50Things
The Plot Thickens
Dartmouth Commons Community Gardens
The Understudies Theatre Co.
Enter the park at the corner of Park Ave and King Street. Hang a left on the trail and the garden will be on your right.
This volunteer-run, wood-fired community oven, garden and orchard is home to 20 private garden beds and 2 community plots, and is beloved by many Dartmouthians. The group provides fresh produce for families and donates goods to local food causes.
The Plot Thickens
Six audio pieces. Press the buttons and listen!
The Plot Thickens is a project made by The Understudies to understand the importance of community gardens and what happens within them. The Plot Thickens is a family-friendly experience about the inner workings of a community garden plot and the fruits and vegetables who call the plot their home.
The transcript or descriptive text for this piece can be found by touching the "Text" button in the bottom right hand corner of your screen in the "View the Art" section.
Jonah Campbell is an actor, improviser, and sketch comedian based in Halifax/Kjipuktuk, Nova Scotia. He is also an aspiring podcaster, conservation officer, and brunch restaurant owner (aspiring being the operative word). Jonah graduated from Dalhousie’s Acting Program in 2018 and has since worked at two summer camps, travelled Japan, and lived on an organic farm. Millennials, am I right? Before the world of live performance imploded in mid-March, Jonah would perform sketch and improv with the local comedy group Same Boat, and at Mousetrap Comedy at Good Robot Brewing. He also created video content for Same Boat’s YouTube channel as head producer and editor. Select recent projects include: Same Boat Comedy (2019), MicroDigital Project (Eastern Front Theatre), Mousetrap Comedy (2019).
Sara Graham (she/her) is a deaf comedian, activist, improviser, workshop educator, and accessibility consultant. Sara uses her work to advocate for accessibility in theatre and wholeness in accessibility. Her goal is to create art and creative spaces that acknowledge and address the need for inclusivity and accessibility for all artists. Sara received her degree from Dalhousie University with a BSc in Psychology, minoring in Gender and Women’s Studies. Sara hopes to help in the creation of spaces that are radically accessible. Select recent projects include: Observatory Mansions (The Villains Theatre), Pride 2021 (Halifax Pride), Microdigital Project (Eastern Front Theatre), Stages Festival (Eastern Front Theatre) , Guest of Hello City Improv (2021). Instagram: @sgrahamaccessibility
Erik Garf is an actor, improviser, stand up, and sketch comedian based in Halifax/Kjipuktuk, Nova Scotia. As a founding member of Same Boat Comedy, Erik has performed monthly sketch and improv shows in Halifax, facilitated improvisation workshops and, through StirFry, created opportunities for people of all experience levels to perform improv. He graduated from Mount Allison University in 2018 with majors in Drama Studies and English and a Minor in Classics. Erik is known for creating eccentric characters and is passionate about bringing comedy and laughter to everyone. He finds inspiration in everyday life and funny moments from his own experience. Recent notable projects include: Halifax Fringe (2019), Mount Allison University Special Guest Show (2019) Toronto Sketchfest (2020). Instagram: @garfea
The EAC was one of the first organizations in the Maritimes to identify the important connections between our food system and the environment. For over a decade, EAC has been working towards creating a more sustainable food system, where healthy, local food is accessible to all. We have done so by working with local farmers and gardeners, promoting local purchasing, farmers markets, and CSA’s, enhancing people’s food skills and knowledge, and advocating for systems-level change that gets at the root of community food security.
WELCOME TO THE GARDEN
SARA: Hi and Welcome to Plot three of the Dartmouth Community Gardens. My name is Sara and just like my two friends, Erik and Jonah-
ERIK/JONAH: -HEY!-
SARA: -I am interested in plants and gardening. Hopefully you are too and that’s why you are here. The food you buy at the grocery store sometimes has to travel hundreds and thousands of miles before it gets to your plate, and a lot of the time it’s hard to find out where it even came from! These plants grow right near you, so you know exactly what you’re eating. I know our plants are all excited to meet you and show off their leaves, but before you adventure into the gardens there are a few things you should know.
JONAH: We love talking to our plants, and our plants love talking back. As you go up to meet them, be mindful of where you step and what you touch. Plants aren’t as strong as we are, so we have to take care and tread softly when walking through a garden. And if you happen to see any of your friendly neighbourhood gardeners around be sure to give them a wave or even say hello! Community gardens aren’t only about growing food, they’re also about growing community!
ERIK: Also, make sure to leave the signs (and the plants) in the ground, so nobody gets lost or confused when looking for new plant friends to meet. When you visit a garden, take nothing but memories with you, and leave nothing but footprints behind. We want to make sure everyone can have the same great experience as you.
