Howlround Theater Commons Home Page

Indigenous, First Nations, Native Theatre

In this section, content focuses on the work of Indigenous, First Nations, and Native theatremakers. Mary Kathryn Nagle’s series Native Voices is a great starting point, as are series specifically focusing on the performance practices of Kānaka Maoli, the Indigenous people of Hawai‘i, and on Alaska Native theatre.

The Latest

Livestreaming a Conversation: The Living Presence of our History: Part IV
Video
Livestreaming a Conversation: The Living Presence of our History: Part IV
A Conversation with Indigenous Leaders regarding Indigenous Peoples Day
Sunday 1 August 2021
United States
Five Protocols of Theatrical Indigeneity
Essay
Five Protocols of Theatrical Indigeneity
An Audio Essay and Sound-Ceremony for Reciprocal Action
by Lisa C. Ravensbergen
2 July 2021
Post-Apocalyptic Theatre on Native Land
Essay
Post-Apocalyptic Theatre on Native Land
by Vera Starbard (Tlingit/Dena’ina)
28 May 2021
artists sitting on a wooden stage in front of microphones.
Livestreaming a Conversation: The Living Presence of our History: Part IV
Double Edge Theatre
text: Ohketeau above a drawing of a flower.
Ohketeau
Video

Livestreaming a Conversation: The Living Presence of our History: Part IV

A Conversation with Indigenous Leaders regarding Indigenous Peoples Day

Sunday 1 August 2021
United States

The Ohketeau Cultural Center and Double Edge Theatre co-present The Living Presence of Our History: Part IV livestreaming on the global, commons-based, peer-produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Sunday 1 August 2021 at 10 a.m. PDT (San Francisco, UTC -7) / 12 p.m. CDT (Chicago, UTC -5) / 1 p.m. EDT (New York, UTC -4).

Figure with bulbs of fire
Five Protocols of Theatrical Indigeneity
Essay

Five Protocols of Theatrical Indigeneity

An Audio Essay and Sound-Ceremony for Reciprocal Action

2 July 2021

Lisa Cooke Ravensbergen shares how new story bundles can “disrupt the noise of colonialism” through what she calls protocols of theatrical Indigeneity.

Illustration by Silent Fox, inspired by the essay.
Post-Apocalyptic Theatre on Native Land
Essay

Post-Apocalyptic Theatre on Native Land

28 May 2021

Vera Starbard wonders if the time of the American theatre has come to an end and imagines the future of the performing arts looking a lot like it did in the past, pre-colonization.

An Image of four panels. The first has a waste basket and crumbled paper in it it. The second have children looking at a stage with their backs to us. The third is a person in a green shirt with long black hair sitting at a desk in and office talking to a person who has their back to us. The fourth panel has a podium with a slot, and various rectangles and circles surrounding it.
Creating Theatre for Our Future, Together
Essay

Creating Theatre for Our Future, Together

29 April 2021

Mary Kathryn Nagle predicts four main ways the American theatre will devise a future where theatrical storytelling does not directly contribute to white supremacy.

artists sitting on chairs in a circle
The Living Presence of Our History: Part III
Double Edge Theatre
text: Ohketeau above a drawing of a flower.
Ohketeau
Video

The Living Presence of Our History: Part III

Healing and reparations through the Land Back movement: a conversation on Indigenous land tenure, stewardship, and access

Sunday 21 March 2021
United States

Double Edge Theatre presented The Living Presence of Our History: Part III livestreaming on the global, commons-based, peer-produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Sunday 21 March 2021 at 10 a.m. PDT (San Francisco, UTC -7) / 12 p.m. CDT (Chicago, UTC -5) / 1 p.m. EDT (New York, UTC -4).

safe havens freedom talks number 6 event poster.
Indigenous People's Rights and Freedom of Artistic Expression
Dark blue square with white text: Safe Muse in white.
Safemuse
Video

Indigenous People's Rights and Freedom of Artistic Expression

With Safe Havens Freedom Talks

Saturday 6 March 2021
Oslo, Norway

Safe Havens Freedom Talks presented the conversation Indigenous People's Rights and Freedom of Artistic Expression livestreaming on the global, commons-based, peer produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Saturday 6 March 2021 at 5 p.m. CET (Stockholm, UTC +1) / 4 p.m. GMT (London, UTC +0) / 11 a.m. EST (Boston, UTC -5) / 8 a.m. PST (San Francisco, UTC -8).

