2023 Diverse Voices Playwriting Initiative
Winner: Pink Man, or, The Only Indian in the Room by Marty Strenczewilk
Synopsis
Pink Man follows an American Indian in a semi-autobiographical journey of self-discovery as he battles tradition, stereotypes, and himself. Having mixed blood and white features, he faces constant internal and external struggles over his identity and heritage, worried about how others see him. Being red is terrifying. Being white feels fraudulent. So, the Indian finds himself forced to live in the pink. Pressed by an enigmatic cafe owner who takes a special interest in him, the Indian revisits the formative stages of his life, where he grapples with expectations, self-doubt, and acceptance from other Native Americans. The play utilizes Ojibwe storytelling traditions while also exposing the various ways that Native American culture has been distorted and erased over time.
“As an Indigenous American, I’ve rarely seen our voices on the stage,” says Strenczewilk. “It was something I never realized until I started writing my own plays. I never intended to tell Indigenous stories, but found myself drawn back to write what I see is missing from the theatre—authentic stories of the lives of Indigenous people in America today.”
Artistic Staff
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Director
Shannon Epplett (Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians) -
Projection Design
Shannon Epplett (Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians) -
Dramaturg
Kee-Yoon Nahm -
Poster Designer
Sanhawich Meateanuwat and Satomi Radostits -
Program Design
Molly Briggs-Yonke
Cast
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Indian
Cole Noah Anderson (Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe) -
Nanabozho
Nate Muckintubbee (Natchez/Choctaw) -
Chorus 1
Janet Ademilua -
Chorus 2
Gillian Larson -
Chorus 3
Heather Mae Marshall (Tsimshian, Raven Clan) -
Chorus 4
Korbin Marshall (Tsimshian, Raven Clan) -
Chorus 5
Ryan Murphy -
Chorus 6
Raelyn O'Brien (Tsimshian, Raven Clan) -
Stage Directions
Satomi Radostits
About the Playwright
Marty Strenczewilk is an Ojibwe theatre artist and storyteller, enrolled with the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians. Select credits include: co-founding a New York City-based theatre company that created sustainable productions of new plays; touring Europe with Trisha Brown Dance as master carpenter; writing/performing slam poetry across New York City; choreographing a 9/11 anniversary show; performing in Tony and Tina’s Wedding off-Broadway; and performing in the first staged production of Kurt Vonnegut’s Cat’s Cradle in New York City. He has a B.A. in Theatre from SUNY Buffalo and has studied at The Barrow Group, Broadway Dance Center, Alvin Ailey, HB Studio, and Joffrey Ballet. He is currently a member of the BETC Writers Group and a member of Creative Nations, an all-Indigenous led artists’ collective. His plays can be found on New Play Exchange.
2023 Finalists
The Crossroads Project announces winner of the 2023 Diverse Voices Playwriting Initiative
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Alex Alpharaoh, O-DOGG: An Angeleno Take on Othello
A modern adaptation of Shakespeare’s Othello set during the 1992 L.A. uprising.
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Damon Chua, Quixotic Professor Qiu
A play that explores racism and xenophobia in academia through the story of a Chinese American mathematician suspected of being a foreign spy.
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Patty Kim Hamilton, Peeling Oranges
A surrealist play about a family of Korean women living in suburban Oregon who are each haunted by the past.
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Matthew Park, Lessons
The story of an aspiring pianist who runs into power dynamics and sexual abuse in the world of classical music education.