Indigenous Peoples' Day Panel: Native Women Leading
Channel: HowlRound Theatre Commons
Date: 11/10/2021

Featuring Lofanitani Aisea, Jeanette Harrison, Murielle Borst-Tarrant, Moderated by Amber Ball (Dakubetede, Shasta, Modoc, Klamath)

Monday 11 October 2021
For Indigenous Peoples' Day, In the Margin Theatre hosted a conversation with Lofanitani Aisea (Black, Tongan, Modoc, Klamath, Tahlequah) artist-activist-actor, Jeanette Harrison (Onondaga Descent) co-founder of AlterTheater, and Murielle Borst-Tarrant (Kuna, Rappahannock) artistic director of Safe Harbors NYC.

In this conversation we discuss artistic leadership, practices, and methodology from an Indigenous perspective. It is our goal to highlight and amplify the work these three Native women continue to contribute to the arts world.

This is the first livestreamed event on HowlRound TV for In the Margin Theatre's The New American Theatre Festival. The other livestreams are: Power in Theatre Coalition Building (Wednesday 20 October), and Adaptation and New Creation (Thursday 21 October).

Panelist Bios
Jeanette Harrison (Onondaga Descent)
is a co-founder of AlterTheater, where she architected the ground-breaking AlterLab playwright residency program and currently serves as artistic director.

Murielle Borst-Tarrant (Kuna/Rappahannock)
is an author, playwright, director, producer, cultural artist, educator, and human rights activist. Author of the fantasy series The Star Medicine, she studied at HB Studios in New York City, studied and interned with Spiderwoman Theater, and is also a graduate of Long Island University. 

Lofanitani Aisea
Waqlisat, Malo elelei!
(greetings in Maqlaqsyals and Tongan)
Lofanitani is a Black Indigenous woman who is Black and Tongan and her Native American tribes are Modoc, Tahlequah, and Klamath. As a digital creator, artist, actor, influencer, and GenZ activist Lofanitani unapologetically centers joy, power, and aspirations for the future in her work. Lofanitani is also an ensemble member for In The Margin and is a part of the the American Influencer Council’s Career Creator Club mentorship program which is based out of New York City.

Moderator
Amber Ball
(She/Her) | Dakubetede, Shasta, Modoc, Klamath
Amber Ball is a citizen of the Confederated Tribes of Siletz, theatre artist, community advocate, passionate programmer, and coordinator committed to serving and creating community through the arts. Amber is the current program director for Safe Harbors NYC and executive director of In the Margin.


About HowlRound TV
HowlRound TV is a global, commons-based, peer-produced, open-access livestreaming and video archive project stewarded by the nonprofit HowlRound. HowlRound TV is a free and shared resource for live conversations and performances relevant to the world’s performing-arts and cultural fields. Its mission is to break geographic isolation, promote resource sharing, and develop our knowledge commons collectively. Anyone can participate in a community of peer organizations revolutionizing the flow of information, knowledge, and access in our field by becoming a producer and co-producing with us. Learn more by going to our participate page. For any other queries, email tv@howlround.com or call Vijay Mathew at +1 917.686.3185 Signal/WhatsApp. View the video archive of past events.