“We start with this pile of jagged facts and misguided governmental policies and historical stereotypes about race then turn all that into something beautiful and dramatic and educational for the kids.”
— ‘The Thanksgiving Play‘
Logan has won a grant. The project? Make 500 years of colonial pillaging and exploitation accessible to school children.
In other words: Write a Thanksgiving play!
So in meta fashion begins “The Thanksgiving Play” by Indigenous dramatist and MacArthur “genius award” recipient Larissa FastHorse. At once adroit, hilarious and unsparing, “The Thanksgiving Play” chronicles the bumbling and cringe-worthy attempts by four progressive allies to stage a culturally sensitive holiday pageant.
“FastHorse is a terrifically funny writer,” said Andrea Urice, a teaching professor of drama in WashU’s Performing Arts Department in Arts & Sciences, who will direct the show Nov. 21-24 in the A.E. Hotchner Studio Theatre.
“She’s able to wring humor from the ways that people, in trying to be appropriate, can go so far over the top,” Urice added. “If you’re a theater person, or a white liberal, or a vegan, or not a vegan, you’ll find lots here to make you laugh about yourself.
“She has a gift for wrapping challenging topics in skillful comedy.”
Birth of a hit
A member of the Sicangu Lakota Nation, FastHorse is author of nearly 20 plays, including “Urban Rez” (2016), “What Would Crazy Horse Do?” (2017) and the revised book for Jerome Robbins’ classic musical “Peter Pan.” (The latter is now playing at St. Louis’ Fox Theatre.) But over the years, FastHorse grew frustrated with claims that her works were difficult to stage due to a supposed dearth of Native American actors.
So “The Thanksgiving Play,” with its four non-Native leads, was born. And in an irony that mirrors the action on stage, the show became a hit. Following its New York debut in 2018, “The Thanksgiving Play” quickly garnered regional productions. In March 2021, it received an all-star, socially distanced Zoom reading, and in 2022 it began a successful Broadway run — a first for a Native female playwright.
For the last two seasons, it has been one of the 10 most-produced plays in the United States.
Revolutionizing educational theatre!
Set entirely in a drama classroom, the story begins with funding. Logan is an ambitious teacher whose disastrous staging of “The Iceman Cometh” for high school students has not impeded her robust collection of grants and fellowships. Their stated purpose? Devise a play that will uplift Native voices and revolutionize educational theater.
Aiding the effort are Jaxton, Logan’s yoga-practitioner boyfriend, whose farmer’s market performances may or may not qualify him as a professional actor; Caden, a history teacher perhaps overly committed to verisimilitude (no bonfires on stage!); and Alicia, the Hollywood talent whose portfolio includes ethnic headshots.
“Logan thinks that Alicia is Native American,” Urice said. “Logan’s grants are predicated on having a Native American presence in the play. But as we quickly discover, Alicia is not Native American.”
Consternation ensues.
“’The Thanksgiving Play’ isn’t political in the red vs. blue sense,” Urice said. “But it does have a strong social relevance.
“I think we can all recognize good intentions,” she concluded, “while also recognizing the ways that allies can go overboard.”
Cast and crew
The cast of four stars Coco Jones as Logan and Jacob Elliott as Jaxton. Raquel Elle Brouwer plays Alicia, and Zachary Cohn is Caden.
Scenic design is by Sara Wargo. Costumes are by Dominique (Nikki) Green. Lighting and sound are by Nick Cochran and Sean M. Savoie. Props are by Emily Frei. The stage manager is Juan Cortez, with assistance from Heather Elaine Anderson. K8 August is production manager and technical director. Original animations were created by Saba Saif Ur Rehman.
Tickets
“The Thanksgiving Play” will begin at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday, Nov. 21, 22 and 23. Matinee performances will begin at 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, Nov. 23 and 24.
The A.E. Hotchner Studio Theatre is located in the Mallinckrodt Student Center, 6465 Forsyth Blvd. Tickets are $20, or $15 for seniors, students and WashU faculty and staff, and free for WashU students. Tickets are available through the Edison Theatre Box Office. For more information, call 314-935-6543 or visit pad.wustl.edu.
Editor’s note: “The Thanksgiving Play” contains intentionally provocative references to, and depictions of, historical violence and racism.
