TREE by Natasha Mercado
Directed by Deanna Fleysher
Dates & Times
Thu Sep 26 - 8.30pm - 9.30pm*
Fri Sep 27 - 7.00pm - 8.00pm
* The performance of TREE on Thursday Sep 26 will be ASL Interpreted
3x SOLD OUT FRINGE RUNS
- Orlando, Victoria & Hollywood
BEST CLOWN/ PHYSICAL THEATRE
- Victoria 2022
“Mercado has a winsome and winning way with her clowning and improv skills. And if, in her arts-and-crafts costume, she makes you think about humanity’s foibles — and by foibles, I mean failings — in between the laughter, all the better.”
- Orlando Sentinel 2023, Matthew J. Palm
ENCORE PRODUCERS’ AWARD
- Hollywood 2022
“Natasha Mercado has roots in the Upright Citizens Brigade (whose alumni includes Amy Poehler, Nick Kroll and Aubrey Plaza), so her improvisational and sketch comedy skillset is clearly elite.”
-Times Colonist 2022, Mike Devlin
FRUIT LOOP SCHOLARSHIP
- Edmonton 2023
“Mercado is a master comic storyteller, who pulls you in from the outset, swiftly incorporating crowd input and reactions throughout. Even when she is not speaking, she conveys a world with just a look and a nod... The show has an unexpected twist that I won’t reveal, but by the end you may find yourself pondering if you’d prefer to be a tree. This is definitely a solo performance to see.”
- Stage Raw 2022, Inger Tudo
BEST SOLO CLOWN SHOW and EstroGenius awards
- 2022 NYC FRIGID Fringe
TREE wants to be a human, even though humanity kinda sucks. Part clown show, part game show and part philosophical discussion exploring the duality of humanity. In this hour of comedy, participation is unavoidable. Our protagonist Tree leads the audience, or in this case “the forest”, towards what it means to be truly alive. A lovable gaze into a spiraling staircase of existentialism with surprising, yet inevitable, turns.
About Natasha
Natasha Mercado is an LA-based comedy artist whose work explores the sacred and profane through an absurdist lens. She trained in clowning at the Idiot Workshop and created “Send in the Clowns,” the first monthly clown show at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater. Her television credits include “The Joe Schmo Show” reboot on American reality TV, and appearances on Adult Swim and HBO. In addition to performing, Mercado teaches Soft Clown performance workshops at The Elysian Theater and serves as a teaching artist with The Unusual Suspects Theater Company.
Dates & Times
Thu Sep 26 - 8.30pm - 9.30pm*
Fri Sep 27 - 7.00pm - 8.00pm
* The performance of TREE on Thursday Sep 26 will be ASL Interpreted
Workshop
SOFT CLOWN: The Heart of Performance
Wed Sep 25 - 6.00pm - 9.00pm
