By the Naked Pear Tree: The Trial of Lizzie Borden, a Play in Verse

By the Naked Pear Tree, a play in verse, was written in the spirit of Steve Allen’s unconventional television program, Meeting of the Minds. Our satirical performance begins outside a New Bedford, Massachusetts court house. The year is 1893 and the trial of Lizzie Borden is about to begin. Dispatching his oration, the tragedian, Euripides, stands in the street preaching the merits of womanhood and relating the concerns he has for the outcome of the trial, and how it may corrupt the honor of the fabled heroines he has written about. Not long after we are introduced to Clarence Darrow-progressive attorney and respected member of the American Civil Liberties Union. Hired by Euripides to allusively defend Lizzie Borden, Darrow invites his colleague and adversary, William Jennings Bryan, to a challenge, giving the dubious Bryan a chance to play prosecutor-to change the course of history, and help convict Lizzie Borden of the murder of her parents. In doing so, the two men agree to a friendly game of poker. Winner of the ensuing card game gets to decide the faith of the accused. But the outcome is not what one would expect, and those who tamper with history are left to reap the consequences.