American Indian Repertory Theatre

Creating American Indian Theatre for the 21st century
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AMERICAN INDIAN REPERTORY THEATRE
Creating American Indian Theatre for the 21st Century

The American Indian Repertory Theatre is a non-profit American Indian theatre production company with the purpose of providing an American Indian theatre experience for Native and non-Native audiences. The company is dedicated to telling the stories that have come to us from our ancestors and to telling the stories of a vibrant contemporary American Indian culture. The company was founded by former members of the Haskell Indian Nations University Thunderbird Theatre to provide a professional American Indian theatre which will make quality American Indian theatre productions available nationally and internationally.
 
AIRT takes particular pride in developing original works by Native playwrights and making productions availible for touring to communities that would not otherwise have the opportunity to experience these powerful visions. 
 
Reserve your tickets for the Spring 2010 production
A stunning new play by reknowned Onieda playwright premiers at the Lawrence Arts Center, 940 New Hampshire, Lawrence, Kansas
 
 WORLD PREMIER 
FEBRUARY 25, 26, 27, 2010     
 
Star Stage Left          
 
Adosha Bennett and Brad Horne                                                                photo by DYR
 

 

STAR STAGE LEFT is a mesmerizing look at the world of the Hollywood Indian.  Playwright Bruce King introduces his audience to the world of aging Indian movie star Uni Verse and his retinue of agents, body guards, trophy women and servants.  In a style that those familiar with King’s work will recognize, the characters first appear to be satirical caricatures of the world of a Hollywood star whose contact is about to run out.  But as the play develops, the comic layers are peeled away, and the contract is revealed to be more that just another studio contract. 

 

With deft skill, the playwright moves us from the Hollywood surface to the metaphysical world that lies beneath the trappings of wealth and fame.  While the universe of the play is the contract that the characters have made to achieve their place in a world of wealth and power, the playwright forces us to examine the contracts that we have all accepted to achieve our own version of success and security. The play is true to King’s world view; while we may fault society and history for our life circumstances, we knowingly make our decisions about what part of ourselves we are willing to sacrifice to achieve our ambitions.

 
 *** Adult content not suitable for small children
 
 
Ticketing information available at the
 

Lawrence Arts Center

940 New Hampshire

Lawrence, Kansas

 

Ticketing information

785-843-2787

 
 

 

 




 


WEAVING THE RAIN

by Kiowa playwright Dianne Yeahquo Reyner


The Two Crow family must unravel the wall of silences and secrets that prevent them from taking their place as a family. They are called to the hospital as the father is brought in by ambulance. These trips have become routine because of the father’s physical deterioration from cirrhosis. However, this will be his last trip to the hospital.

Trapped in the waiting room, this family is also trapped by history and the choices they have made. Each person feels isolated and angry in the life they feel forced to lead. As the night progresses and the rain begin, they are guided by the spirit of the Old Man and the spirit of the oldest son, Roy. As the family begins to purge the poisons from their lives, they realize that they are never alone and never forgotten. The family comes to understand that their survival is founded in the strength of the land and their culture.

The playwright says of the play, “The Two Crow family although fictional is based in reality. It is a story about the long term effects of policies focused on destroying Native American cultures. Native people continue to live under their shadow. Despite this our communities grow stronger and flourish with each new generation. Native theatre is a part of this growth and I am proud to be a part of this thriving tradition and I am pleased to be able to share this story of renewal with you.”

The songs used in this production are all Kiowa songs. The first is a blessing in the Native American Church, the second is a church mourning song, the third a healing song, and the fourth is one of the playwright’s family songs made by Chief Satanta. The last song celebrates our future, our children.

This play premiered by the Thunderbird Theatre of Haskell Indian Nations University was one of 6 out of 250 entries to be presented at the Kennedy Center/American College Theatre Regional Festival in 2004. The play was also one of six national finalists in the Kennedy Center/American College Theatre Festival original playwriting contest in 2004. The AIRT production of Weaving the Rain and Spiderwoman Theater were featured performances at 2007 Native American Woman’s Playwriting Archives conference at Miami University, Oxford, Ohio.  In 2007 Weaving the Rain was also featured at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri.
 
Weaving the Rain is included in the newly published Performing Worlds into Being: Native American Women's Theater by Miami University Press.
 
Lawrence Journal World Article:
 
 

 
Commissioned by the American Indian Repertory Theatre, WOVEN MEMORY was produced at the Lawrence Arts Center in 2009.  The play tells the story of Grandmother Spider and Coyote, two beings who have existed since the Creation.  They left the earth when the world of human beings was established.  traces the journey of Grandmother Spider and Coyote as they travel back to our world to decide if the time has come to return.  Reyner uses story weaving, blending both traditional Native American stories and contemporary experiences to draw the audiences into the intimate space that exists when myth merges with the reality of modern life.  Mixing comedy, poetry, dance and music into the of the contemporary Grandmother Spider and Coyote, the production is a tapestry of story, sound, and movement.
 

 “The fabric of memory exists far beyond our own recognition.  It is mingled in the poetry and pain of distant bonds.  Woven Memory brings the relevance of our cultural ties into a modern world and dares us to reach beyond pain and move forward with the strength of our past.” – Dianne Yeahquo Reyner.

 

 

During the 2009 - 2010 Season, AIRT offers two very different works by noted Kiowa playwright Dianne Yeahquo Reyner: Weaving the Rain and Woven Memory.

 

For further information about booking Woven Memory or Weaving the Rain for your community organization please contact Pat Melody at:
 
American Indian Repertory Theatre
785-865-3429
940 New Hampshire
Lawrence, Kansas 66044
 
 

Previous Production - 2008

 

Rough Face Girl


by White Earth Anisinabe playwright
Marcie Rendon

 

The play is appropriate for youth and families.



Rough Face Girl is based on a Micmac tribal legend. It is a story about unhealed grief and one young woman's ability to see beauty in the face of fear, loneliness and pain. “When we can see the beauty around us, in each other and ourselves, there is hope for love, togetherness and laughter." First produced in March 2001 at BAPA Imagination Stage, Bethesda, MD, this gentle story is designed for family and young audiences.

Dos and her sisters are left alone when their father dies. Dos’ older sisters force her to do all the work while they plan to solve their problems by marrying The Invisible One. He is seeking a wife, but to marry him, a prospective wife must be able to see him. To prove that she can see him, the girl must answer questions posed by the sister of The Invisible One. In the end, only Dos can see him and he asks her to be his wife. She agrees but asks that he also take her sisters under his protection. He accepts her request because it is her compassionate nature that has allowed her to see the world of the spirit

Marcie R. Rendon is an enrolled member of the White Earth Anishinabe Nation. She is a mother, grandmother, writer, and sometimes performance artist. She is a playwright, poet, and freelance writer. A previous Playwright Jerome Fellow, she was also a l998/99 St. Paul LIN Grantee to "create a viable Native presence in the Twin Cities theater community". Rendon’s play, Stand’s Alone will be at the Spirit in the House Festival, Minneapolis, the end of April 08. Her play friends… is a finalist in the American Indian Native Radio Theater contest, 2008. Rendon has conducted theater residencies in Native communities with support from Project Hoop. First Nations Composer Initiative (FANCI) contracted Rendon and composer Brent Michael Davids, to facilitate a choral Composer Apprentice National Outreach Endeavor (CANOE) to guide Native high school music composition students in the art of creating text for vocal music.