One, two, three, four.

Get my shoes.

Enough to go.

Five, six, seven, eight.

Feels great.

Now I'm gonna shine enough to do what's I am gonna do about to do with it Look at the sky with all beautiful color But just for me I'm gonna share it with another I got to show to get out I singing Childs Take a look at a beautiful morning that turns to a beautiful evening and get to make beautiful light.

And that's what I see.

Come along with me.

That's right.

Hey, I'm Irish, Dave, and welcome to Experience Machina here on W and T. We have a great show lined up for you this week, including the latest production at the South Bend Civic Theater.

Excited to share that with you all.

So we're going to have a look back at when Courtney and Kelly made a complete mess.

This was hilarious when they went to create your canvas.

But first, we're going to check in with Courtney as she works on our green thumb.

She went to visit the botany shop in South Bend and today we are putting roots into the community quite literally here we're at the botany shop and Ben is going to show us a little bit of what you have to offer here.

This is a fantastic space.

Thank you.

Yes.

Yeah.

We like to say that we're a shop for plant lovers of all experiences.

So our job really is to play matchmaker for people who want to grow plants.

And I am not good at it.

So that's something that you could guide me through.

Absolutely, yeah.

Learning about sort of your life style plants you've grown before, whether it's been successful or not.

We need to learn about everything.

And we wouldn't be here if we hadn't killed a lot of plants ourselves today.

So I saw a little sticker over there.

It said it was a picture of a plant is so cute.

It might die sooner.

Yeah, yeah.

So you might die later.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Perfectly.

So, how long have you guys been in this space?

We were in South Bend in the near northwest neighborhood.

We are and we've been.

We're coming up on a year this week, actually.

It's been a wild ride.

And you guys have big plants here, too.

I mean, this space has grown significantly even since you just started a year ago.

Tell us more about that.

Yeah, so we started as a pop up actually, and so we did that just so we could sort of find our way and see if this was something South Bend really wanted.

Clearly it is.

Yeah.

And so we've sort of joked that, but also very seriously that we're really building a public garden that is based in the community.

That is our ideal to empower gardeners everywhere.

But we started with the gift shop first.

And so that's, that's what we built.

And so our next step is to really start building those community garden spaces.

Yeah.

And even with the gift shop options that you have to hear, those are all local people to a good chunk.

Yeah.

So we've got I think over 20 local makers in the shop right now and that's everything from earrings to lotions to pottery, really trying to support that local, local hyperlocal ecosystem as well.

Yeah.

Even like locally here in your northwest neighbor.

Yeah.

Like neighborhood specific even.

Yes.

Amazing.

And you probably have a lot of people who come in from the local area, but also from a wider net, too.

We do.

Just recently we've started seeing people in from Chicago, from Illinois.

They're visiting family and friends over the weekend.

But they say we heard about this plant shop.

And so, yeah, that discovery is still, still happening.

But I think people are the words getting out.

And you guys even have some rare plants here, too.

We do, yeah.

So we had a rare plant sale a few weeks ago, which was a crazy, huge, awesome event for us.

But we still have some extras.

And so those are in our we sort of nickname it our mortgage cabinet behind me here.

You know, these are plants that definitely are on the higher range, but they are for the collectors.

So these are things that we have sourced and scoured and really gone deep to find.

And again, these are things that also people don't really feel comfortable ordering offline.

You know, you can get them online, but sort of we're taking on the risk of getting them in acclimating for a few months and then we can feel a little bit more comfortable sending them to a new home and people can actually pick them up, look at them, get a feel for it, rather than just, you know, rolling the dice, touch it.

Yeah.

Yeah.

And you also have what do you call them?

Plug plugs.

Yeah.

Would you have to explain that to us?

Yeah.

So plugs are basically starter plants.

And so these are specifically these are outdoor perennials, native plants in particular, which is we try and sort of listen to what people are asking for and we sort of try and move ourselves in that direction if we can.

But a lot of folks been asking for native plants and so these are available on our website.

We fulfill the orders off site in our holding space, bring them in and then people can pick them up from us here.

But except basically a way to get affordable plants into the hands of people that want to grow more plants, that's awesome.

And I know obviously plants grow over time, so a lot of these are kind of smaller.

Yeah, but they'll grow bigger.

Absolutely.

What do I do then?

Yes, we offer repotting.

Services is one option so folks can bring us their plant.

