Thursdays-Saturdays at 7:30pm
Sundays at 5:00pm
Shows begin promptly at 7:30pm & 5:00pm. No late seating.
*Recommended for ages 16 up
Running time: 90 minutes (no intermission)
Sundays at 5:00pm
Shows begin promptly at 7:30pm & 5:00pm. No late seating.
*Recommended for ages 16 up
Running time: 90 minutes (no intermission)
Forbidden Fruit celebrates feminine curiosity and challenges the notion of original sin by inviting audiences to step inside a mystery container and choose how they will engage. Designed for small groups of participants, Forbidden Fruit mingles the myth of Pandora with the tale of Alice in Wonderland, and allows audiences into 8 installation rooms, each dedicated to a fruit/fungus/grain. Upon leaving, the price of learning the secrets of each room is paid as the chaos of the world is unleashed.
What audiences are saying
"Best show of the season in all of Portland."
"Mind Blown!"
"An amazing and wild ride."
"Wildly beautiful"
"Shaking The Tree always doing the most interesting stuff in pdx!"
"What a brilliant piece of theater. Part installation/part immersive theater. So fun. So inventive. So bold. So brilliant."
"One of the best theatrical experiences I have had in Portland."
"I am absolutely astounded."
"This show was astonishing. So glad I got a chance to see it."
"The audience is welcomed into a series of small rooms each featuring a performance based on a particular theme, and the result is exquisite."
"Forbidden Fruit was thrilling; it was one of the best experiences I’ve ever had. Like a feminist theatrical Disneyland. I felt so alive and seen in each piece. It was radical and bold and beautiful and just so damn well done."
"I went with my Theatre Class. I saw Forbidden Fruit. This is the most amazing play I have ever seen in my entire life. I felt every emotion there was to feel. Folks were split up into groups of 6. They rotated clockwise for a different experience in each room. I don't even have words to speak. It was that good."
Reviews and Previews
"A longstanding Midgard of Portland theater, Shaking the Tree makes both boundary-pushing and wonderfully relatable projects. We expect grand things, and the company consistently delivers. With Forbidden Fruit, Shaking the Tree has raised the bar once again." -Suzette Smith, Portland mercury
Read the full review here
"I often leave the theatre speechless, and any words I can conjure up later are inadequate to describe the visceral experience. FORBIDDEN FRUIT is this type of theatre of the gut."
-Krista Garver, Broadway World. Read the full review here
"Crafted as part-installation, part-performance, Shaking the Tree’s show Forbidden Fruit, which opens on March 4, invites audiences to embrace their curiosity as they step inside eight different installation rooms over a 90-minute period. Each room houses its own story and struggle—but all bear crucial (though perhaps uncomfortable) truths." -Isabel Lemus Kristensen, Portland Monthly. Read the preview here
"Mind Blown!"
"An amazing and wild ride."
"Wildly beautiful"
"Shaking The Tree always doing the most interesting stuff in pdx!"
"What a brilliant piece of theater. Part installation/part immersive theater. So fun. So inventive. So bold. So brilliant."
"One of the best theatrical experiences I have had in Portland."
"I am absolutely astounded."
"This show was astonishing. So glad I got a chance to see it."
"The audience is welcomed into a series of small rooms each featuring a performance based on a particular theme, and the result is exquisite."
"Forbidden Fruit was thrilling; it was one of the best experiences I’ve ever had. Like a feminist theatrical Disneyland. I felt so alive and seen in each piece. It was radical and bold and beautiful and just so damn well done."
"I went with my Theatre Class. I saw Forbidden Fruit. This is the most amazing play I have ever seen in my entire life. I felt every emotion there was to feel. Folks were split up into groups of 6. They rotated clockwise for a different experience in each room. I don't even have words to speak. It was that good."
Reviews and Previews
"A longstanding Midgard of Portland theater, Shaking the Tree makes both boundary-pushing and wonderfully relatable projects. We expect grand things, and the company consistently delivers. With Forbidden Fruit, Shaking the Tree has raised the bar once again." -Suzette Smith, Portland mercury
Read the full review here
"I often leave the theatre speechless, and any words I can conjure up later are inadequate to describe the visceral experience. FORBIDDEN FRUIT is this type of theatre of the gut."
-Krista Garver, Broadway World. Read the full review here
"Crafted as part-installation, part-performance, Shaking the Tree’s show Forbidden Fruit, which opens on March 4, invites audiences to embrace their curiosity as they step inside eight different installation rooms over a 90-minute period. Each room houses its own story and struggle—but all bear crucial (though perhaps uncomfortable) truths." -Isabel Lemus Kristensen, Portland Monthly. Read the preview here
The Hall
Devised
Performers: Kai Hynes & Rebby Yuer Foster
Performers: Kai Hynes & Rebby Yuer Foster
The Rooms
The Apple
Playwright: Michelle Ruiz Keil
Actor: Sofía Marks
Playwright: Michelle Ruiz Keil
Actor: Sofía Marks
The Wild Banana
Playwright: Heath Hyun Houghton
Actor: Madeleine Tran
Playwright: Heath Hyun Houghton
Actor: Madeleine Tran
The Pomegranate
Devised
Actor: Olivia Mathews
Devised
Actor: Olivia Mathews
The Fig
Playwright: E.M. Lewis
Actor: Val Landrum
Playwright: E.M. Lewis
Actor: Val Landrum
The Mushroom
Playwright: Andrea Stolowitz
Actor: Vana O'Brien
Playwright: Andrea Stolowitz
Actor: Vana O'Brien
The Grape
Choreographer: Amy Leona Havin
Performer: Claire Aldridge
Choreographer: Amy Leona Havin
Performer: Claire Aldridge
The Wheat Berry
Playwright: Sara Jean Accuardi
Actor: Kailey Rhodes
Playwright: Sara Jean Accuardi
Actor: Kailey Rhodes
The Quince
Playwright: Josie Seid
Music Director & Composer: Joellen Sweeney
Performers: Madeline Ross, Joellen Sweeney & Max Tapogna
Playwright: Josie Seid
Music Director & Composer: Joellen Sweeney
Performers: Madeline Ross, Joellen Sweeney & Max Tapogna
Cast
Creative TeamDirector & Set Designer: Samantha Van Der Merwe
Assistant Director: Annabel Cantor Stage Manager: Emily Hogan Assistant Stage Manager: Hayley Lamsma Backstage Crew: Bela Mast Music Director: Joellen Sweeney Lighting Designers: Griffin Kiyoshi DeWitt Sound Designer: Matt Wiens Costume Designer: Paige A. Hanna Technical Director and Design Collaborator: Ree Seminole Scenic Charge Artist & Design Collaborator: Alex Meyer Scenic Painter: Beiyi Teo Master Electrician: Spencer Fork Box Office Manager: Kai Hynes Box Office Associates: Orlando Reyes Cabrera & Leiana Petlewski |
Forbidden Fruit is generously supported by our major donors; Ronni Lacroute, Jessie Jonas, Anonymous, and Ellyn Bye.
We'd also like to thank the foundations listed below, members of Shaking the Tree's Board, as well as many other individual supporters. To support this show, or any others in our season, please visit our SUPPORT page.
We'd also like to thank the foundations listed below, members of Shaking the Tree's Board, as well as many other individual supporters. To support this show, or any others in our season, please visit our SUPPORT page.