fbpx Indigenous, First Nations, Native Theatre | HowlRound Theatre Commons

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

The Living Presence of Our History Part X
Video
The Living Presence of Our History Part X
The Ohketeau Cultural Center and co-producer Double Edge Theatre host a panel with Indigenous leaders and scholars
Sunday 10 March 2024
Massachusetts
Indigenous Theatre Reclaims the Center at Minneapolis’s Guthrie Theater
Essay
Indigenous Theatre Reclaims the Center at Minneapolis’s Guthrie Theater
by Robert Hubbard
4 December 2023
The Living Presence of Our History Part IX
Video
The Living Presence of Our History Part IX
A Conversation with Indigenous Screenwriters Regarding Representation on Screen
Sunday 15 October 2023
Massachusetts
blue graphic of actor onstage against yellow background
(Re)Imagine Indigenous Theater (ASL interpreted and live captioned)
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?
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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.

an actor performing outdoors
The National Theater Project (NTP) Appalachia Regional Convening
Video

The National Theater Project (NTP) Appalachia Regional Convening

presented by New England Foundation for the Arts (NEFA) and Carpetbag Theatre

Sunday 1 December 2019
Knoxville, Tennessee

New England Foundation for the Arts (NEFA) and Carpetbag Theatre presented the National Theater Project (NTP) Appalachia Regional Convening livestreamed from Knoxville, Tenessee on the commons-based peer produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Sunday 1 December 2019.

HowlRound Twitter Chat
Event

HowlRound Twitter Chat

Theatre's Response to Global Colonization and Occupation 

26 November 2019
Twitter

Theatremakers, companies, institutions, and communities: How are you responding to the history and present reality of colonization and occupation around the world?

sheet music
To Witness
Essay

To Witness

A Proposal to Build Radical Trust across Difference in the Arts

6 November 2019

Annalisa Dias and Ronee Penoi discuss decolonizing theatre, building trust and relationships across difference, and the act of witnessing.

Future Traditions: Theorizing the Native Avant Garde
Video

Future Traditions: Theorizing the Native Avant Garde

a talk by Emerson College professor Dr. Adam Spry

24 October 2019
Boston, Massachusetts

Emerson College's Media Art Gallery presented Future Traditions: Theorizing the Native Avant Garde,​ a talk by Emerson College professor Dr. Adam Spry, livestreamed from Boston, Massachusetts on the global, commons-based peer produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Thursday 24 October 2019 at 3 p.m. PDT (Los Angeles, UTC -7) / 5 p.m. CDT (Chicago, UTC -5) / 6 p.m. EDT (New York, UTC -4) / 22:00 UTC +0.

two graphs: Are at least half the characters specified as females by the playwright. Are at least half of the characters specified as non-white by the playwright?
What Our New Plays Really Look Like
Essay

What Our New Plays Really Look Like

A Statistical Guide to US World Premieres in the 2019–20 Season

21 October 2019

Marshall Botvinick shares the results of the research he undertook about new plays premiering across the United States in the 2019–20 season: who is being produced, what characters are appearing on stage, and what forms and themes are common.

a group of actors onstage
Apollo Meets the Climate Youth Movement on Indigenous Ground
Essay

Apollo Meets the Climate Youth Movement on Indigenous Ground

2 October 2019

Playwright and professor Theresa May talks about creating a show about the planet, Sky Woman, and the Youth Climate Movement, and how collaborating with students enhanced the development process.

actors onstage
Anticolonial Creative Collaboration and the Development of Mirror Butterfly
Essay

Anticolonial Creative Collaboration and the Development of Mirror Butterfly

15 August 2019

Ben Barson and Gizelxanath Rodriguez, part of the Afro Yaqui Music Collective, talk about artivism—what it means, what it can look like—in relation to building a jazz opera with various communities around the world.