Rediscovering America Through the Arts
Please Do Not Touch the Indians
written by Joseph A. Dandurand
directed by Opalanietet
Please Do Not Touch the Indians infuses traditional storytelling into contemporary nonlinear theatre with characters that move freely between past, present, and future. This exploration into race, loss, and cultural appropriation is poetically told through humor, wit, and the vicious remembrance of history. Centered around two wooden Indians sitting on a bench in front of a gift shop while having their picture taken by a series of time-traveling tourists, the stories unfold through the lens of several characters who symbolize the legacy of a lost people, joined by their memories with a profound reality revealed.
This Play Is Native Made
Written and Performed by Opalanietet
Directed by Iman Aoun (ASHTAR Theatre)
Co-Produced by ASHTAR Theatre and Eagle Project
Assistant Directed by Ash Marinaccio
In response to the State of New Jersey's recent treatment of its indigenous people, a Lenape artist takes us on an odyssey that reminds us how the battle for civil and cultural rights is never truly won.
Uncle Abram:
A Reconstruction of Uncle Vanya
Written by Anton Chekhov
Translated by Marian Fell
Adapted by Opalanietet
Written by Anton Chekhov
Directed by Tony White
Dramaturgy by Matthew Champagne
Set Design by Mitch Ost
Costume Design by Li Murillo
Featuring
Kelly Ann, Emilie Bonsant, Mike Callahan, Brenda Crawley, Kahlil Garvia, Omar Gonzalez, Jackie Torres, Abby Ybarra
UNCLE ABRAM is an American retelling of the Russian classic set in the Reconstruction South. Placed in a former plantation in south-central Missouri, this adaptation combines Native American and African American influences that both heighten and intensify the original Chekhovian text.
The backdrop being one of the most progressive periods in American history instills a hope of what is possible, along with the awareness of the delicacy of social progress.
UNCLE ABRAM awakens our spirit for a better tomorrow, and tests our fortitude by begging the question, "What are you willing to sacrifice to change the world?"
Trail of Tears
Written by Thomas J. Sotto
Directed and Co-Choreographed by Rajendra Ramoon Maharaj
Co-Choreographed by Sheldon Raymore
Produced by Opalanietet and Adam Mace
Publicist Jay Cruz
Featuring C.A. Dickerson, Samantha Clark, Nerea Duhart, Christopher Robert Ellis, Tony Enos, Darleen Rae Fontaine, Olivia Hoffman, Alana Inez, Wolfen de Castro, Javon Minter, Michael Nephew, Lamar Perry, Richard Perez, Opalanietet, Sheldon Raymore
Through poetry, personal testimony, music, and movement, the impact of this gruesome event on our contemporary psyche as Americans will become apparent. Yet out of this tragedy, all of us as Americans, will realize the strength of our ancestors, the endurance of the human spirit, and the realization that no genocide can truly be successful.
Lost Voices
An evening of two short plays directed by Jessi D. Hill
Wide Blossoms written by Elise Marenson
Vanishing Point written by Larissa FastHorse
Rachel Alt, Production Manager
Alex Haney, Stage Manager
Edward T. Morris, Set Designer
Miriam Nilofa Crow, Lighting Designer
Izzy Fields, Costume Designer
Emma Wilk, Sound Designer
Laura Rohrman, Publicist
Featuring Opalanietet, Kayla Jackmon, Kyle Leibovitch, Donna Couteau, Abbi Hawk, Thomas Muccioli
LOST VOICES, directed by Jessi D. Hill, is a combination of two gripping original short plays, WIDE BLOSSOMS by Elise Marenson and VANISHING POINT by Larissa FastHorse, that center around Hurricane Katrina's effect on two vibrant but marginalized communities in southern Louisiana.