Sacred Stage: Talks with Native Playwrights and Artist with Laura Shamas

The interview with today’s guest, Laura Shamas (Chickasaw Nation) on her world premiere play Four Women in Red happened several days before the Los Angeles Fires (i.e., Palisades Fire, Eaton Fire, Kenneth Fire, and the Hurst Fire). The play was originally scheduled to premiere on January 17th, 2025, at the Victory Theatre Center in Burbank, California where performances were supposed to continue through February 23. As of January 11th, 2025, the Victory Theater Center announced that “With members of the cast, creative team and audience impacted by the wildfires, The Victory Theatre Center has canceled the previously announced January 17 opening of Four Women in Red, a new play by Laura Shamas about the current crisis of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women. A revised performance schedule will be announced at a later date.” Four Women in Red is about four resilient Native American women searching for missing friends and relatives in the face of apathetic sheriffs and dwindling clues. Touching on variety if critically important issues such as MMIW, settler colonial violence, and this moving new play celebrates the power of community as the women seek answers against all odds. While the interview references the January and February theater dates for the play, American Indian Airwaves is releasing the program because the fires are profoundly impacting all living relations (human and non-human), including Indigenous peoples involved with Four Women in Red and Indigenous throughout the region. The following are some support organizations providing relief and support for Indigenous peoples impacted by the fires. • UAII headquarters, 1453 W Temple St., Los Angeles, CA 90026, is asking for the following items to be donated: Water, diapers, Snacks, N95 masks, Zip ties, Gauze, Saline flushers & Syringes for insulin, Band aids, Sharps containers, Tampons & pads, batteries, flashlights, Pet food, Jackets & Blankets, Hygiene products, and First Aid Supplies. • Spoon Fed Company, owned by Jacob Spoonhunter, is “making small food care packages (on Friday, Jan. 10) to those who were effected [sic] by the fires as well as the first responders,” according to the company’s Instagram. Spoonhunter is Northern Arapaho, Navajo, and Seminole. Go to the Instagram page for any donations or email: [e-mail]. • Chef Stephanie Pyet DeSpain, Prairie Band Potawatomi and winner of “Next Level Chef,” told her Instagram followers that she and other chefs will be doing a pop-up to feed community members. A plan will come out in the next few days, she said. Pyet announced on Jan. 10 on Instagram that she is teaming with Island Smoke N Grill through Go Fund Me to distribute meals for first responders and displaced families. If anyone wants to donate, volunteer, or needs some food to eat, direct message her on Instagram or email: [e-mail]. • Meal + Donations for Our Indian Firefighter Crews. Suggested Donation Items: Chapstick, Body Wipes, Tylenol, Liquid in Powers, Protein Shakes or Bars, Nutritional Bars, Meat Sticks, Nuts (Trail Mix), and other nutritional snack items easily portable. Contact: Tencha [phone] or Cheryl [phone]. Guest: Laura Shamas (Chickasaw Nations), is an accomplished Native American author, essayist, poet, journalist, playwright, and the recent recipient of the Los Angeles New Play Project (LANPP) grant for the play Four Women in Red which was first developed by Native Voices, the only Actors’ Equity theater company in the country dedicated to developing and producing new plays by Native artists. Archived programs can be heard on Soundcloud at: https://soundcloud.com/burntswamp American Indian Airwaves streams on over ten podcasting platforms such as Amazon Music, Apple Podcast, Audible, Backtracks.fm, Gaana, Google Podcast, Fyyd, iHeart Media, Mixcloud, Player.fm, Podbay.fm, Podcast Republic, SoundCloud, Spotify, Tunein, YouTube, and more.