SARA: And most important of all, make sure to share all the things you learned and laughed at with your friends and family. Things are enjoyed best as a community, especially the environment!
JONAH: Go ahead, step into the garden!
ERIK: Maybe you will learn something new!
SARA: And hopefully you’ll have fun!
THREE COOL BLUEBS
BUB: Hey, how’r ya? Welcome to the blueberry bush of Plot 3. Originally named the star berries by ideginous cultures, because of its five point star at it’s blossom end. The name’s Bub by the way. Can you see me, I’m the blueberry with the super cool mustache –
BUP: If you wanna see cool, get a load of Bup here. I’m the Blueberry with the extra cool fedora hat.
BUTT: Woah now, everybody knows Butt is the coolest one out of everyone here. Check me out, I’m the Blueberry with the uber cool shades.
BUB: As you can tell, we are always competing for attention.
BUP: What can I say, it’s not easy standing out amongst your hundreds of brothers and sisters.
BUTT: I haven’t even met half the family!
BUB: It’s okay because we’re only here for about 3 weeks in the middle of summer.
BUP: We’re here for a good time!
BUTT: Not a long time.
BUB: By the way, don’t eat us.
BUP: Don’t even think about picking us.
BUTT: I know we look tasty!
BUB: But please leave us for the birds, so our seeds can spread across the fields.
BUP: You see, birds can’t digest our seeds.
BUTT: So when they poop us out, the birds are planting blueberry seeds.
BUB: It’s gross and beautiful!
BUP: That’s nature for ya!
BUTT: Plus we are high in vitamins and antioxidants, which helps the bird’s cardiovascular health. Blueberries are an essential part of our backyard bird’s health.
BUB: We’ve got vitamin C, which helps prevent sickness, and vitamin B, which turns the other nuts and seeds they eat into energy. Birds need to eat lots of blueberries in order to build up their strength for their great migration in the fall.
BUP: Oddly enough, blueberries reduce the stress levels of birds. We all know travelling can be stressful, so leave a few extra berries on your bushes at home so the birds can have a peaceful and healthy migration.
BUTT: OH look! Here comes a bird now!
[BIRD CAWING]
BUB: Hey, pick me! The blueberry with the cool mustache!
BUP: No, over here! Get a taste of this cool fedora!
BUTT: Oh, OH, guys he’s choosing me. Cause of my cool shades! Yippee, bye friends!
BUB/BUP: Bye Butt!
BUTT: Bub, Bup, take my shades to remember me by.
[BIRD CAWING]
BUB: Hey-a, he gave those shades to me!
BUP: No, he gave them to me!
BUB: Aw, they go better with my Mustache.
BUP: Nah, they’re way cooler with the fedora!
BUB: HEY Woah!
BUP: UH OH
BUB: Hey, we dropped the sun- And there they go… on the ground.
BUP: Look! The slug is picking up the sunglasses.
BUB: Woah, that slug looks super cool in those shades!
BUP: He’s giving us the peace sign!
BUB/BUP: PEACE SLUG!
NUTRITION COMPETITION
[Up-Beat House Music/Wrestling Ring Fusion Music Bumps in the Background]
Announcer: Welcome! To the plot three nutrition competition! This year we are putting our leafy greens to the test to see once and for all who is the most nutrient-dense salad saviour! Please put your leaves together for this year’s contestants: Dale the Kale -
[Fans Cheering]
- Spinach Mitch -
[Fans Cheering]
- aaannnnd Saskia-Swiss-Chard-
[Fans Cheering]
-3… 2… 1… Fight!
Dale the Kale: Listen here Spinach Mitch, Popeye may have chosen you to beef himself up with you, but in reality, I have a higher protein content than you and Saskia combined! Prepare for my Protein Pile-Driver!
[Goofy Cartoon Sound Effects of Metal Sticks Vibrating and a Spring Being Struck]
Announcer: And Dale the Kale has knocked over Spinach Mitch taking an early lead with his superior Macro-nutrient content! But here comes Saskia-Swiss Chard with the follow-up!
Saskia: I, Saskia-Swiss Chard, will out-last you both with my superior mineral content. Sodium and Magnesium are nature’s gatorade, and I just chugged a whole bottle. Here comes my Mineral Moonshot!
[Boing and Slide Whistle Sound Effects]
Announcer: Ohhhhh, and now Dale the Kale is down too! Saskia-Swiss Chard’s minerals are out of this world! But oh no! Spinach Mitch is back-up and looking to fight!
Mitch: Thanks for the hand Saskia... but I’m going to take you down with me! You may be more mineral-y, but I know for a fact that I outclass you with my sky-high Vitamin A and Vitamin K levels. Here comes my Vitamin-Vortex Attack!
