TH 410. Indigenous Drama in North America and the Pacific (3)

Prerequisites: TH 222 or AIS 101 or AIS 210; upper division standing. Recommended Preparatory: TH 321A; TH 321B for Theatre majors and minors and American Indian Studies minors. Non-majors, seek equivalent prerequisite from the Theatre department. In this course, students will examine how indigenous playwrights from the continental U.S., Canada, Hawai’i, Alaska, and Pacific U.S. Territories, document their socio-political and economic realities, activism, culture, beliefs, and history and how they form an indigenous identity and confront settler colonialism in the 20th and 21st centuries. Through discussion and written analysis of plays by indigenous playwrights, students will gain a deeper understanding of indigenous concerns, culture, and presence in theatre history including sophisticated circular storytelling patterns, enriching decolonizing strategies, and contemporary references that challenge what it means to be American.