2021 Reflections of Native Voices Festival Closing Reflections
Safe Harbors NYC
Video

2021 Reflections of Native Voices Festival Closing Reflections

In conversation with Reflections of Native Voices artists

Sunday 7 February 2021
United States

Safe Harbors presented the 2021 Reflections of Native Voices Festival Closing Reflections livestreaming on the global, commons-based, peer produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Sunday 7 February at 1:30 p.m. PST (San Francisco, UTC -8) / 3:30 p.m. CST (Chicago, UTC -6) / 4:30 p.m. EST (New York, UTC -5).

blue graphic of actor onstage against yellow background
(Re)Imagine Indigenous Theater (ASL interpreted and live captioned)
Seattle Rep
Video

(Re)Imagine Indigenous Theater (ASL interpreted and live captioned)

A series by Seattle Rep that brings artists and community leaders together

Thursday 19 November 2020
United States

Seattle Rep presented (Re)Imagine Indigenous Theater livestreaming on the global, commons-based, peer-produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Thursday 19 November 2020 at 5 p.m. PDT (Seattle, UTC-7) / 6 p.m. MDT (Denver, UTC-6) / 7 p.m. CDT (Chicago, UTC-5) / 8 p.m. EDT (New York, UTC-4).

Collage of panelists' photos, with text displaying title of event and description.
Native Theatre: Where Are We Now?
Safe Harbors NYC
Video

Native Theatre: Where Are We Now?

Examining diversity and equal equity in sovereign decolonized Indigenous spaces against White Supremacy

Monday 2 November 2020
United States

Safe Harbors NYC presented the conversation Native Theatre: Where Are We Now? livestreaming on the global, commons-based peer produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Monday 2 November 2020 at 4 p.m. PDT (San Francisco, UTC -7) / 6 p.m. CDT (Chicago, UTC -5) / 7 p.m. EDT (New York, UTC -4).

event description text with photo of street in chile
Conversations on Playwriting and Social Unrest in Chile
UPenn
black and white scribble with text interdram
Interdram
Video

Conversations on Playwriting and Social Unrest in Chile

Discussing indigenous rights and social movements in Chile

Friday 2 October 2020
United States

The Theatre Arts and Latin American and Latinx Studies Programs at the University of Pennsylvania and Interdram, the Theatrical Platform for New Playwriting, presented the second of two Conversations on Playwriting and Social Unrest in Chile livestreamed on the global, commons-based, peer produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Friday 2 October 2020 at 9 a.m. PDT (San Francisco, UTC -7) / 12 p.m. EDT (New York, UTC-4) / 1 p.m. CLST (Santiago, UTC -3).

Rhonda Anderson, Larry Spotted Crow Mann, and Lisa Brooks.
The Living Presence of Our History: Part I
Double Edge Theatre
text: Ohketeau above a drawing of a flower.
Ohketeau
Video

The Living Presence of Our History: Part I

A talk and workshop on the history and presence of the Nipmuc and other Tribes in Ashfield and the surrounding areas

Sunday 2 August 2020
Ashfield MA, United States

The Ohketeau Cultural Council and Double Edge Theatre presented The Living Presence of Our History livestreamed on the global, commons-based, peer produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Sunday 2 August 2020 at 9 a.m. AKDT (Juneau, UTC -8) / 10 a.m. PDT (San Francisco, UTC -7) / 12 p.m. CDT (Chicago, UTC -5) / 1 p.m. EDT (Ashfield, UTC -4) / 18:00 BST (London, UTC +1) / 19:00 CEST (Berlin, UTC +2).

segal theatre center logo
SEGAL TALKS: Muriel Miguel and Gloria Miguel
Segal_Centre_Logo
Segal
Center
Video

SEGAL TALKS: Muriel Miguel and Gloria Miguel

An update on the situation for theatre artists in the United States

Monday 22 June 2020
United States

The Martin E. Segal Theatre Center presented SEGAL TALKS: Muriel Miguel and Gloria Miguel livestreamed on the global, commons-based, peer produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Monday 22 June 2020 at 9 a.m. PDT (San Francisco, UTC -7) / 11 a.m. CDT (Chicago, UTC -5) / 12 p.m. EDT (New York, UTC -4) / 17:00 BST (London, UTC +1) / 18:00 CEST (Berlin, UTC +2).

