Hail to the garden victorious! "War Garden" returns to Grant Park for a final performance

This is the time for America to correct her unpardonable fault of wastefulness and extravagance.
                                                                     ~Woodrow Wilson

Those words, spoken almost one hundred years ago, came as a rallying cry for Americans to plant more gardens. Shortly before the United States entered WWI, the National War Gardens Commission was formed for the express purpose of feeding American troops and, after the armistace, a good part of Europe from the backyards, golf courses, window boxes and empty lots across the U.S. The call was answered with enthusiasm; in 1917 there were over three million active war gardens from New York City to the heartland, producing, canning and shipping food to hungry soldiers and war victims abroad.

For the past month, Walkabout Theater Company and NeighborSpace--a land trust that protects community gardens in Chicago--have been celebrating the history of patriotic gardening in community gardens across the city. "War Garden" examines growing food as a foundation of community and, subsequently, patriotism through the story of legendary squatter Captain George Streeter. The performance is intended to be both entertaining and a springboard for action--"a cathartic experience of civic engagement with questions of patriotism, war, territory and community values." A half-hour "Green Party" preceeds the show, where audience members are invited to work in the garden and make art.

This is the closing weekend of the show, with performances Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings at 5pm in Grant Park's Growing Power Garden. Bring along a blanket and your sense of civic pride.