Or if it's a really big thing, we can also go to you, meet you and your space, your home, bring the potting materials and things with us.

You know, whether and some folks even maybe need help with pruning, if it's something that's just gotten out of out of feels like it's gotten out of control.

But, you know, bringing the scissors or the pruners to something the first time can feel a little jarring.

I'm always terrified because I don't know where I'm supposed to cut it.

Exactly.

So we can sort of be there, walk you through.

You know, ideally, we like to think of it as you won't need us for the long term, but we're happy to sort of work with you.

You do it along with you so you can we won't do it for you.

We'll do it with you.

And you even have a propagation while we do that.

So you can call it's sort of a little free library for plants, we call it propping it forward so people can bring in those cuttings.

When you give your plants a haircut, stick them in the wall, and then other people can come in and exchange and swap them out.

And that's something we always have.

And I feel like there's such a big push or pull to the succulent.

I call it a craze right now because I feel like, especially during the pandemic, you know, that's what something that brought people many joy is to be able to put something together that they could treat minimally with minimal water, whatever the case.

How do you feel about the succulents are crazy, you know.

Well and I think it's because, you know, there's lots of crazes.

I think, you know, succulents certainly are one of them, you know.

So part of what we try and do, of course, is look to what that next thing is going to be, find those trends, but then also make sure we can set people up for success in doing it.

Because I think succulents in particular, they're cute, they're adorable, especially when they're little, but then really knowing how to grow them well.

So they need lots of light.

They like well draining soil.

They don't like to be over watered.

You know, we have some people who come in and say, Oh, I kill succulents.

And so I know instantly probably one of two things happened.

Yeah, absolutely.

Now, you guys also have a space that you're working on so that people can come in and do workshops and you have some awesome events coming up actually this weekend, right?

We do, yes.

So we mentioned this is we're coming up on one year.

So this weekend is our big one year anniversary celebration.

We're calling plant pride sort of a celebration of all the ways we grow together is the tagline.

So we'll have a lot of our makers that we have in the shop will be here with booths intense to show more depth of what they do, things we don't normally maybe have in the shop.

We'll have like music, some food trucks, lawn games, family activities.

It is a rich and full day.

And then we have an evening event as well, a botanical drag show.

Oh, that we're really excited for.

Not only is it a performance and these are plant themed drag queens, they come from plants.

So we want them to talk about not only, of course, will it be a great performance, but also what does it mean to create a safe, inclusive space through the through the lens of plants and sort of have them share their own personal stories in that way.

And then we'll finish with some community visioning.

So we want the people in the room that night to sort of take that good energy that we hope to pump into the space and really help us see a way forward in terms of what does what do you want this community to look like?

What do you want it to look like in five years?

What are the sort of and that's going to be what we measure ourselves on.

And I love that you're including the community in those kinds of decisions.

The thought process, too, because you have some great space outdoors too, that could become more too.

Absolutely.

So actually, just right behind this wall here, we've nicknamed the Botany BLOCK.

And so we're in the process.

We've just launched a crowdfunding campaign to purchase this building and a lot next door with the vision being to one day create an open, accessible public art and learning space, community space.

You know, I like to say that plants are kind of like dogs.

They can help us have conversations with people we don't know.

They're there safe, unifying thing.

And of course, they're also beautiful.

And so we're really excited to create this space for people to come together through plants is better than talking about the weather and policies, right?

Yes.

Nothing else to talk about, right?

Absolutely.

How important it is, is it to have something like the botany shop here in this community?

You know, I, I firmly believe plants all over the world.

That's sort of what gets me up in the morning every day.

And, you know, so, again, thinking about ways to, you know, on the surface, it may feel like we're just a shop, but, you know, on a deeper level, again, empowering people to be successful, joyful plant parents to see the power that plants can bring us.

I also like to say the lessons we learned while gardening transcend the soil so plants can teach us things.

Gardening can teach us things.

It's more than just beautiful.

Beauty certainly is a gateway.

But when we really can unlock the full potential of plants for people and one another, it's just endless.

And so we were trying to make plants cool, accessible as much as much as we can.

Yes, absolutely.

And we'll work with people, get more information about the botany shop.

So our website is botany or bust dot com and as is our Instagram handle and Facebook as well.

Awesome.

Well, thanks so much for showing us some of it around and good luck with your events this weekend.

