Style Weekly: Talking Turkey

*Otto Konrad, Paul Dandridge, Laine Satterfield and Anna Starnes Blair in “The Thanksgiving Play,” running Nov. 10-19 at Virginia Repertory Theatre. Photos by Scott Elmquist.*

Originally published by Style Weekly
by David Timberline
November 8, 2023

Cadence offers wry take on “wokeness” and a chance for dialogue with “The Thanksgiving Play.”

In the casting note for “The Thanksgiving Play,” the playwright Larissa FastHorse states that “POC (people of color) who can pass as white should be considered for all characters.”

The play tells the story of performatively progressive teachers creating an elementary school pageant that seeks to “lift up” the Native American point of view, with hilariously disastrous results. It was one of the most-produced new works in the country after its off-Broadway debut in 2018.

When Anna Senechel Johnson, the director of Cadence Theatre’s upcoming production of the play, posted FastHorse’s casting note on Facebook as part of the audition process, drama ensued.

“We ended up taking the post down and just saying ‘if you feel like you would be comfortable playing this role, we encourage you to read the script,’” says Johnson. “It was tricky. I think the word ‘passing’ can be very hurtful to people of color these days.”

“I know that [FastHorse’s] intention is not to exclude but this particular play will not work unless the characters are perceived as being white people.”

The social media firestorm had at least one positive impact: a local educator, Dana Johnson, who happens to be a member of the Sappony Tribe, jumped into the conversation in support of Anna Johnson. Dana and her daughter, Eden, had seen the play when it moved to Broadway earlier this year. They had a passion for seeing the play done in Richmond as well as firsthand understanding of the experience of Indigenous individuals.

“There were a bunch of people who started ripping Anna to shreds about the notice, which she took straight from Broadway,” says Dana. “They were speaking for Indigenous people and people of color but they were all white people.”

“They were saying ‘no one uses that term’ and I had to pipe up and say, ‘actually, we use it quite often,’” Dana continues. “Both my parents are Sappony but my daughter’s father is Caucasian so she will say that she’s white-passing Indigenous.”

The irony is that the play that prompted the controversy is all about white people clueless about Indigenous culture who don’t consult actual Indigenous people. The show gives the audience permission to laugh about the situation.

“It’s absolutely hilarious,” says Dana. “You’re seeing heavy themes but it's done in a very entertaining way. It’s a joyous show but it gives you a lot to think about.”

“I'll be walking around just laughing, thinking about rehearsal,” says Anna. “[The play] is very funny and has a ton of heart to it, too. It really makes you think about how crazy it is, especially in America, how we have glamorized holidays.”

Anna, who is also the artistic director for Cadence, says she chooses to direct a production only when she feels like she will learn something from the experience. “[This show] has helped me gain a lot of empathy for the Indigenous people in our community,” she says. “It's really made me step back and reflect about how much more I need to learn.”

There will also be an opportunity for the audience to learn more after the show thanks to a talkback panel after one of the performances that will be run by Dana and her daughter.

“I suggested that it might be nice to have people hear voices of Indigenous people in addition to the people putting on the play,” says Dana. She hopes both the play and the panel prompts more direct communication between different groups of people.

“We need to talk directly to people from different cultures,” says Dana. “We need to truly understand their experiences in order to create art or literature or even educational instruction that adequately portrays their experience.”

“The Thanksgiving Play” runs Nov. 10-19 on the Theatre Gym stage at Virginia Repertory Theatre, 114 W. Broad St. There will be a talkback panel after the Nov. 12 performance. Tickets and information available here.