A PLAY IN BLOOM

Scene from the one-act play Extreme Green by Janet Lawler

Well, I survived my play being performed and so did the audience.

Extreme Green premiered in NYC this past weekend in a Thespian Productions Showcase.  It went very well.  Whew!  Live theater is one nail-biting event.  So many things can go wrong (and right) and the playwright just has to sit there and trust his actors and director. 

Extreme Green is about a NYC land owner who deeply resents it when a young, idealistic farmer decides to grow vegetables on his vacant lot.  It's a social comedy... about the local food movement.

The audiences really related to it, especially about buying organic, local and cage-free and experiencing the recent food movement in our country as a revolution!  In the play, Adesh, the land owner refers to Paul, the young farmer, as a "radical with a rake".

The play was directed by Chrysta Naron, who did an amazing job.  The actors (Michael Soldati and Cris Morales) received great feedback, especially on their final show.  Thanks to them both for giving hours of rehearsal time and three performances.  With just twenty minutes together on stage, they convinced the audiences -- as extremely different as they are as characters/actors -- that they could unite for a better cause (growing an organic vegetable garden)... while also making a fast buck doing it.

Many people have asked me where I got the idea for the play.

I read about an idealistic group in NYC who were throwing seeds on vacate lots in the city (to grow flowers and beautify empty lots) but it was a problem when those lots didn't belong to them.  Did these do-gooders have the right to transform lots without permission from the land owners?

And, thus, the play was born.

What's next for Extreme Green?  Well, I just might shoot it as a short film come spring.  It will also be performed in more community theaters.  Somehow, I see the play moving forward.

It seems a play destined to bloom further.

Big thanks to all who spent their hard-earned "cash flow" on tickets to see my play (especially in these tough times) and for supporting Off-Broadway arts.

It was an incredible weekend in a tiny theater.

Until next time.

For those interested in Extreme Green for their theaters, workshops or student drama clubs please visit:
http://www.productionscripts.com/janet-lawler-extreme-green-p-461.html