FUSION Theatre Company Presents NATIVE GARDENS

FUSION Theatre Company Presents NATIVE GARDENS

THEATRE | THURSDAYS–SUNDAYS, MARCH 27–APRIL 6 | $20–40

FUSION Theatre Company is thrilled to present a true breath of comedic fresh air, NATIVE GARDENS by Karen Zacarias! FUSION’s production, directed by Laurie Thomas, stars Ashley Deleona, Wendy Scott, William R. Stafford, and Daniel Zuniga. Tickets and two-show EZ passes are now available!

"A biting, perceptive, and ultimately hopeful sendup to our fraught relationships with those around us – even right next door." —DC Theatre Scene

"The story is as carefully carpentered as an episode of 'The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour’." —L.A. Times

"NATIVE GARDENS is just what the theater doctor ordered as an antidote to the flow of apocalyptic news. The play isn’t theater of the absurd, but it’s absurdly hilarious." —ARTBURST Miami 

You can’t choose your neighbors. In this brilliantly clever comedy, cultures and gardens clash, turning well-intentioned neighbors into feuding frenemies. Pablo, an ambitious attorney, and his wife Tania, an Albuquerque native, have just purchased a home next to Frank and Virginia, a well-established D.C. couple. Ever grooming their prize-worthy English garden, Frank and Virginia harbor high hopes of winning the annual Garden Society prize. But an impending outdoor gathering for Pablo’s colleagues and a delicate disagreement over a long-standing fence line soon spirals into an all-out border dispute exposing notions of race, taste, class, and privilege. In the end, the turf of communication, respect, and love triumphs over all.

Performances will be from March 27–April 6 on Thursdays & Fridays at 7 PM, Saturdays at 2 PM & 7 PM, and Sundays at 3 PM. Opening night features a pre-show reception with doors opening at 6 PM!

FUSION | The Cell

700 1st. St. NW

Downtown ABQ

Two-Show EZ Pass: General Admissions: $75 | Seniors over 66+: $65 | Students: $35 

Individual Tickets: General Admission: $40 | Seniors over 65: $35 | Students: $20

Thanks to the City of Albuquerque, Pay What You Wish Ticketing is available!

KAREN ZACARIAS award-winning plays include the sold-out/extended comedy THE BOOK CLUB PLAY, the sold-out world premiere drama JUST LIKE US (adapted from the book by Helen Thorpe) at Denver Theater Center, the Steinberg –citation award play LEGACY OF LIGHT , the Francesca Primus Award winning play MARIELA IN THE DESERT, the Helen Hayes Award winning play THE SINS OF SOR JUANA , the adaptation of Julia Alvarez’s HOW THE GARCIA GIRLS LOST THEIR ACCENTS. Karen also has a piece in the Arena Stage premiere of OUR WAR. Her TYA musicals with composer Debbie Wicks la Puma include JANE OF THE JUNGLE, EINSTEIN IS A DUMMY, LOOKING FOR ROBERTO CLEMENTE, CINDERELLA EATS RICE AND BEANS, FERDINAND THE BULL, and FRIDA LIBRE. Her musical CHASING GEORGE WASHINGTON premiered at The Kennedy Center for Performing Arts and went on a National Tour. Her script was then adapted into a book by Scholastic with a foreword by First Lady Michelle Obama.

Karen is currently working on the adaptation of Edith Wharton’s THE AGE OF INNOCENCE, a drama for Oregon Shakespeare Festival, and a Brazilian themed Oliver Twist musical: OLIVERIO: A BRAZILIAN TWIST ON DICKENS for the Kennedy Center. Her libretto of THE SUN ALSO RISES for the Washington Ballet received accolades in the New York Times and she is currently writing the libretto for THE LEGEND OF SLEEPY HOLLOW with Washington Ballet artistic Director Septime Webre. She is proud to be currently commissioned to write new plays for Arena Stage, Cincinnati Playhouse, Ford’s Theater, Adventure Theater, and First Stage.

Karen is represented by the Graham Agency and published by Dramatic Publishing. Karen is fluent in English and Spanish and highly proficient in Danish and French. She has BA with distinction from Stanford University and a Masters in Creative Writing from Boston University. Born in Mexico, Karen now lives in Washington D.C. with her husband and three children.