A comedy that also makes you think?

Jamie Ulmer • January 13, 2025

"Native Gardens" brings timely laughs and questions

Welcome to our first show of 2025! At first glance, Native Gardens is a lighthearted comedy about neighbors feuding over a fence and a flowerbed. Beneath the humor, however, there are timely and complex issues to be explored.


Debuting in 2016, Karen Zacarías’ play has become one of the most produced shows in the country. The idea for the play took root (pun intended) during a dinner party Zacarias attended and the conversation turned to petty disputes her friends were having with their neighbors.


“We were laughing about how absurd these fights are,” Zacarias said. “But there was also something so primal about it. Like every conflict in the world, every war is a fight between neighbors. I thought, ‘What would happen if I just made it about plants in the backyard?’”


As you will see, the play’s conflict sprouts from not just the dispute over a property line, but the perception of who we see as different than ourselves. That difference could be anything from age, to race, to economic background. How do we coexist with our neighbors – be it next door, across town, or across the country – when our disagreements can spiral into absurdity? There has been no shortage of this over the past several years. Do those conflicts reveal something deeper about our communities?


It’s one of the hidden super powers of comedy to open the door for us to consider these questions. The act of sharing a laugh creates an immediate connection, a common ground, to start a conversation, or consider alternative points of view and realize that we can be right and wrong at the same time. Sneaky thing – a well crafted laugh.


“Over the years, I’ve had people write to me and tell me that they chose not to escalate a problem with a neighbor after seeing the play. That’s the best reward I’ve had from it,” Zacarias says. “While watching the play you may judge one couple and then judge the other, but in the end, I hope the person you are judging is yourself. How can we all be better neighbors?”


Not bad for a comedy about squabbling neighbors.


Enjoy the show!

Jamie Ulmer

Executive Director


Theatre Lawrence News & Announcements

A summer filled with JOY

By Jamie Ulmer • July 20, 2026
Joy. That's the only word I can think of to describe the feeling that has been radiating from the TL stage over the past several weeks. First came the joy of our annual Penguin Project production. Seeing youth with special needs take the stage and experience the audience's warm appreciation each night is nothing short of magical. This year's production of Alice in Wonderland Jr. proved it with time-obsessed rabbits, murderous Queen of Hearts, and ever-growing and shrinking young Alices. That was followed last weekend by our sold-out run of Guys and Dolls SR ., our very first Vintage Players senior musical. The joy was written on the face of every cast member, some of whom were appearing in their very first show (one made her acting debut at 83!). That joy carried over after each performance as friends, children, and grandchildren eagerly waited to congratulate the cast.  There's one more weekend of summer joy on tap as we present two youth productions, Willy Wonka KIDS and The Aristocats KIDS , playing in repertory this Friday and Saturday. Sharing joy like this makes all the schedule juggling, rehearsals, and investment of resources worthwhile. It reminds us why we support community-based, locally produced theatre. There is truly nothing like it, and we're thrilled to have been bringing that joy to our community for 50 years. Our exciting 50th Anniversary Season is about to begin, and we can't wait to share that joy with you! Jamie Ulmer TL Executive Director

CAST LIST: Pirates! The Penzance Musical

July 17, 2026
CAST LIST: Frederic......................................................................................................Joseph Discavage*/Conner Booton (U/S) Mabel Stanley........................................................................................Emily Pons/Morgan Tate (U/S) Pirate King................................................................................................Spencer Greenwood/Andy Connolly (U/S) Ruth..............................................................................................................Shelby Easum/Katie Hastings Lewis (U/S) William S Gilbert/Major-General Stanley Arthur...........Patrick Kelly Sullivan/The Sergeant of Police................................................Tom Emerson, Jr./Ian Crossfield (U/S) GENERAL STANLEY’S DAUGHTERS: Edith................Nikki Hammond Kate.................Katie Hastings Lewis Isabel..............Nicole Olson Yvette.............Elena Jones* Chantilly.......Taylyn Hopkins* Callie..............Ashlyn Traffas* Fiona...............Morgan Tate* PIRATE CREW: Jesue - First Mate.......Mario Bonilla Luis........................................Ian Crossfield* Arnaldo..............................Andy Connolly* Francois............................Conner Booton Lazare.................................Zachary Bricken Roscoe..............................Jennifer Walker* Kersten..............................Gwentessa Alfie Rafael.................................Callee Harris The New Orleans Volunteer Police: Gwentessa Alfie Conner Booton Mario Bonilla Nicole Olson Morgan Tate Jennifer Walker * denotes mainstage TL debut Tickets on sale to general public Aug. 3

Announcing the first Striving Artists Project recipient

July 1, 2026
Theatre Lawrence is pleased to announce the first recipient of the Louise ImMasche Striving Artists Project is Anj Marie Riffel and her musical Chasing Nirvana . The show will receive a production at Theatre Lawrence Oct. 2 and 3, 2026. Information about auditions and participating in the first staging of this original musical will be available in the coming weeks. Anj Marie Riffel wears a stack of hats professionally and passionately — including writer, editor, designer, and songwriter — with an enduring love of artistic expression. Her short plays have been featured on stage at Theatre Lawrence for New Works Night. When she’s not searching for her missing iPhone or the meaning of life, Anj can be found wading heart-deep in creative pursuits and loving her people. The Striving Artists Project honors the legacy of Louise ImMasche and the art they created by fostering a space and providing resources to small artists with big shows. This project aims to provide an opportunity to kinder those like Louise – unyielding in their dreams, a need to tell their stories, and looking to go big with the chances they are provided. About the show: Travel back to the heyday of Gen X, when twentysomethings were trying to figure out who they were beyond the walls of Shermer High School—and discovering that reality does indeed bite. Presley Martin is an endearingly awkward, hot mess of a musician who’s hoping her band might be the next Nirvana. While reaching on tiptoe for the stars, she loses her balance and winds up flirting with rock bottom instead. With the resurgence of 1990s culture, CHASING NIRVANA feels simultaneously nostalgic and current. Driven by catchy 90’s alt-rock music, the story appeals to a multi-generational audience, as it examines life’s big questions: Who will love me? Why am I here? What really matters? Packed with heart, humor, and a healthy dose of pop-culture wisdom, we follow Presley’s journey as she navigates a Bermuda love triangle and risks losing herself in the void between two very different dreams. Will she find her own sense of nirvana?
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