[Timpani and Whirligig Sound Effects]
Announcer: And with that it looks like we have a draw! All three contestants are piled on top of each other, creating what appears to be a delicious-looking and nutrient packed mixed-green salad! There you have it folks! No matter the leafy green you choose to eat, all provide a healthy treat!
Remember! Dark Green Plants like Kale, Spinach, and Swiss Chard are all packed with Nutrients, Vitamins, and Minerals.
MEAN BEAN JOHNNY
[Sporadic Acoustic Guitar Strumming]
JOHNNY: Howdy... They call me Mean Bean Johnny. But, I ain’t so mean, it’s just I’m sick and tired of people asking me where I’ve been. See, as a travelling bean, I’ve been everywhere. Beans have been cultivated by humans for over 6,000 years, and in that time we have had a good chance to see the world. There ain’t no soil this bean can’t sprout from. Mean Bean Johnny’s old roots have touched just about every corner of this here province. So listen up, cause I’m gonna put the rumours to bed and strum a little tune answering that ol’ question I get all the time… ‘where have you been, Mean Bean Johnny?’
[Guitar Accompaniment to the Tune of “I’ve Been Everywhere”]
I was soakin' my roots along a dusty Dartmouth road,
When along came a gardener with a rusty ol’ wheelbarrow.
"I’m going across the bridge to Halifax, Bean, with me you can ride."
And so I climbed into the barrow and then I settled down inside.
He asked me if I'd seen a road with so much dust and sand.
And I said listen, “I’ve bean in ever garden in this here land”
I've bean everywhere, man.
I've bean everywhere, man.
I’ve sowed the dirt with seeds, man.
I’ve fought off all the weeds, man.
Of soil I've had my share, man.
I've bean everywhere.
I’ve been to
Dartmouth, Yarmouth, Truro, Parsboro
Digby, Sydney, Canning, Guys Borough
Stewiacke, Uniacke, Liverpool, Lunenburg
Bridgewater, Waterville, Amherst, Louisburg
Lockport, Hantsport, Kingsport, Freeport
Westville, Wolfville, Kentville, Granville.
I've bean everywhere, man.
I've bean everywhere, man.
I’ve sowed the dirt with seeds, man.
I’ve fought off all the weeds, man.
Of soil I've had my share, man.
I've bean everywhere.
Well you heard it here first, from mean bean himself. I’m a bean who's been everywhere! always remember, ‘beans, beans, they’re good for your heart. the more you eat the more you...r digestive system benefits. You don’t just have to eat beans raw, you can use us to make burgers, cakes, drinks, pies, fudge, muffins, jewelry, bean bag chairs, toys, and musical instruments. I’m Mean Bean Johnny, and I’ll see ya around.
Irish Potato Song
** PAT:** Gather ‘round children, and let me tell ye the story of how the humble potato came to be a food staple across the world. And how we can keep the potato party going forever!
[Irish Drinking Song Accompaniment]
I-de-die-de-die-de-die-de-die-de-die-de-die!
Out by Lake Titicaca, where today we call Peru
Two-thousand five hun-dred BC is where Potatoes grew
The Incans ate them daily, flash-froze-em so they’d last
That’s the humble ol beginnings of the great potatoes past
I-de-die-de-die-de-die-de-die-de-die-de-die!
When the Spanish came to visit, they stole than Incan’s food
They loaded up their ship with them, it was rather quite rude
They brought them back to Europe, they spread across the land
And that how our potatoes ended up in Ire-land
I-de-die-de-die-de-die-de-die-de-die-de-die!
With a great food like potatoes, the population grew
But the spanish made a great mistake that would hurt the Irish too
The potatoes had a weakness, got a sickness called a blight
With no food around the people were hungry throughout the night
I-de-die-de-die-de-die-de-die-de-die-de-die!
Now lucky for us humans, there’s taters of all kinds
One-hundred different taters, and there’s some that do not mind
Mind the blight or mind the sickness, they’re strong and tasty too
So plant LOTS of potatoes, it’s the least that you could do!
I-de-die-de-die-de-die-de-die-de-die-de-die!
BARB THE PIE MAKER [Harpsichord Music Plays, Evoking the Melancholy of a Unrequited Love Letter]
BARB: I’m Barb the baker a lovely pie maker who takes her time to grow. You can find me in tarts but not with all of my parts in your tummy only my stalks can go! Though I look like a fruit so delectable, I’m actually a pink coloured vegetable, who’s seeds need lots of water to sow. I can grow in Nova Scotia with all of the rain, and I originate from Asia used as medicine for pain I’m so happy you stopped by to say hello! To make something delicious Find my blueberry friends who are so nutritious mix us together and put us in pie dough. Thank you for visiting me it is so nice to see people in community gardens who want to know!