Headshots by Emily Lambert Photography
Headshots by Emily Lambert Photography
Headshots by Emily Lambert Photography
MARCH 28 – APRIL 21, 2024
It’s 1985 in Washington, DC and two women are trying to steer their futures—Nancy Reagan from the White House, orchestrating her husband “Ronnie’s” political career according to daily astrological trends, and Esmeralda, a Navajo mother advocating for her community. Their worlds converge over an unbelievable discovery—Nancy has a direct familial connection to Pocahontas. Strange history collides with 80s nostalgia in this epic story that cuts through the veneer of shoulder pads, neon, and Van Halen with irreverent heart and deep empathy. Award-winning playwright Rhiana Yazzie makes her East Coast premiere with a very DC play about ancestry and ambition.
Pictured here: Ken-Matt Martin, Rhiana Yazzie, Anaseini Katoa, and Lynn Hawley
The reading of OLA NĀ IWI (THE BONES LIVE) is through Roundabout Theatre Company’s Refocus Project. For more information and to get tickets click here.
The performance takes place Monday, May 22 at the Laura Pels Theatre. It will also be available for streaming this fall.
For more information on the play and the playwright, click here.
‘Anaseini was featured on BETTER NATE THAN EVER as the Director.
NY Shakespeare Exchange and the Bard travel to the sceptred isles of the Pasifika/Moana to exchange stories and views on identity, heritage, and mana (spirit), and explore how these stories intersect with the works and characters of Shakespeare’s canon.
Freestyle Labs from New York Shakespeare Exchange combine performance and town hall discussion to create a unique evening of theater. These Sceptred Isles begins with a performance that combines excerpts from Shakespeare with Pasifika takes on the Bard, and real stories of Pasifika/Moanan identity. The performance will be followed by a discussion and Q&A with our performers and panelists, which will expand to include questions from the audience by evening’s end.
TEXT BY: William Shakespeare, Jackie Pualani Johnson, Tusiata Avia, and interviews with the actors
ARRANGED AND DIRECTED BY: Jessica Bauman
PRODUCED AND MODERATED BY: ‘Anaseini Katoa & Jessica Bauman
PERFORMING ACTORS: Alyxandra Ciale Charfauros (they/them), Sean-Joseph Choo (he/him), Pedro Ka’awaloa (he/him), ‘Anaseini Katoa (she/her)