Isabelle Darcy came out of Old Colony Regional Vocational Technical High School aspiring to one career; but, with it, comes a world of possibilities.

            Old Colony’s Class of 2021 president and valedictorian plans on attending Bridgewater State University where she will major in Operations and Supply Chain Management. “Especially since it’s such a general and broad subject, you can go into almost any field and work in that job,” said Isabelle, 18.

            While the technical high school gave her a platform to mature and refine her interests, the experience with computer-aided design [CAD] that has helped bring her career pursuit into focus can be traced back to a Tech Education class at Carver Middle School.

            “I just like the idea the idea of putting things on paper and seeing them come to life,” said Isabelle, who has been gaining insight working at Wareham-based engineering firm Griffith & Vary Inc., recently taking part in a company site visit to BMC Durfee High School in Fall River. “I saw it come to life because we drew all those systems. There are whole floors that are dedicated to mechanics in that school.”

            Isabelle draws her career inspiration from her father, Jeff Darcy, who works as a manufacturing production planner at Westborough-based Kopin Corporation.

            “Guidance did help a lot for choosing a college, but my career path, it was my father who helped me weighing my options,” she said. “I just think that industry is interesting, the way you schedule parts, and negotiations and things like that.”

            Isabelle’s mother, Heather Darcy, is a history teacher at Old Colony. That fact didn’t translate into academic pressure, as Isabelle found internal motivation three years ago when she realized the ramifications of being ranked first in her then freshman class. “I think that’s what drove me to stay first and pushed me to keep on the course,” she said.

            Writing a speech for delivery to her classmates on June 6 was daunting, but she knew she would not be speaking very long with temperatures in the mid 90s.

            “I was very back and forth about what I wanted to say,” admitted Isabelle. “I didn’t want to talk about myself because graduation is not about myself, it’s about all of our classmates and making our memories, and I wanted to make that very clear to my classmates.”

            Isabelle estimates her words would need but three minutes, and her main talking points focused on what her classmates had in common, memories and events that were shared by all, and the lessons learned about confidence, determination, and optimism.

            “Old Colony did not just teach us just academics but taught us how to be good humans, which I think is very important,” she said.

            Isabelle is one of five Bridgewater State students endowed with the Tsongas Merit Scholarship, which will pay for her full tuition and fees for four years, allowing her to make it through college without incurring debt.

            Classes begin on September 1, and Isabelle will begin the fall semester taking five courses. Along with her chosen major, she will minor in Accounting and Finance.

            The 2020-21 academic year prepared her well for the commute to Bridgewater from Carver. Old Colony’s version of the hybrid learning model consisted of two weeks of academic remote-access learning intermittently spaced between two-week periods of full in-person attendance for shop courses. On April 29, the learning model pivoted to full in-person attendance.

            “Once we went back, it was so worth it,” said Isabelle, who relished the final two weeks with her class, the prom at Bittersweet Farms in Westport, the senior class barbecue, and breakfast that were held on campus. “In eighth grade, I was kind of on the fence about (attending Old Colony) because you made friends since kindergarten. I would not change my decision for anything.”

By Mick Colageo

            A kickstart to what one can only hope will be more plein air theater and cultural events at the Marion Art Center was enjoyed by a hearty audience on June 11 when the play “Native Gardens” opened under threatening skies in Bicentennial Park.

            This Karen Zacarias play takes to task deep-seeded biases regarding socio-economic backgrounds, age versus youth or vice versa, and even issues related to women in the workplace. Well, in all honesty, it swipes at just about every prejudice a human being can harbor instilled either by nurture or nature, but it does so with such compassion and humor the pain is blunted enough for the audience to feel entertained, but not lectured.

            Zacarias has been called the “most produced playwright in the nation” by the American Theater magazine and is herself of Mexican-American heritage. Taking her sometimes angry, sometimes funny but always tender treatment of biases, this play was perhaps a brave choice for the MAC, but one that Kate Fishman was thrilled to direct.

            “I love all of her plays,” Fishman shared with The Wanderer. On opening day, she gave a brief peek into what the audiences will experience.

            There are two couples. One couple is older, Caucasian, and has lived in the neighborhood for decades in their impeccably cared for home. The other couple is young, well-educated, racially diverse, and living in a fixer-upper.

            While the early scenes paint an idyllic concept of how neighbors can learn to accept one another in spite of diverse backgrounds and vast age differences, everything is eventually torn asunder when it is discovered that the older couple has inadvertently encroached over the boundary line separating their properties. Soon that encroachment bleeds into the very fabric of each person’s long held belief systems, testing their strength of conviction in those beliefs and their individual ability to accept people for who they are.

            Fishman, who has 19 years of community theater experience, said, “The characters come to understand that, although they are different, they also have much in common and they find a way to work things out.”

            Yes, there is a happy ending, Fishman confirmed, and while the MAC was only able to produce one play in 2020, the delayed production of Native Gardens is an occasion for celebration. “It’s great.… Last year was barren, we couldn’t do this play,” she said. “Being able to have theater again is everything to the crew and cast and the audience … there’s an energy with a live audience.” Fishman said that when the audience responds to what they are seeing, the actor is inspired to give more to the performance. “They want to entertain them.”

            Playing Frank Butley (the older white neighbor) is Donn Tyler, whose bio includes productions at the Cotuit Center for the Arts. He delivers dry punchlines like a dry martini – cool and smooth.

            Mia Vaughn plays the young, very pregnant Mexican-American doctoral student and neighbor Tania Del Valle, whose thoughts on organic gardening ruffle Frank’s heavily-fertilized petals. Vaughn returns to the MAC as a recent graduate of Tabor Academy with plans to continue her acting as a career choice. She is fresh and sparkly while delivering lines that help to underscore the rising tensions between the neighbors.

            Marion’s own Susan Kokkins plays the Polish-born Virginia Butley, who we learn is also an engineer who has had to fight her way into a male-exclusive workplace. Kokkins is not a novice when it comes to community theater at the MAC. Her list of performances includes such productions as “Light Up the Sky,” “The Dinner Party,” and “Lady Bracknell” to name a few.

            And last, but not least, is Gary Sousa playing Pablo Del Valle. He cites his day job as being a teacher (doesn’t that require some acting abilities), one with a deep love and appreciation for all things theater. While he confessed in his written bio that he has learned that acting in community theater isn’t all fun, he said the challenge of playing this character will inspire his parents to defend any bad reviews he might receive. None here Pablo, oops, Gary, a solid performance indeed.

            As for the audience, it was like a mini-Tanglewood lawn party for them, with their own comfy folding chairs, drinks, and snacks, enjoying one another’s company and simply feeling the joy of the moment.

            So, if you are looking to have a good chuckle and enjoy being outdoors, you won’t want to miss Native Gardens with upcoming performances planned Friday, June 18, at 6:00 pm and a Sunday matinee at 2:00 pm on June 20. Visit marionartcenter.org for complete details.

By Marilou Newell