Native Voices at the Autry Presents 13th Annual "Playwrights Retreat of New Plays" June 16, 2011

NATIVE VOICES AT THE AUTRY PRESENTS 13th ANNUAL
“PLAYWRIGHTS RETREAT AND FESTIVAL OF NEW PLAYS”
FEATURING PUBLIC READINGS
OF FOUR NEW WORKS BY NATIVE AMERICAN PLAYWRIGHTS

Thursday, June 16, 7:30 PM
Friday, June 17, 7:30 PM
Saturday, June 18, 1 PM and 4 PM
Autry National Center, Los Angeles

Native Voices at the Autry, America's leading Native American theater company, continues its tradition of excellence developing works by new and established Native American playwrights at its highly regarded PLAYWRIGHTS RETREAT AND FESTIVAL OF NEW PLAYS, culminating in public readings of four new works on Thursday, June 16, 7:30 pm, Friday, June 17, 7:30 pm, and Saturday, June 18, 1 pm and 4 pm, at the Autry National Center’s Wells Fargo Theater.

Established in 2004, Native Voices' PLAYWRIGHTS RETREAT AND FESTIVAL OF NEW PLAYS provides the opportunity during a week-long retreat at San Diego State University for beginning, emerging and established Native American playwrights to work closely in shaping their plays with nationally recognized directors, dramaturgs and an acting company comprised of exceptional Native American actors, concluding with public readings. Many works developed during this project, hosted by Native Voices in conjunction with La Jolla Playhouse and San Diego State University, have gone on to enjoy successful runs on the Autry main stage and elsewhere, including Native Voices' recent production of The Frybread Queen and the company’s 2009-10 season opener Carbon Black.

The four plays featured at the 2011 New Festival of Plays readings are:

Cikiuteklluku (Giving Something Away) by Holly Stanton (Yup'ik*), directed by Ed Bourgeois with dramaturgy by Shelley Orr, which is about a young Yup’ik girl from rural Alaska who faces heartache when a non-Native couple adopts her baby.

Ungipamsuuka (My Story) by Susie Silook (Siberian Yupik/Inupiaq*) features the creative team of Stephan Wolfert, director, Robert Caisley, dramaturg and Lauren Simon, assistant dramaturg. The play chronicles an Alaskan Native sculptor who boldly confronts familial, cultural, and sexual trauma with the healing power of art.

The Bird House by Diane Glancy (Cherokee*) is directed by Robert Caisley with dramaturgy by Shirley Fishman. Set in the back room of a failing church in the high plains of Texas, The Bird House delves into the lives of a minister and his two sisters as they sort through the snarls of their past and adapt to loss and the uncertain future of their home and family.

The Woman Who Was Captured by Ghosts by Julie Pearson-Little Thunder (Creek*) is directed by Jere Hodgin with dramaturgy by Julie Jensen. Told through a blend of realistic and mythical storytelling, the play follows a Cheyenne woman battling cancer, who takes a metaphysical journey to a place where tradition is the best medicine.

Native Voices at the Autry, led by Founder/Producing Artistic Director Randy Reinholz (Choctaw*) and Founder/Producing Executive Director Jean Bruce Scott, is the country’s only Equity theater company dedicated exclusively to producing new works by Native American playwrights and performed by Native actors. It maintains successful long-term relationships with New York's The Public Theater, Native American Public Telecommunications (NAPT), Washington's Kennedy Center and La Jolla Playhouse.

The Autry National Center is located at 4700 Western Heritage Way, Los Angeles, CA, 90027-1462. Readings are $10 each or $25 for a festival pass for all four plays; half price for students, senior and military; and free for Autry members. To purchase tickets, call (323) 667-2000, ext. 354 or visit www.NativeVoicesattheAutry.org.

Official Website: http://www.nativevoicesattheautry.org