Fresh Produce 2023
Live staged readings of new works from The Pear Playwrights’ Guild!
Fri., December 15 at 7:00 pm: The Execution of Croesus by Bridgette Dutta Portman
About the play: After waging a doomed war on Persia, King Croesus is imprisoned, along with his wife Lissandra and son Lydus, while the victorious King Cyrus determines their fate. Loosely based on an account by Herodotus, The Execution of Croesus is an original take on a classical story that explores the age-old question of free will versus fate.
Featuring Paul Braverman, Helena G. Clarkson, Anthony Doan, Jake Fong, Peter Ray Juarez, Dave Leon, and Selin Sahbazoglu.
Produced and directed by Paul Braverman and Robyn Ginsburg Braverman.
All performances take place at The Pear Theatre: 1110 La Avenida, Suite A, Mountain View, CA 94043
Sat., December 16 at 7:00 pm: Vichy by Barry Slater
About the play: In 1942, southern France was a dangerous place to be - especially if you were Jewish. Barry Slater's Vichy is an unblinking exploration of how appearances, connections and relationships determine who lives and who dies.
Featuring Rebecca Burstein, Daniel Zafer-Joyce, Jenn Kopp and Kristin Walter.
Produced and directed by Paul Braverman and Robyn Ginsburg Braverman.
All performances take place at The Pear Theatre: 1110 La Avenida, Suite A, Mountain View, CA 94043
Sun., December 17 at 2:00 pm: Alice & Dorothy (Later in Life) by Diane Tasca
About the play: As girls, Alice and Dorothy each took magical journeys with enough danger and adventure to last a lifetime. Now it’s sixty years later and life has pounded the magic out of the memories. That is until a chance encounter in the laundry room starts a chain of events that requires both ladies to decide once and for all what was real, and what was a dream.
Featuring Paul Braverman, Carolyn Compton, Janine Saunders Evans, Jake Fong, Ann Kuchins, and Dave Leon.
Produced and directed by Paul Braverman and Robyn Ginsburg Braverman.
All performances take place at The Pear Theatre: 1110 La Avenida, Suite A, Mountain View, CA 94043
A note from the producers…
We are so excited for this year’s Fresh Produce for many reasons but first and foremost - we’re bringing you several fascinating plays. The Pear has a long history of presenting developmental readings, going back to 2002, the year Pear was founded. Although it wasn’t always called Fresh Produce, we launched the Pear Developmental Reading program in its current form in autumn of 2014.
The program presents full length new works from members of The Pear Playwrights’ Guild with the goal of preparing the plays for subsequent production. Once this weekend’s readings are complete, we will have conducted developmental readings for over 30 plays, many of which went on to receive full productions.
We thank the many actors who have contributed their collective time, talent and energy to these readings over the years. Their embodiment of these characters, without the benefit of props, blocking or costumes, has been consistently exceptional. We must also thank the many Pear Playwright Guild members who have entrusted us with their new work; the faith they have shown in our process has been inspiring.
Last, but not least, we’d like to thank you, the audience. Over the years, we’ve learned the conversation after the reading is an essential key to the development process, in many cases providing insight that unlocks something important for the playwright.
This year’s readings will be recorded live, then made available for streaming through New Year’s Day. Readings will be followed by an audience talkback. For anyone streaming the readings after the fact, you’ll still be able to contribute your thoughts for the writer via an online Q&A.
We’re proud to present these wonderful plays, and then hear what you have to say. And now - on with the show!
