Native Nation Project

A collection of three plays celebrating the vibrancy and vitality of modern American indigenous culture, drawing attention to complex issues within the contemporary Native American experience. This latest volume from the acclaimed author of The Thanksgiving Play collects a trilogy of plays co-created with Cornerstone Theater Company as well as urban Native artists and culture bearers. In Urban Rez, five interconnected stories depict members of a Native tribe in Los Angeles weighing the pros and cons of federal recognition. Developed through talking circles with Indigenous peoples of Arizona, Native Nation is an immersive theatrical production that seeks to combat the erasure of Native people from wider American culture by telling the story of the land through the eyes of its original people. Created with people of the Lakota and Dakota tribal nations, Wicoun centers on Áya and their brother Khoskalaka, who are already busy enough raising cousins and siblings while trying to graduate high school. Then the zombies arrive. When Áya summons a native superhero for help, they set off on a journey across the lands of the Oceti Sakowin. Together, these plays explore a wide range of urgent issues that continue to affect Indigenous communities today, including assimilation, two-spirit identity, food equity, water rights, tribal sovereignty, broken treaties, genocide, and violation of sacred lands. They also celebrate a rich history and essential culture, telling stories by and for Native people.