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03 Dec 99 - 07:33 AM (#144068) Subject: Help: Indian business for school play From: Penny S. We are putting on a small Christmas play, mostly a carrier for a set of songs. The theme is a starship travelling back in time, with a space song from our music scheme, Victorian carol singers singing the Sussex Carol, the Huron Carol and one called Star in the South by A P Herbert. The carol singers have books and lamps to hold. The Indians are just standing there. Can anyone think of appropriate props or stage business for Indians singing a carol? I can't think of bows and arrows as fitting.! Penny |
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03 Dec 99 - 08:18 AM (#144074) Subject: RE: Help: Indian business for school play From: catspaw49 Well they could be packing up to move on to their next government granted piece of land. Or perhaps they could be purchasing Vaseline in preparation for the next good deal bestowed upon them by the US government. Spaw |
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03 Dec 99 - 08:47 AM (#144084) Subject: RE: Help: Indian business for school play From: katlaughing Cute, Spaw and so true! Penny, some of the sacred objects which might be appropriate would be a feather fan, usually just 3-4 feathers with a sort of case around the base, like leather, with beadwork or some beads hanging down from it; rattles made of skin or clay (I have a wonderful one shaped like an egg with runes all over it); a staff with feathers and beads; medicine pouch (small) with personal items inside, i.e. stones, corn pollen, fetishes; how about a drum, small handheld. I've a wonderful one of those, too. Or a NA flute? At the powwos we go to, the dances usually involved shawls with long, long fringes, which are used, by the women, to accent their dancing, sometimes spread like eagles' wings along their outstretched arms. Can you tell us why you have Indians, in the scheme of things? I am sure some did sing carols and such, it just seems it was done under such horrible conditions of oppression. Not meaning to give offense, just intertested. Thanks, Kat |
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03 Dec 99 - 09:17 AM (#144095) Subject: RE: Help: Indian business for school play From: catspaw49 Yeah Kat....that was kinda' what was bugging me, hence the joke. Seemed a little ludicrous, a sorta' "let's throw in some token Indians to set the scene." Seriously Penny......Why use the Indian thing at all? Just a thought. spaw |
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03 Dec 99 - 09:27 AM (#144098) Subject: RE: Help: Indian business for school play From: AllisonA(Animaterra) Yesterday afternoon I sat thru another tedious staff meeting where we discussed yet again the school policy regarding holidays. "Separation of church and state" kept coming up again and again- but the policy has always been that it is appropriate for young children to learn about many other cultures in order to promote tolerance and understanding. In other words, we are expected to provide a balance, and the watchdogs will be counting to make sure that for every Christmas song we teach, we also teach a Chanukah song (of which there are many lovely ones) a Kwanzaa song, something about Divali, Ramadan, Lucia Day, St. Nicholas Day, Solstice, New Year, and any other event we can think of at this time of year. As an educational program promoting diversity, tolerance, peace on earth, and so forth, I can see the value of American Indians in a holiday celebration. However, I urge you Penny to do some careful research (which you are doing!) and learn as much as you can about the group you're portraying, so it won't smack of tokenism. Here's a web page to get you started: Multicultural Resources on the Internet http://jupiter.lang.osaka-u.ac.jp/~krkvls/index.html And best of luck with your program! Allison |
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03 Dec 99 - 09:43 AM (#144102) Subject: RE: Help: Indian business for school play From: MMario Well - the Indians would be appropriate for the Huron Carol as it was sung ONLY in Huron for two hundred years before being (officially at least) translated into french, and not translated into English until 1926.