If you want to make sure you get your ticket, you can check out all of their social media and get more details perfect.

Thanks so much for the next show here at the South Bend.

Civic Theater is getting ready to take the stage.

We're actually checking out what the director for this show, something rotten, which sounds rotten.

I'm sure it's fantastic.

We're not fully right.

Okay, good.

Yeah, we're not there yet.

Okay.

Christine, this is your first time.

Is this your first time directing here at the Southland Civic?

That's correct.

Yeah, it's okay.

I'm here.

It's been a fantastic time so far.

I am so overwhelmed by the talent of the folks in this community who are coming in.

I've worked with professionals before.

Absolutely.

Professional level talent.

Awesome.

We do have a lot of talent here.

I know Aaron can attest to that, too.

Absolutely.

I am always and I shouldn't be any more.

But I'm surprised by how much talent there really is in this community, not just not just on the stage, but even even back here.

You're watching one of our designers paints.

This is like a sneak peek.

We had everything back there, saved something for the show.

Yeah.

So what is the show about?

So the show is set in the Renaissance England, and essentially it's the idea of a fictitious world in which or maybe even not, we're not sure.

There is a playwright whose name is Nick Bottom.

He cannot help but feel those twinges of envy because William Shakespeare is the rock star of the Renaissance.

So this is like Shakespeare, Renaissance era, full set, spare England.

Shakespeare is a character of the show, and he is depicted as a rock star.

In fact, one of his Shakespeare in the Park Sessions is a rock concert, so that's to be present is one of the members of the show.

Okay.

So Nick Bottom is feeling pretty jealous.

He's feeling that frustration of there's just this one playwright who's getting all of this acclaim.

He's getting all of this attention.

And, you know, he's a playwright himself.

He works in a theater and he just wants a little bit of that success.

Okay.

So what he does is he goes to a mysterious place called Soothsayer Alley and he finds the help of someone who can predict the future.

And what he wants to know is what is the next, the biggest thing in theater going to be?

Okay.

So with the help of someone named Nostradamus, he finds out the next biggest thing in theater are called musicals.

Dun dun dun.

Spoiler alert, he's a Disney musical.

He's a big, big, big, big musical.

Okay.

You a fan of musicals and of all of the classics?

I mean, the number of musical references are packed into this show.

I actually cannot list because so many so kind of creating a new music out of old music.

So what's present is Nostradamus as this person who's looking into the future keeps getting all of these glimpses of the musicals that we know and love.

So have you seen a brief moment of catch?

Yeah.

Yeah.

Okay.

Jesus Christ Superstar.

He's getting them all out of context as someone who lives in Renaissance England.

So what they're trying to figure out is how do we piece these all together in a way that makes sense?

You know, how do you solve a problem like Ophelia is?

So references show and then they decide to put on a musical as Instagram.

This explains to Nick what a musical is.

We have an eight minute long dance and musical.

Oh, wow.

That that is truly packed with all of these beautiful our orchestra.

Our live orchestra is going to be playing.

You'll hear even some of the music, little references from different music.

Okay.

We have dance moves from different musicals.

We have amazing poses.

So they explain this all to Nick Bottom and he then tries to kind of pitch that idea to his acting troupe and to his brother Nigel, who is the true poet, the two the true romantic at heart, who just wants to write and create amazing poetry.

Yeah.

And so from there, they are trying to figure out how to weave.

Well, don't spoil the end that's in there, but that's the general premise.

Okay.

They kind of happened upon an event.

A musical.

A musical.

Okay, so love and you have a focus here.

How many do you have in the of 19?

And we also have an ensemble swing who is ready to jump on at any time.

And she's amazing.

That's amazing.

And and how long have you guys been practicing and how long is the show going to be showing?

Oh, goodness, we started rehearsals in May 15.

So we've been here for about two months.

We have been putting together so many incredible jam packed dance numbers.

And we have an incredible choreographer, Nathan Middleman, who has been making sure that everyone looks amazing and fantastic and feels great and we'll be running for three weeks.

Yeah.

So I think this Friday.

Okay.

And then we run until July 31st.

That's amazing.

I'm really excited.

It sounds like an amazing show and of course, always great to have the community together.

Aaron, tell us what it means to like a summer musical at the South Bend Civic Theater.

That's where it's at, right?

It is.

And that has become a tradition.

