We Own This Now

Chris has farmed the land his grandmother found as a home in Kansas after fleeing Russia almost 100 years ago. His daughter Riley is learning more about the people who were on that land before her Oma arrived, and the jarring connections she has to the fate of those people. Chris and Riley navigate their changing relationship to each other, the land they’ve been living on, and the stories they tell.

Historical documents, absurd situations, and extended metaphors accompany Riley and Chris’s journey. They — and the audience — learn how the Doctrine of Discovery (the legal framework that justifies theft of land and oppression of Indigenous Peoples) is still being used and causing harm today. 

Starring Ted Swartz and Michelle Milne, We Own this Now is a play by Alison Casella Brookins.

This play is primarily intended for settler audiences.

"We Own This Now" asks questions worth reflecting on:

What does it mean to “own” something? What is the relationship between “owning” and “taking” — and what is the relationship between “ownership” and (taking) responsibility?

Presented by Ted & Company TheaterWorks: Led by veteran actor and playwright, Ted Swartz, Ted & Company TheaterWorks uses humor and professional storytelling to talk about issues of faith and social justice through live shows, DVDs, digital videos, scripts, discussion guides, and more. Our team of dynamic actors and musicians are passionate about creating art that provokes both laughter and reflection, as all good comedy does.

October 12 at Steinmann Mennonite Church, Baden

October 15 at Rockway Mennonite Collegiate, Kitchener

Photo Credit: Glenn Riegel