Eco Village is no Utopian Vision

Among the many fascinations of Eco Village, a new play by a gifted young playwright, Phoebe Nir, in production at the Theater at St. Clement’s Church, is a revision of communal life from the ‘60’s, reimagined for this generation of millennials. For many of us who remember our youthful era of sharing resources, it was an edenic time for those who had little to share, welcoming the bounty of those more prosperous. In Eco Village, that ethos takes on current trends, toward ecology, conservation, and respect for the earth. Keeping a small footprint, so to speak, is a goal. But humans being, well, human, loyalties shift among the fictive characters in this alternate world, in ways that make Eco Village register more cynical than utopian. But then again, how do you change the world?

Based on the playwright’s travels around the country, Eco Village features a fine ensemble, nurtured by The Center for Arts Education (CAE). Finding an eco village online, Robin (Arianna Williams), newly homeless, makes her way to the country. Fielding dicey personalities with limited capacity for welcoming her, Robin meets a hunky handyman, a gay couple, and others for whom survival seems a matter of playing by arbitrary rules and composting. Alas, there seems to be no limit to violence, whether psychological or physical; personal property and privacy be damned.

Lily Davis as Sammi is especially hilarious, evoking jealousy when her lover makes it with Jake, the handyman (Gregory Isaac Stone). Blair Bauerschmidt’s evocative costumes include a leather get-up for Ursula (Pearl Rhein). Don’t ask. And Meredith Reis’ staging design has a garden popping up from under a floorboard for growing organic edibles—Robin gets a lesson in horticulture from Jean-Lerois (Michael Oloyede). Produce and other items are stolen, eh, appropriated by, what in other circles might be called a grifter (Zoe Wilson), and punished in Eco Village retribution. Under the direction of Chloe Treat, Eco Village is a well-written, beautifully acted cautionary glimpse at what can go wrong in a makeshift Paradise, offering a disheartening feeling about our lofty ideals, or, what’s old is new again.

When temporarily homeless Robin hitchhikes her way to an eco-village seen online, all she wants is a warm meal, a place to sleep, and some new friends. Instead, she finds a parallel universe, where survival skills and New Age optimism are blended together. When Robin falls for Jake, a brilliant but tormented handyman, their connection sets off a series of events that reveal the limits of human connection and the costs of utopia.

The cast includes Lily Davis (Wicked, Frozen at St. Luke's) sammi, Michael Oloyede (SCRAPS, Inanimate at The Flea Theater) Jean-Lerois, Pearl Rhein (Broadway: Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812), Gregory Isaac Stone (Vanya and Sonya and Masha and Spike at The Cleveland Playhouse, Geva Theatre, and Cape Cod Playhouse), Arianna Williams (Cookie Heart at the International Filmmaker Festival) and Zoe Wilson (White Effie in Orange is the New Black).

Regina Weinreich

Graphic Design: Salpeter Ventura