A person standing on a hill, partly pixelated and blurred.
I.F.: Indigenous Futurities: Dancing Earth in CyberSpace
woman in park looking at cell phone
Toasterlab
Performer wearing a mask.
Dancing Earth
Canada Council for the Arts
Video

I.F.: Indigenous Futurities: Dancing Earth in CyberSpace

Collaborating artist visionaries reveal cyberspace as a realm of ritual, to reimagine the future

Thursday 18 / Friday 19 June 2020
Wellington, NZ

Toasterlab presented I.F. : Indigenous Futurities : Dancing Earth in CyberSpace livestreamed on the global, commons-based, peer produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Thursday 18 June 2020 at 3:30 p.m. HST (Honolulu, UTC-10) / 6:30 p.m. PDT (San Francisco, UTC-7) / 8:30 p.m. CDT (Chicago, UTC-5) / 9:30 p.m. EDT (New York, UTC-6) / Friday 19 June at 10:30 JST (Tokyo, UTC+9) / 13:30 NZST (Wellington, UTC+12).

four actors onstage
Navigating Indigenous Storytelling with Mixed Company
Essay

Navigating Indigenous Storytelling with Mixed Company

20 May 2020

Keith Barker and Lindsay Lachance talk about the challenges and rewards of working in mixed company with Indigenous and non-Indigenous artists, including what it’s like to navigate work with sensitive subject matter, including Indigenous histories and colonization.

school of resistance conversation series graphic.
School of Resistance - Episode One: This Madness Has to Stop
National Theatre Ghent logo.
NTGent
Video

School of Resistance - Episode One: This Madness Has to Stop

Opening speech of Wiener Festwochen by Kay Sara. Followed by a debate with Tania Bruguera and Milo Rau, moderated by Lara Staal

Saturday 16 May 2020
Ghent, Belgium

NTGent presented School of Resistance - Episode One: This madness has to stop livestreamed on the global, commons-based, peer-produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Saturday 16 May 2020 at 9 a.m. PDT (San Francisco, UTC-7) / 12 p.m. EDT (New York, UTC-4) / 17:00 BEST (London, UTC+1) / 18:00 CEST (Belgium, UTC+2).

image of cracked land with text unsettling dramaturgy
Praxis Sessions for Virtual Collaboration: Irreconcilable Spaces
colored earth
Unsettling Dramaturgy
Video

Praxis Sessions for Virtual Collaboration: Irreconcilable Spaces

hosted by Unsettling Dramaturgy: Crip & Indigenous Dramaturgies

Friday 15 May 2020
United States

Unsettling Dramaturgy presented Praxis Sessions for Virtual Collaboration: Irreconcilable Spaces livestreamed on the global, commons-based, peer-produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Friday 15 May 2020 at 3:15 p.m. PDT (San Francisco, UTC-7) / 5:15 p.m. CDT (Chicago, UTC-5) / 6:15 p.m. EDT (New York, UTC-4) / 20:15 p.m. BST (London, UTC+1) / 21:15 p.m. CEST (Berlin, UTC+2).

Stylized event promotion.
Praxis Sessions for Virtual Collaboration: Prefigurative Spaces
colored earth
Unsettling Dramaturgy
Video

Praxis Sessions for Virtual Collaboration: Prefigurative Spaces

hosted by Unsettling Dramaturgy: Crip & Indigenous Dramaturgies.​

Thursday 30 April 2020
United States

Unsettling Dramaturgy presented Praxis Sessions for Virtual Collaboration: Prefigurative Spaces livestreaming on the global, commons-based, peer-produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Thursday 30 April 2020 at 3:15 p.m. PDT (San Francisco, UTC-7) / 5:15 p.m. CDT (Chicago, UTC-5) / 6:15 p.m. EDT (New York, UTC-4) / 20:15 p.m. BST (London, UTC+1) / 21:15 p.m. CEST (Berlin, UTC+2).

two actors onstage
Indigenous Theatre and the Climate Crisis
Essay

Indigenous Theatre and the Climate Crisis

Trickster Mix

29 April 2020

Indigenous playwright David Geary takes us on a journey through his ancestral lineage and land, and highlights the role of the trickster.

black text on a yellow background
Instigating Institutional Change Towards Decolonization
Essay

