A Native Comes to Broadway

Life has a funny way of coming back around when you least expect it, and so it is there my tale begins. After a 14 year hiatus from the theater, my return brought me to the door of August: Osage County. With a request from Amy Schechter, the casting director, to audition, I anxiously ran to her office; and with a call back in tow, I was overwhelmed with the possibility of being on Broadway. The part was for the role of Johnna Monevata, a Native American housekeeper hired to tend to a family on the verge. As it turned out my Broadway debut would have to wait it out a little longer. This role had been spoken for, but the journey I was given inspired me to believe that anything is possible.

As I settled back into my life, directing the Native American Actors showcase for the American Indian Community House (AICH), I was asked to write an article for Talking Stick. Without hesitation I accepted this assignment and was given the direction to interview the Native American actress Kimberly Guerrero, who plays the part of Johnna in August: Osage County. What a small world it would turn out to be. I emailed Kimberly and unbeknownst to me, it turned out that Kimberly Guerrero is really Kimberly Norris who played my sister on As the World Turns many years ago. She had changed her name after getting married and dropped Norris. That should tell you how long I’ve been out of the loop. And the world keeps getting smaller.

With this history behind us, we both welcomed the reunion. I had not seen the show, but had read the script several times due to my audition. So I broke down and bought a ticket (at a discounted rate, thanks to Kimberly)!

As I sat down in the theater waiting for my feast of senses, a rather large man sat next to me. He was your average all American Joe from Pittsburg. During intermission he turned to me and said "Is she really Indian?" I replied, "Yes she is". "She’s very poised", he said I agreed. Why is the concept of having a real Native American actress in a role on Broadway questioned? The public has been so conditioned to the media’s version of Cowboys and Indians, that when the real thing comes along they question it. Playwrights, casting directors and producers need to open their doors and allow us to walk in. We need more playwrights to capture the authenticity of their characters. I want to thank you Tracy Letts, who wrote this play, for stepping up to the plate.

I was moved. The play was totally engaging from start to finish. Never once did I look at my watch. And Kimberly shined, capturing the essence of her wise and grounded Johnna. She was terrific…and made me proud. After the show I went backstage and met up with her. Walking through the theater to her dressing room gave me a feeling that all this is possible.

She looked exactly the same. Age had not touched this beauty. We immediately went into girl chatter.

Kim S: How has this play changed your life?
Kimberly: The play has opened up doors for me. One of the most exciting (doors) is that I can have a life in the theatre. There is very little work for Native women in TV and film as well.

Kim S: How often do you go out on theater auditions?
Kimberly: I’ve only gone out three times in the last ten years and I’ve gotten every one of them.

Kim S: So kudos to Tracy Letts for thinking outside the box and bringing Johnna to Broadway. You said you worked with the Steppenwolf Company in Chicago, what was that like?
Kimberly: It was amazing! I took the master class with Jeff Perry. I tackled everything that was sacred to me. Chose work that terrified me and stretched me beyond what I thought was capable of. Then just rehearsed and put it up with incredibly present and committed scene partners.

Kim S: You worked with an amazing ensemble company, what do you walk away with as an actress?
Kimberly: To resist performing and just be, to listen, to turn myself wholly over to love, respect, trust of my scene partner and the story.

Kim S: Tell me about the "fight call" before the show?
Kimberly: 15 minutes before curtain we have a "fight call" and we go through all the fights in the play. Of course all actors are doing their preparation way before that. It’s a technique we go through every night.

Kim S. Tell me about the talk back you had last week after your show? Who from your cast came? Why did you put this together?
Kimberly: Almost the entire cast came to have a talk back with Native folks ranging from celebrities (Wes Studi and Sheila Tousey) to Columbia’s Native American Student Association and folks who heard about it from Amerinda. I wanted to do something last Thanksgiving, perhaps with drums on Broadway, a mini powwow at the Imperial Theater while we were in previews, but the strike happened. So I thought we’d do something before I left for London.

(Writer’s note: The irony of all that is on November 10 the AICH hosted "Drums Along 42nd Street" on Theater Row, showcasing Native American Actors. It is so nice that we are all on the same page.)

Kim S: Who do you look up to as an actor?
Kimberly: I would have to say Tantoo Cardinal and Sheila Tousey. Tantoo really put us on the map as far as Native female actresses. She is so wise and grounded. I can only hope to be as she has become.

Kim S: What kind of advice would you give Native Actors?
Kimberly: Train!! Do theatre and get as much experience as you can. Align yourself with writers and directors with what they can see in the theatre. Get out there and make it happen. Talk, mingle, network and get involved. I always tell young Native actors to write. We are masters at storytelling and it goes beyond television and theatre. It’s ingrained in us; the desire to tell a story, that taps into something very genetic. We’ve been doing this for centuries.

Kim S: Good point! Your background is really in film and television. Can you expand on that a little?
Kimberly: I started out in television and being a bit exotic opened up some doors for me. That’s a good thing. I feel I have blazed a trail in Hollywood for actors who have an exotic look. I’ve done all the roles, the chief’s daughter the warrior’s wife. Theatre opens up the door to a whole other world and I am thrilled to be a part of it.

Kim S: Talk to me about the business aspect of acting.
Kimberly: What a lot of actors do not realize is that "there is business to the show". You have to train yourself in the business just like you train yourself in your craft. Nowadays, an agency will "package a show" before it gets out to an open call. They have everything predetermined and rarely do they think outside the box.

Kim S: Do you ever go out for non-traditional roles?
Kimberly: Very rarely, almost never. Like I said, they have a hard time thinking outside the box. I was cast as Shelby, though, in Steel Magnolias at the Tennessee Performing Arts Center in Nashville. That was a lot of fun.

Kim S: Tell me about your screenplay?
Kimberly: I wrote a screenplay called Calling out Shadows and it was work shopped at the Sundance Writers Lab. in 1999.

Kim S: That’s great! What happened?
Kimberly: Well, as life would have it my partner decided that there were other avenues he wanted to travel, and I didn’t feel right about pursuing the project without him.

Kim S: Do people treat you different because you are Native?
Kimberly: My hair gets a lot of attention. Otherwise, unless the role calls for Native I don’t get out.

Kim S: That’s a shame. We need to be out there as working actors and be sent out for all roles, not just traditional (Native) ones. We need to be out there, in mainstream media.
Kimberly: I agree. That has yet to be seen. That’s why we need more Native writers.

Kim S. You’re off to London next week. That must be very exciting.
Kimberly: It is. The whole cast is going to Chicago for a week to rehearse and then we are off to London for a three month run.

Kim S. How cool is that?
Kimberly: Very cool! I feel so blessed and I am very thankful for the opportunity.

It was getting late and Kimberly had to start getting ready for her second show of the day. She said she was on stage for a total of seven hours on any given matinee day. That’s a long time! A hard working actress, that’s what we like to see, dedicated, smart, funny, pretty and continuously evolving. Lead the way Kimberly; we are all ready to march behind you. Life has a funny way of finding itself.

As it is Kimberly’s time, so is it the time for every Native artist to be heard. With the Public Theater spearheading their second year of the Native American Theater Festival, and theatre companies from around the country coming together in support, our work is to tell he tales of not only our history, but of our present. Voices are slowly crawling out of their buried past and the Native actor begins to speak. The movement is here and a Native comes to Broadway!

Kim Snyder (Oglala Lakota) Kim has been an actress for over 20 years. Her credits stem from theater, film, television and everything in between. She has just finished directing the Native American Actor’s 2008 Showcase in NYC at the Kirk Theater and is presently working on her new play "Apt. G-8".

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