THEY WERE THERE, THEY'RE STILL HERE by Steve Elm

One of the first things I ever saw when I came to the American Indian Community House was the sight of Muriel Miguel howling in the Circle. Howling like a coyote she was. Howling with all her might, all her breath - I didn't know what was going on. All I could think was that a mad woman had taken over the Circle. She had streaks of pink in her hair. And she was howling. And as she was howling I began to understand what was happening. She was getting strength from Coyote, from the spirits around us, and from the people sitting, staring, open mouthed, like me, in the Circle. She then quietly and eloquently told the audience a story about a friend of hers who was dying of AIDS in San Francisco.

Several years before, I was studying acting in a school in London, England. I'd lived there for a while, transplanted by chance and circumstance. I was the only Indian I knew who lived there, though I met a few Mohawks who were working on the new skyscrapers in the London Docklands. It was frustrating at times, being the only non-Brit in my school. I didn't speak the same, walk the same, think the same. Even more frustrating, was being seen as "the American". "But I'm not American, I'm an Indian!", I would protest, "A Red Indian!" (added for clarity). I even bemoaned the fact that there were no proper Native roles for me to play as part of my training. My acting teacher would bemoan with me, but he would also remind me that actors should be able to play any character, Indian or Irish or Hindu or Jew. I took solace in this, knowing that one day I would be prepared to play any part, Indian or not.... I decided that when I came home, I would start the first ever Professional Native American Theater Company.

It was around that time I met Bette Bourne, the artistic director (and let's face it, star) of the British company "Bloolips". The Bloolips were a troupe of anarchic gender bending actors, performing hilarious spoofs on sexuality and society. They were outrageously camp, appearing on stage in costumes that had audiences screaming with laughter. They were subversive, warm and fuzzy at the same time. They were mostly gay men, but appealed to all sexes, genders, and orientations. Hardcore lesbians were known to swoon when watching company member Lavinnia Coop (a hugely talented comedian-clown -in- drag) perform. Each performer was, in fact, hugely talented, and each brought his own unique style and charm to the proceedings. I was writing my thesis on "Bloolips". . After being inspected and approved by Mr. Bourne (yes, Mr.), I got down to the business of interviewing him about the company. " I've never seen anything like your company before. What were your influences?

He mentions "the Hot Peaches". They were a seminal off-off-off-off Broadway troupe, started in the early seventies and directed by Jimmy Commice. We discussed them awhile, me pretending to know all about them. I had heard of them only. He then says "and, oh, those Indian women, the Spiderwomen. The Spiderwoman Theater. Yes, they were an influence on the Bloolips." Being that we were in Britain, I immediately said something like "weren't they from the Raj somewhere?"...Bette glared at my ignorance, then took pity on me and proceeded to tell me about this company of insane Indian women, who were actors and sisters and considered masters by their peers in the progressive and anarchic theatre world in which they traveled. "They are brilliant", Mr. Bourne said. "I can't believe you never heard of them, being American." Being a red Indian came quite easy that moment... Saving face, I continued my thesis interview, but vowed that I would one day find this "Spiderwoman Theater" and ....and....??? What would I say? Here, and now, I say Thank You.

Spiderwoman Theater has been in existence for twenty-five years, this year of 2000 being their anniversary. The original Spiderwoman Theater was, as Muriel Miguel says " Everything. We were everything - young, old, skinny, fat, straight, gay, single, married, black, white, Indian - all these different women." Among the original members of Spiderwoman Theater were Lois Weaver and Peggy Shaw, who went on to form the legendary lesbian theatre company "Split Britches". Later, Spiderwoman became that of the three sisters alone; where they found common comfort and laid the groundwork for the troupe that we have come to know. From being the first all-women theatre group to the first all Indian theatre group, they are comprised of Muriel Miguel (also the artistic director and director of their plays), Lisa Mayo, and Gloria Miguel. The three Kuna/Rappahannock sisters have seen different trends, styles, fashion and politics emerge, submerge, and emerge again, and have continued to create exciting theatre with their senses keen to the pulse of our changing times. They have toured the world with their shows. They have been published in academic journals. They have long been favorites of the women's press. They have been called "Feminist theatre". They have been called "Indian theatre".

They are a troupe of three sisters who each brings her own theatricality and history to their work, each one weaving her own design on the huge star blanket of theatre they are performing. They are urban Indians, born and raised in Brooklyn, exploring the absurd situation of being strangers in their own land. They recreate the tenderness that kept them whole, and the violence that at times threatened them. They reconnect with their ancestral spiritual sisters, while exposing the "plastic shamans" that undermine our beliefs. They talk about screwing and they sing "The Indian Love Call". They are found under tables or on blankets having tea parties. They are dancing, pushing, and sprinkling "essence of sweat lodge" on helpless men from the audience. They are bawdy, poignant, loud and very quiet. They are both stars and people when they are on stage. We recognize them. They are our community. They are the Spidewomen.

Lisa Mayo brings a certain burlesque to every performance. She has a quality that is rarely seen on our stages - one that brings to mind the vaudeville and music hall greats such as Sophie Tucker. A comic actress with a voice that is pure New York, she stills the house when she tells of the time she went to a Sun Dance (in a purple pants suit, no less). Gloria Miguel, her of the almost foreboding stage presence and almost intimidating stare, turns into a lonely and misunderstood little girl, being told off by a big sister for messing with her things......The transformation is made complete when she rebels and purposely knocks over her sister's toy tea set. We see them both recoil in confusion, and finally embrace understanding, when third sister, the devilishly mischievous Muriel Miguel announces that she's got a girlfriend. This actress is a master of the surprise, the one who puts body into story, the one who directs the controlled chaos of a Spiderwoman performance. And it looks like she's just playing and pretending with her sisters.

It is this sense of family, of sisterhood (I can't help it, the word fits) that brings us to the core of the Spiderwoman Theatre. Each actor is so uniquely different, yet so intrinsically part of the whole, that I can't imagine another company doing what they do. Though all three sisters are accomplished theatre workers outside of Spiderwoman, it is this company that I say thank you to.

Years ago, I had this hope of starting the first ever Professional Native American Theatre Company. Spiderwoman Theater, little did I know then, was already there. I did help start an Indian theatre company, a year or so after I met the Spiderwomen (who, when they discovered I was an actor, immediately called themselves my "aunties"). We lasted a year. We were just a theatre company, and we weren't related, no matter how hard we tried to be. We all wanted to be stars, which is ok. Some of us got there, some of us are traveling there, and some of us are not. The fact that we could stand to lose each other was proof enough that we would never last as a theatre company. Spiderwoman Theater could not stand to lose each other. And, as they say "We are still here". Happy Anniversary, Spiderwomen.

Spiderwoman Theater will premier their twenty-fifth anniversary show "Persistence of Memory", directed by Muriel Miguel, at the Circle at American Indian Community House May 12 and 13th, 2000, at 8pm. Call 212 598- 0100 for reservations.) Photo by Catherine Fogden.

Image by Patrick Tafoya.