Manning at Potrero Stage

Manning is a new play by Benjamin Benne directed by Adin Walker, receiving its West Coast premiere at Crowded Fire Theater. Following the death of their wife and mother, a father and his two sons spread her ashes in their backyard garden, and when a giant zucchini mysteriously appears overnight, each family member discovers a unique language for grief through encounters with the supernatural vegetable. The cast features Michael Torres as Julio, Caleb Andrew Cabrera as Sebastian, Alonso Melgoza as Freddy, and Michele Apriña Leavy as Ana, with puppeteer Ixtlán Flores and musician Sarah Jiang. The play explores masculinity, family, and the search for connection and healing after loss.