Instigating Institutional Change Towards Decolonization

13 April 2020

Roya Amirsoleymani and Erin Boberg Doughton of the Portland Institute of for Contemporary Art share the steps they’ve taken toward decolonizing and indigenizing the practices and curatorial processes of their organization, which have been supported by Emily Johnson and the advisory council of the Global First Nations Performance Network.

graphic landscape with text unsettlign dramaturgy
Praxis Sessions for Virtual Collaboration: Cripping Practice
colored earth
Unsettling Dramaturgy
Video

Praxis Sessions for Virtual Collaboration: Cripping Practice

hosted by Unsettling Dramaturgy: Crip & Indigenous Dramaturgies ​​​​​​

Friday 10 April 2020
United States

Unsettling Dramaturgy presented Praxis Sessions for Virtual Collaboration: Cripping Practice livestreamed on the global, commons-based, peer-produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Friday 10 April 2020 at 2 p.m. PDT (San Francisco, UTC-7) / 4 p.m. CDT (Chicago, UTC-5) / 5 p.m. EDT (New York, UTC-4).

hand sanitizer labeled "don't touch the art"
It Was Always Possible: Centering the Leaders Who Were Here All Along (ASL & Captioned)
Video

It Was Always Possible: Centering the Leaders Who Were Here All Along (ASL & Captioned)

an #ArtistResource talk with Rachel Spencer Hewitt (PAAL); Claudia Alick (CallingUP); Ashley Hanson (Department of Public Transformation); and more

Tuesday 7 April 2020
United States

Livestreaming the #ArtistResource panel It Was Always Possible: Centering the Leaders Who Were Here All Along (ASL & Captioned) on the global, commons-based, peer-produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Tuesday 7 April 2020 at 8 a.m. HST (Honolulu, UST-10) / 10 a.m. AKDT (Juneau, UTC-8) / 11 a.m. PDT (San Francisco, UTC-7) / 1 p.m. CDT (Chicago, UTC-5) / 2 p.m. EDT (New York, UTC-4).

performers dancing in traditional Meranao people clothes (Philippines)
Pananadem (Remembering) by Kinding Sindaw
six performers lying down, their faces in a circular pattern.
Kinding Sindaw
La MaMa Logo
La MaMa
CultureHub Logo
CultureHub
Video

Pananadem (Remembering) by Kinding Sindaw

Presented by La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club

Sunday 15 March 2020
New York, NY

La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club presented a performance of Pananadem (Remembering) by Kinding Sindaw livestreamed on the global, commons-based peer produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv Sunday 15 March 2020 at 3 p.m. EDT (New York, UTC-4) / 19:00 GMT (London, UTC+0) / 20:00 CET (Berlin, UTC+1) / Monday 16 March at 03:00 PHT (Manilla and Singapore, UTC+8).

two actors onstage
Playwrights Nurturing Cultural Community
Essay

Playwrights Nurturing Cultural Community

Pearl Cleage and Vera Starbard in Conversation, Part II

15 January 2020

In part two of their conversation, Vera Starbard and Pearl Cleage—playwrights-in-residence at Juneau, Alaska’s Perseverance Theatre and Atlanta, Georgia’s Alliance Theatre, respectively—talk about different cultural practices, the white gaze, moving away from anger, and more.

three actors onstage
Vocalizing Difficult Issues as Playwrights in Residence
Essay

Vocalizing Difficult Issues as Playwrights in Residence

Pearl Cleage and Vera Starbard in Conversation, Part I

14 January 2020

In part one of their conversation, playwrights Vera Starbard and Pearl Cleage talk about their respective residencies—at Juneau, Alaska’s Perseverance Theatre and Atlanta, Georgia’s Alliance Theatre, respectively—race and representation at their institutions, not writing for a white audience, and more.

woman with flowers and branches titled The Weeping Woman's Contrived Posture
Livestreaming the National Performance Network Annual Conference 2019
NPN logo
National Performance Network
Video

Livestreaming the National Performance Network Annual Conference 2019

from New Orleans, Louisiana

Tuesday 10 December - Friday 13 December 2019
New Orleans, Louisiana

The National Performance Network presents their 2019 Annual Conference livestreaming from New Orleans on the global, commons-based peer produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv from Tuesday 10 December to Friday 13 December 2019.