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03 Dec 99 - 10:00 AM (#144106) Subject: RE: Help: Indian business for school play From: catspaw49 True Mario,,and Allison, that is the post we were after I think. Nice site. I've been to so many school plays in recent years, and unlike yourself, these teachers seem to not care/see the numerous stereotypes they create. I generally hear, "Oh its just a play and they're little kids" but Karen and I are both bugged because they ARE little kids and they will learn from the experience. I was going to call my old and great friends in Newark, both music educators to actually ask what they've been doing on this lately. The Indian thing probably comes up more at Thanksgiving, but Roofus (Ruth) and Bill have always done neat stuff as the "times" have changed. Spaw |
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03 Dec 99 - 10:09 AM (#144109) Subject: RE: Help: Indian business for school play From: T in Oklahoma (Okiemockbird) Penny, The dances and costumes WyoWoman has observed have been strongly influenced since World War II by the traditions of the northern plains, where WW lives. If you you want to represent 20th century Wyandots at a dance competition, WWs suggestions are good. If you want to represent 20th century Wyandots at church, then I'm not so sure feathered fans or dance shawls would be appropriate. If you want to represent 17th century Hurons, some of WW's suggestions might be appropriate (the modern shawls, feather fans, and fancy bustles didn't come out of nowhere) but you'll need to do a little more digging to establish provenance. A list of tribes, with links to homepages, is at http://www.cherokee.org/navbar/nations.htm. I have not so far found a link to any site discussing historical AI dress and adornment, however. T. |
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03 Dec 99 - 10:20 AM (#144117) Subject: RE: Help: Indian business for school play From: catspaw49 And T..if you'd want to recheck, you'd note it was Kat who posted here. (:<)) I fear that Pansy Rue Bob WW Twidgett (MB) would likely suggest something in bubblewrap for the Indians.**BG** Spaw |
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03 Dec 99 - 10:35 AM (#144127) Subject: RE: Help: Indian business for school play From: T in Oklahoma (Okiemockbird) Oops! apologies to both Kat and WyoWoman! I found a historic AI dress & adornment web site. I only just found it, so I haven't yet had a chance to judge its quality. It is at http://www.nativetech.org/clothing/regions/regions.html. T. |
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03 Dec 99 - 11:47 AM (#144168) Subject: RE: Help: Indian business for school play From: Penny S. Thanks - reason for including it - look back a few threads. I was reminded of the song, which I like, and we like to have a variety of material from a wide range of sources. Then we find a way to link it. The theme is, I suppose, Christmas through the ages and across the world, but we have to operate within a tight time and space limit. Basically, the intro plus three carols. The script is just a few linking sentences based on a colleague's ideas. Pre National Curriculum, we could have done a proper background topic - I still have material from one I did years back when I went into a lot of depth myself. I can't get everything wholly authentic in a very short time - you ought to see the carol singers - so we're just suggesting the identities with a few improvised items. That being said, I want them to be an appropriate few items. We've got a good drum accompaniment on a large tambour, which deals with the drum part, but we could manage rattles and scarves fairly easily. I've picked up some good ideas above. Also on a site posted during Thanksgiving. Incidentally, can anyone let me know of a book which has biographies of various Indian characters from history? I read one once which included Joseph Brand, Sequoia, Hiawatha (the real one) and others who are more difficult to find out about than the later Plains leaders, and in some cases had nothing to do with white settlers. I read one once, but am miles and years away from access to it. What I really don't want to do is any of those negative things mentioned above, to be quaint. It is important to teach about diversity with respect. Penny |
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03 Dec 99 - 11:57 AM (#144172) Subject: RE: Help: Indian business for school play From: catspaw49 Yes it is, and Penny, I hope you don't think I was implying that you would not do it that way. As you say though, its very tough to do with so short a program. Best of Luck! Spaw |
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03 Dec 99 - 01:16 PM (#144211) Subject: RE: Help: Indian business for school play From: katlaughing Penny, I've known from your many and learned postings that you take great care and read your intital posting as another of your careful and thoughtful nature. Tbird is correct about the things I listed as being Northern Plains/Rocky Mtns influenced, but, out here, at least, they are still very much in evidence during church or other spiritual ceremonies. There are many good books, but one overall book I would recommend is The Indians' Book: Authentic Native American Legends, Lore, and Music recorded and edited by Natalie Curtis; illustrated with Native American Drawings & turn-of-the-century photographs. The drawings were all done by members of the tribes chronicled. Natalie Curtis collected the stories etc. over 100 years ago. A lot of the songs are notated with tunes. Another little gem about the Arapahoe, if you can find it, is Sky People by Tom Shakespeare. Although it is just a 70 page magazine type pub. Rooted Like the Ash Trees: New England Indians and the Land is another good general resource. It was edited by Richard G. Carlson and published by Eagle Wing Press, Inc. Naugatuck, CT in 1987. Here are some more links: I've got more if anyone is interested. Thanks, Spaw, for pointing that out. And, Tbird? At least WW and I are in the same state, so you were "spot on" about most of it.**BG** Not to worry. katlaughing/SageWalker |