And I think that's a tradition all over the country.

You know, you have your big summer musicals and it's just that thing that everyone comes together with, with joy.

And, you know, we have laughter, we have dance, we have singing.

You know, it's just a really fun way to, in most cases, get out of the heat and get in here and just have a delightful time.

I will say the show is PG 13.

Okay.

So it's important, right?

I would I would say, you know, just be cautious.

You know, if you're a family that has, you know, teenagers and you'll take them to a PG 13 movie, bring them to the show, they'll have a great time.

And if and if people like Shakespeare, it's perfect.

There's so many interesting, fun little references and kind of the humor is on that level as well.

So I think I think honestly, everyone's just going to have a great time.

Awesome.

And aside from that, there's also been some stuff going on outside the building, too.

A beautiful new mural.

You know what it is just a summer of joy and the newness and freshness.

And, you know, public art to me is incredibly important.

I've been thinking about putting a mural in that new we have a Feghouli Plaza, which is this beautiful new plaza we use all summer long with our kids, with camps and all of that stuff.

And now we have this gorgeous new like 20 foot by 40 foot mural.

And check it out on your way to the theater, on your way to see something to get your head around that side entrance to go see it.

It really is gorgeous.

And it reaffirms our mission to be a light to illuminate the darkness.

It's a lantern that's kind of fractal.

And you could see all of these little hidden things in it just to say how important is storytelling?

How important is coming together to kind of maybe maybe have an experience that is unfamiliar to you?

Because I think, you know, as much fun as a big musical is, I think theaters, another role of theater is to be a storyteller is to to bring compassion and kindness and empathy.

And that's what we try to do.

And that's acting with individuals.

That's a heart, that's a part of the show as well as them.

As much as we all look for escape and that we all work for the chance to go somewhere and be distracted.

As you've been working on this show, the real heartbeat of it is to thine own self be true.

And this particular show has had a number of Tony nominations to crack.

Yes, correct.

And a Tony winner from Christian Berle, who is featured as well.

He's not going to be here this week, but seriously, I can sit still a little more.

Oh, yeah, he's a show stopper.

He is one of those talents that we are just honored and blessed to have on our stages.

He's really amazing.

Amazing.

Well, where can people get more information?

How can they get their tickets?

Absolutely.

SBC dot org.

Just set eight characters with the dot, but SBC talk and then they can call our box office 10 to 6.

It's five, seven, four, two, three, four, 11, 12.

And at the you on that memorized and ready to go.

Yeah.

Awesome.

Well I hope everyone comes out and sees the show.

There is still tickets available.

We want to fill the house.

Yes, celebrate.

Go to the omelets.

Is that okay?

That's an inside joke.

Okay.

Thanks so much for chatting with us.

Thank you for having us.

It is time to bring out the inner artists and you can do that here at Create Your Canvas in Burton, Indiana.

Kelly I am so excited.

I am so excited.

And you know, I was kind of thinking it's been a long winter.

We finally get to have a little color here.

Color is the right word for us.

And I have with us Susie Shuttle, who is the owner here at Create Your Canvas.

And this is for beautiful spaces, so bright and welcoming.

Thank you for being here with us today.

Thank you for coming, both of you.

Now, there's more that you just do besides paint parties.

Tell us all the things that you have to offer here.

I have all things art.

I do the step by step painting, like.

Like, for example, wine and canvas.

And then we do kids classes.

I have art kits, paint supplies, you name it.

We do fluid art.

And then recently we started this slaughter room.

Well, Courtney, I heard you say get the inner artist out and you say that everyone has an inner artist's.

Do you like idea?

I mean, I am absolutely positive.

Everybody has an inner artist.

Okay, great.

And you are an artist as well.

You've been doing this for a while now.

Yes, for over 20 years.

That's amazing.

And I can see all of the beautiful artwork surrounded by us.

And I love that you have the opportunity for us to become artists, too.

Yes.

And you also do parties here.

Birthday parties.

That's what parties.

I do a couple of paintings where they each couple like the husband and wife, boyfriend, girlfriend, whatever.

Do each different painting.

And it may have a husband now to do that.

I sure do.

I you want to try that?

What inspired you to open this place?

I really.

I tell my friend all the time that it was her fault being a stay at home mom.

But seven years ago decided that my kids were older and maybe it was time to do something a little more fun.

A little more for me.

And I love art.

