Feminist performance collective Spiderwoman Theater, the longest-running Native American theatre company, is set to celebrate its 40th anniversary September 19 with a benefit event at La MaMa. The celebration in La MaMa’s Ellen Stewart Theatre will kick off with a concert show, followed by a dance party and live music.
Established by Muriel Miguel, Spiderwoman Theater has been developing its signature creation process, “storyweaving,” on the downtown theatre circuit for 40 years. The Public Theater Artistic Director Oskar Eustis hailed the company as “one of the most influential Native theatre companies in the history of the country.”
Guests slated to attend the anniversary celebration include Bette Bourne and Paul Shaw of London’s drag theatre group Bloolips; Carmelita Tropicana; indigenous Coatlicue Theatre activists The Colorado Sisters (Hortencia and Elvira Colorado); and electronics violinist Laura Ortman.
The program will also include performances and tributes by Taylor Mac, Soni Moreno, First Nations electronic group A Tribe Called Red, Split Britches’ Lois Weaver and Peggy Shaw, La MaMa Safe Harbors Indigenous Collective director Murielle Borst-Tarrant, and Kevin Tarrant and The SilverCloud Singers, among others.
Watch Mac’s video tribute to Spiderwoman Theater in honor of its anniversary celebration below:
Other additions for the September 19 event include Alessandra Belloni, Henu Josephine Tarrant, Monique Mojica, PJ Rose, Randy Reinholz, Sharon Day, Sid Bobb, Steve Elm, the folk-country Thunderbird Sisters, the Leaf Arrow Theatre, and Oneida-Oswegan singer Lacey Hill. Sharing MC duties will be Louis Mofsie, Peggy Shaw, and the Carmelita Tropicana.
Lu! Lu! Lu! Lu! Spiderwoman Theater Celebrates 40 Years: A Theatrical Benefit will begin at 7:30 PM; the after-party featuring A Tribe Called Red will kick off at 10:30 PM. Tickets are available at Spiderwomantheater.org.
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