Civic Ensemble Presents The World Premiere of FERTILE GROUNDS

Civic Ensemble presents the world premiere of Fertile Grounds, a new community-based play by acclaimed playwright Katie Ka Vang. Fertile Grounds is the powerful story of loss, grief, healing, and connection. This play invites the audience onto a BIPOC farming cooperative to explore what it means to be well, and to heal.

Fertile Grounds was developed over a two year process as playwright Katie Ka Vang and Civic Ensemble artists met with community members to listen to stories about grief, healing, wellness, and access to resources. Over 75 people in the Ithaca area participated in story sharing experiences contributing to the development of Fertile Grounds. This fictional play tells the story of Audia, whose father has recently died, and who has traveled to Ithaca to the cooperatively run farm that he was part of. Now Audia, and the cooperative members, must decide if she will stay to take on her father's share of the farm. Directed by Carley Robinson with an entirely BIPOC cast of local community members, this play shares stories of land stewards, healers, and people in our community seeking meaningful avenues for healing and health.

Fertile Grounds actor Antonisha Owens states, "Fertile Grounds is about reconnecting with the land, being in unison with nature and your community, and being there for your family." Actor Della Keahna adds, "one of my favorite pieces of everybody's character is the growth they exhibit together and all the different ways they learn to connect with the land, each other, and themselves, and how that will continue throughout their lives."

Celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, Civic Ensemble presents Fertile Grounds as its sixth community-based play. These plays are new works that have been created with, in, and for our local community, grappling with significant questions that our communities are facing. Previous community-based plays: Parent Stories (2013), Safety (2014), On the Corner (2015), The Class Divide (2017), and The Next Storm (2019).

The cast and crew consists of individuals whose lives and stories directly relate to land stewardship, healing, and health, as well as professional theatre artists. The cast includes: Yumi Asakura, Sherron Brown, Sabetha Hersini, Della Keahna, Misko Keahna Uran, Antonisha Owens, Felicia Whatley, and Francine Wilson Jasper. Directed by Carley Robinson. Stage Management team: Kassandra Melendez-Ramirez and Yusef Scott-Wetherbee. Design team: Carrell Johnson (costumes), RJ Lavine (props), Megan Omohundro (choreography), Nate Richardson (sound), and Jason Simms (scenic).

Fertile Grounds was developed with support from the Network of Ensemble Theaters and the Playwrights' Center. This project was made possible in part by grants from the MAP Fund, the Tompkins County Tourism Program, the Community Arts Partnership of Tompkins County, New York State Council for the Arts, as well as support from Cayuga Medical Center's Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.