“Indians” a Play by Arthur Kopit Presented at the University of South Dakota in 1970

Theatre at the University of South Dakota (USD) has a long history involving student clubs, academic units, and the Black Hills Playhouse. The USD theatre program educates students in skills needed for acting and behind the scenes activities such as costume, set, and prop design and production. Students also learn about play writing, and the history of theatre. USD’s plays often challenge contemporary social norms. In the United States, the late 1960s to 1970s were times of activism with several groups protesting civil rights violations of African Americans, Native Americans, and the government’s long involvement in the Vietnam war. During the late 1960s Arthur Kopit wrote the play “Indians”, in it he highlights the experiences of Native Americans in South Dakota from 1868 until the Massacre at Wounded Knee on December 25, 1890. The play was first performed in 1968 in London and then markedly rewritten for its American debut at the Arena Stage in Washington, DC in 1969 and later that year previewed on Broadway. In 1970, the University of South Dakota Theatre Department presented the play. Although actors were not Native American students, the theatre department sought guidance from two Lakota scholars, Clyde Dollar and Dr. John Sigstad about the culture of and beliefs held by Lakota people to make the play as accurate as possible. The USD production was well received and toured several cities in South Dakota ending its tour in Saint Paul, Minnesota at the American College Theatre Festival. The University of South Dakota presentation of “Indians” was chosen as one of the top 25 out of 283 entrants that year and won the regional award. Cover of the playbill for “Indians. USD Archives and Special Collections. Theatre programs (Box 4); “Indians” file.