Outdoor Theater Festival Comes To Warren/St. Marks Community Garden
Community gardens are treasured spaces within our urban neighborhoods. They serve as both a way to bring neighbors together, and an opportunity to seek personal respite from the urban rumble, providing aesthetic pleasure and inspiration. One theater company has created a festival of plays directly inspired by community gardens in both Brooklyn and Manhattan.
Warren/St. Marks Community Garden (619 Warren Street between 4th and 5th Avenues) is one of four community gardens around New York that will become centerpieces for Communal Spaces: a garden play festival. (The other Brooklyn garden venue is Classon Ful-Gate Community Garden in Bed-Stuy.)
The festival was developed by The Motor Company, which will offer free performances on both Saturdays and Sundays throughout the month, beginning Saturday, September 12 and running through Sunday, September 27.
Each performance will feature two plays: An Apple Today, written by Charly E. Simpson and directed by Megan Weaver, as well as enter a garden, written by Dominic Finocchiaro and directed by Lillian Meredith.
Motor Company founder, producer, and director Lillian Meredith and director Megan Weaver are neighbors who are readying Communal Spaces for its opening this weekend — now in its fifth year.
We asked the two of them about their approach to this particular festival, as well as their favorite places to relax in the neighborhood.
PSS: Have you done theater in your neighborhood before? If so, what theater companies and/or rehearsal spaces have you worked/performed in?
Megan Weaver: I’ve taught acting and devising programs with young people with Brooklyn Acting Lab. We recently staged an adaptation of The Giver at The Actor’s Fund.
Lillian Meredith: There are so many great performance and rehearsal venues in the area! I actually just assisted Sarah Benson on the remount of An Octoroon at Theatre for a New Audience, which is an incredible space. I’ve also rehearsed at BAX (Brooklyn Arts Exchange) and ART/NY, and have seen plenty of performances at BAM and the Irondale Center, among many others.
Why did you select the Warren/St. Marks Community Garden?
Meredith: This is the fifth year of Communal Spaces and to celebrate that, we decided to return to some of my favorite gardens from the past four years. Warren/St. Marks was actually one of the first gardens we ever worked with — Jason Platt created his play there in 2011 — and now that I live in Park Slope, it seemed like the perfect opportunity to work with them again.
Did the writers know the layout of the garden when they were writing their plays?
Meredith: Every play in the festival was written specifically for the space in which it will perform. I assign each playwright to a garden and ask them to use that space as the impetus for their short play.
The garden is like another character in the piece, and the experience of being there is inextricably linked to the experience of seeing the play. What’s exciting this year is that two playwrights were assigned to each garden, so audience members have the chance to see two different creative interpretations of each space back-to-back!
Have there been interesting challenges staging in the garden? What’s it like working within an environmental theater context?
Weaver: The garden has guided us clearly on staging, and introduced us to a few visual jokes that feel really organic and natural. That’s my favorite part of working on-site: Letting the site speak to me and guide my choices.
The biggest challenge is a logistical one: We often have to rehearse at night, so we’re using the flashlights on our phones to be able to see the scripts, and stepping carefully to avoid falling on the uneven ground in the dark. It’s a little absurd to try to direct actors in the dark, but also really fun.
What are your neighborhood haunts?
Weaver: I use Brunswick Cafe as a creative work space when I need to get away from my apartment. Good coffee and ambiance there. I enjoy the crepes at Couleur Cafe, which is also owned by the people who run Brooklyn Acting Lab, and the enchiladas at Fonda. Konditori on 7th Avenue is another favorite.
Meredith: I just moved to Park Slope about a year ago and I absolutely love it. I grew up on the Upper West Side and it reminds me of the way that neighborhood used to be; I know my neighbors, I know the store owners and salespeople, I know the bartenders and baristas, and they all know me. It’s wonderful. In terms of specific hangouts, I spend a fair amount of time at Gorilla Coffee, Venticinque Coffee, Wolf and Deer, Sharlene’s, and 4th Ave Pub, and I adore the food at Ghenet, SkyIce, and Miriam.
The Rundown: Communal Spaces: a garden play festival
Where: Warren/St. Marks Community Garden, 619 Warren Street between 4th and 5th Avenues
When: Saturdays and Sundays, September 12-27, 5pm
Admission: Free