic.

“Native Gardens” draws its comedy from two sets of feuding neighbors, Virginia and Frank vs. Pablo and Tania. Pablo, a rising attorney, and doctoral candidate Tania, his very pregnant wife, have just purchased a home next to Frank and Virginia, a wellestablished D.C. couple with a prize-worthy English garden. But an impending barbecue for Pablo’s colleagues and a delicate disagreement over a long-standing fence line soon spirals into an all-out border dispute, the press release said.

The couples find themselves building fences while breaking down barriers at the same time.

The cast includes Joseph Dellger as Frank, Stacia Fernandez as Virginia, Blanca Grande as Tania, and John Joseph Squires as Pablo. The play is directed by Brian J. Feehan and has sets designed by Daniel Nischan, lights and sound by Alan Piotrowicz, and costumes by Elizabeth Saylor.

The play runs through June 12. Performance times are Wednesday and Sunday at 2 p.m.; Wednesday and Thursday at 7:30 p.m. and Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m. There will matinees May 19 and 21 at 2 p.m.

Masks are not required, though recommended, and provide proof of vaccination or a negative COVID test result is necessary for admittance.

Tickets are $55 for adults, $50 for seniors, and $25 for students. To purchase, go to ivorytonplayhouse.org or call 860-767-7318. The playhouse is located at 103 Main St. in Ivoryton.