Nancy

Rhiana Yazzie
Wednesday, April 7, 2021 at 7:00 p.m. CDT
Venue: 
Online
Cost: 
Free

NANCY

by Rhiana Yazzie
directed by Ken-Matt Martin**
featuring Freda Begay, Kaitlyn Boyer, John Catron*, Lorne Duquette, Debra Jo Rupp*, Tanis Parenteau*, and Ryffin Phoenix

Nancy is a loosely based bio on first lady Nancy Reagan who is a descendant of Pocahontas, and the story of a Navajo mother and daughter, Esmeralda and Jacqueline. While Nancy tries to control the future through astrology and New Age-ism, Esmeralda fights nuclear waste storage on her homelands and while her daughter develops a debilitating anxiety disorder. The story details how internalized racism, skin color, misogyny, and economic mobility create classism and racism inside tribal communities revealing how some become gladly complicit with white supremacy when it benefits their own desires.

From Rhiana:

While I was doing research for my American Revolutions Cycle play, I found out that Nancy Reagan is a descendant of Pocahontas. I couldn't resist jumping into this strange history to create a story that shows how lucrative Native ancestry can sometimes be in the proximity of whiteness.

Part of the Ruth Easton New Play Series

 

Ruth Easton New Play readings are free and online. Readings are accessible to people with vision loss. Closed captioning is available for this event through the Zoom platform's auto-captioning feature.  Large print programs are available upon request. For questions about accessibility or to request other accommodations, please contact Jasmine Johnson at jasminej@pwcenter.org or (612) 332-7481.

 

The Ruth Easton New Play Series is made possible by the support of the Ruth Easton Fund of the Edelstein Family Foundation

 

**Member of Stage Directors and Choreographers Society
*Member of Actors' Equity Association