So and you mentioned that you have some of the kids that people can take home or you can ship them out to them, which I think is super convenient, especially for folks who maybe are a little bit further from Bourbon, Indiana.

So tell us about those.

You have a book program.

What is the name of it?

Yes, it's called Brushes and Books.

I just started it last week.

Each kit is for our kids, teenagers and younger kids.

You get like a wooden cutout that you can paint and you get the paints, the paint brushes and a book that goes with the cutout.

So for Easter, it's about a bunny rabbit.

And then online you'll have a code that you can watch the online video where I paint it for you.

And then I also read the smaller books to the children.

Now we heard you have something called the Splatter Room.

Can you tell us a little bit more about that?

The splatter room is exactly what it sounds like.

The canvases go up on the wall and you have all these neon paint colors and then you go in and you throw in the paint on the wall.

It's a good stress reliever.

I mean, Jackson Pollock is like my favorite artist, and I feel like it's going to come out of me in this experience.

Do you ever think, Yeah, just thinking of the I Love Lucy episode with a chocolate chip on each other, I think that I know that's something we can try though, without throwing paint at me.

Yes, I actually have some canvases on the wall and paint for it already so you both can try it.

We also have raincoats and goggles.

You don't have to worry.

The raincoats, the paint is washable.

But I do request that you do the goggles because I don't want it in your eyes.

Not that you'll throw it at each other.

Oh.

Oh, I know, I know.

Let's get it here.

All right, so this is the splatter room.

And as you can see, there's paint splattered all done over us.

Yeah, not yet, but we have our gear on.

So tell us, we've got the raincoat on.

Right?

So, yes.

And you have shoe covers.

Covers.

These are optional items, the goggles.

So you must wear it because I know you're not going to splatter each other.

But just in the case, of course, we want you here at the ready.

Now I see this paint splattered on the walls.

Is that do we do it on the wall?

You can do it on the walls.

Obviously people do.

But you have to circle back here.

Oh, okay.

Yeah.

And your price includes the canvas.

I have a special thing for you guys to see whether you helped out experiences Siena 2021.

So, so make sure you splatter it too.

Definitely.

So we'll take that.

So this is what we're going to use?

Yes.

Splatter it on and get better.

So we're going to you have all of this paint that comes with yours and then you're going to take the paint and all you're going to do is really throwing the paint.

And then when the dark paints, yeah, these are all black lights.

They cool.

Very clear out.

All right, so you guys ready?

All right, I'm going to sneak out of here.

Run!

All right.

Ready?

One, two.

Oh, I got zahida.

Okay, I want to switch color.

I would go a little blue.

Would those blue is.

Are you good partygoers?

Guy, get ready.

One, two.

Yeah.

Think we're on the way is making a letter.

I don't know what it is right now.

Go, go, go.

Oh, okay.

I have a I think I was making a mess.

I don't have to clean it up afterwards, hopefully.

All right, I'll see.

Okay, I'm coming a little closer to I'm going to get it.

I'm going to get some of our staff to I don't want to mix it up.

So there we go.

All right.

Let's put a little yellow in.

Their red is a great color for that.

Oh, that's pretty.

Look, that is really pretty.

Oh, sorry.

I'm not.

Oh, oh, it is.

All right, that's great.

Let's try what we have.

Here we go, Red.

Let's get some low orange and I'll get some green.

Okay.

You know, we're higher than here, so they get to pick all the colors that they want in here.

That's really cool.

I can't remember.

Okay, exactly.

You have a lot of fun.

And then I have to tell you, I've never done this before, but I definitely can do it again.

I he my own room in my house.

Yeah, well, I can just come down here.

You go with your canvas and get in there.

I just.

I work here.

Well, that is it for me.

Irish, Dave and the entire team.

Kelly and Courtney here w t for experience, Miss Deanna this week.

Don't forget if there's something that you think we should experience, follow us on Facebook or Instagram.

Just search for our experience mission.

Send us a message on there or use the hashtag experience a messianic in any of your posts.

And we will see them and we'll go and experience it.

This community has so many great things for us to do until the next time.

Thanks for watching.

We've experienced Miss Diana is made possible in part by the Community Foundation of Saint Joseph County and the Indiana Arts Commission, which received support from the state of Indiana and the National Endowment for the Arts.

This unity local production has been made possible in part by viewers like you.

Thank you.