ECHOES IN THE GARDEN, Will Have Its World Premiere From American Bard Theatre Company

AMERICAN BARD THEATER COMPANY is pleased to announce that after a covid-shutdown on Opening Night, March 13, 2020, their production of Ross G. Hewitt's ECHOES IN THE GARDEN, directed by Aimee Todoroff will have its World Premiere. ECHOES IN THE GARDEN will play a three-week limited engagement at The Chain Theatre (312 W 36th St 4th Fl, New York, NY 10018).

Performances begin Wednesday, October 20 and continue through Saturday, November 6. Opening Night is Friday, October 22 (7 p.m.). Tickets are $25 (student/senior $20 and previews $10) and available at https://EchoesintheGarden.eventcombo.com.

Press performances are: Wednesday, October 20 at 7 p.m., Thursday, October 21 at 7 p.m., and Friday, October 22 at 7 p.m. (critics are invited to any subsequent performance as well).

Returning home can often be fraught with family drama. For Ruth Hemmerich, bringing her young son to meet her parents is marred with a dark history and racial tensions. Set in 1962 with flashbacks to the late 1920s, in the home of Marion and Henry Hemmerich, the family tries to navigate social and familial expectations in the wake of loss that echoes through the generations.

"I met my maternal grandmother only twice in my life. The first time, I was three years old," remembers playwright Hewitt. "This play is based loosely on that visit. I only remember visiting a chicken coop for the first time and my mother saying the visit did not go well. I took those few facts, and what personality descriptions I had of my grandparents and deduced what may have happened and why.

I grew up not knowing my mother's parents and wondered was it just because my sister and I were bi-racial? Or was there a possible deeper explanation? One thing my mother talked about was having a brother who died at the age of four years old. That happened five years before she, the next child, was born. She always felt she could never live up to the memory that her parents, especially her mother, held on to. So, my personal rejection by my own grandmother led me to explore the topic artistically."

"While the events of this play shift in time, "Echoes in the Garden" begins in rural Pennsylvania in the spring of 1962. That is very early in what is generally thought of as the modern Civil Rights Movement," explains the director Todoroff.

"Much like today, it is a time of protest and unrest. The values of the past are being challenged by a more inclusive vision of the future. Even the simple act of loving is a risk when society has enforced a racist and patriarchal hierarchy.

At the center of all of this resonance, "Echoes in the Garden" is essentially about love: the love of a husband for his wife, the love of a parent for her children, and the desperate need for a child to feel the love of her parents. The central question for this family, and for all of us, is how we let past trauma stunt our capacity for love or use that experience to create a better, more loving future."

The production stars Richarda Adams* (3x Audelco award-winning actress/singer/playwright, producer) as Lillian, Arthur Aulisi* (Uncle Vanya; The Gene Frankel Theatre) as Henry Hemmerich, Natasja Naarendorp (NY Stage debut) as Young Lillian, Caroline Portner (Beauty and the Beast, Syracuse Stage) as Young Marion, Jake Roberson (Zounds; Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2019) as Young Henry, Jace Tristan Swinger as Young David**, Cheri Wicks* (King Lear; American Bard Theater Company) as Marion Hemmerich, Rhylee Watson as Young David** and Sarah Young (Caucasian Chalk Circle; Tobacco Factory Theatre) as Ruth Martin. *Performing courtesy of Actor's Equity Association. AEA approved showcase. **at certain performances.

The production features scenic design by Mike Mroch, costume design by Debbi Hobson (A Letter to Harvey Milk), and lighting design by Annie Garrett-Larsen. Jeanne Travis is the sound designer and Aoife Hough is the stage manager. Publicity by Katie Rosin/Kampfire PR.

Tickets are $25 (student/senior $20 and previews $10) and are now available online at https://EchoesintheGarden.eventcombo.com. Tickets may also be purchased in-person at the theater a half hour prior to the performance.

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