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05 Dec 99 - 09:42 AM (#144918) Subject: RE: Help: Indian business for school play From: Penny S. Synchronicity rules. In the secondhand book market under the South Bank end of Waterloo Bridge, I found a book of American Indian Antiques - specifically Eastern Woodlands! It was just a few minutes between a London shopping trip and a sudden storm, and there it was. Photos of dress and artifacts, as specifically requested. Also a book of American recipes including chapters of Indian food, divided by geographic groupings, but I couldn't afford that as well. Current idea for plot, which already includes a crew member being reprimanded for jumping to conclusions about the Indians intentions, is for the Indians to offer food to the crew. |
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05 Dec 99 - 09:57 AM (#144922) Subject: RE: Help: Indian business for school play From: katlaughing Penny, that is great about the book. And your plans sounds fine. You always are so good about your research. I received this before Thanksgiving and didn't want to post it then. Wasn't sure if it fit anywhere else, but now, it seems this might be a good thread for it. I post it only to inform, NOT as any kind of criticim of anyone's programmes. There are many things to be thankful for over this upcoming Thanksgiving weekend, but "friendship" between the Pilgrims and the Indigenous Peoples in New England in the early 1600's is not one of them. Below is a document printed in "Healing Global Wounds" in the Fall of 1996, which reprinted it from "Community Endeavor News", November, 1995: The First Thanksgiving The first official Thanksgiving wasn't a festive gathering of Indians and Pilgrims, but rather a celebration of the massacre of 700 Pequot men, women and children, an anthropologist says. Due to age and illness his voice cracks as he talks about the holiday, but William B. Newell, 84, talks with force as he discusses Thanksgiving. Newell, a Penobscot, has degrees from two universities, and was the former chairman of the anthropology department at the University of Connecticut. "Thanksgiving Day was first officially proclaimed by the Governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1637 to commemorate the massacre of 700 men, women and children who were celebrating their annual green corn dance--Thanksgiving Day to them--in their own house," Newell said. "Gathered in this place of meeting they were attacked by mercenaries and Dutch and English. The Indians were ordered from the building and as they came forth they were shot down. The rest were burned alive in the building," he said. Newell based his research on studies of Holland Documents and the 13 volume Colonial Documentary History, both thick sets of letters and reports from colonial officials to their superiors and the king in England, and the private papers of Sir William Johnson, British Indian agent for the New York colony for 30 years in the mid-1600s. "My research is authentic because it is documentary," Newell said. "You can't get anything more accurate than that because it is first hand. It is not hearsay." Newell said the next 100 Thanksgivings commemorated the killing of the Indians at what is now Groton, Ct. [home of a nuclear submarine base] rather than a celebration with them. He said the image of Indians and Pilgrims sitting around a large table to celebrate Thanksgiving Day was 'fictitious' although Indians did share food with the first settlers.
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05 Dec 99 - 11:34 AM (#144945) Subject: RE: Help: Indian business for school play From: Art Thieme I would make them look like they were made of wood and standing in front of a drug store. Art |
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06 Dec 99 - 04:17 PM (#145612) Subject: RE: Help: Indian business for school play From: Penny S. Ha! Got some of those, not ten miles away. Always give me a turn. Seriously though, in the other direction we have the lost grave of Pocahontas, and I definitely want de-Disneyfied Indians. We are looking reasonable at the moment. Better headgear, and I've been able to extend the range of clothing we can adapt. Penny |
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07 Dec 99 - 11:25 AM (#146003) Subject: RE: Help: Indian business for school play From: Penny S. Thanks all for your help and references. The play has been performed successfully. Apart from the mobile phone in the audience (a child's toy - start the rudeness early). One little tale, though, you might appreciate - when the women offered the crew flat cornbread, dried berries and nuts, the ship's engineer helped himself as if he were at the salad cart at Pizza Hut, stacking things up as if he were really hungry. Which was odd, because all these items were made of folded or scrunched up tissue paper. Penny |
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07 Dec 99 - 11:42 AM (#146007) Subject: RE: Help: Indian business for school play From: Penny S. And, off the play subject, the links above are really interesting, I can use some of the information in my Children's University Astronomy course, and in my RE on different people's rules for life. Penny |
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07 Dec 99 - 01:17 PM (#146052) Subject: RE: Help: Indian business for school play From: AllisonA(Animaterra) I'm glad it was a success, Penny! check out the rudeness thread for more inspiration in that department! But this has been a learning experience for a lot of us and I thank you! Allison |