DeLanna Studi

Presented in partnership with the American Indian and Indigenous Community Center

DeLanna Studi dreamed of following the footsteps her ancestors were forced to travel along the Trail of Tears. In 2015 the Cherokee actor, writer, and activist embarked on a six-week journey to retrace the path her great-great-grandparents took in the 1830s when they were forced to relocate from their homelands with more than 17,000 Cherokee people. And So We Walked is a powerful one-woman show that recounts Studi’s incredible 900-mile journey to truly understand her own identity and the conflicts of her nation.

Studi performed excerpts of the piece last fall during a virtual performance for the Moss Arts Center’s HomeStage series, which included a conversation with Mae Hey, assistant professor of American Indian Studies at Virginia Tech. She also participated in virtual discussions with Native students at Virginia Tech.

Now Studi performs the full play live on the Anne and Ellen Fife Theatre stage, with four performances presented in celebration of Indigenous Peoples’ Day. Portraying multiple characters and incorporating humor and emotional touchpoints, Studi blazes a path squarely into the heart of the audience member.

"It isn’t just my story about my journey," said Studi. "It is a Cherokee story, one that transcends my own personal identity and experiences. It belongs to the Cherokee people, past and present; to the Cherokee Nation in Oklahoma and Eastern Band of Cherokee in North Carolina; and to the dozens of people across the country who helped me complete this project."

Originally from Liberty, Oklahoma, Studi is a proud citizen of the Cherokee Nation. She has originated roles in more than 18 world premieres, including 14 Native productions, and she has received numerous awards for her performances in the Hallmark/ABC mini-series Dreamkeeper and Chris Eyre’s Edge of America. She is co-artistic director of America’s only equity Native American theatre company, Native Voices at the Autry.

Studi serves as chair of SAG-AFTRA’s National Native Committee, which has, under her leadership, produced an award-winning film about American Indians in the entertainment industry and created a “Business of Acting” workshop that tours Indian Country. Studi was the winner of the 2016 Butcher Scholar Award from the Autry Museum of the American West. She mentors for the Mentor Artist Playwright Program, Young Native Playwrights, and American Indian Film Institute’s Tribal Touring Program. Her artist-in-residencies include the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the University of Wisconsin (where she co-taught Native American Oral Histories and Storytelling and American Indians in Film), and Brown University. And So We Walked is Studi’s first play.

These performances are supported in part by gifts from Mr. Bruce Prichard and Mrs. Nancy Beville Prichard and Larry and Lindsay Bowman.

This performance available in person only. There will be no livestream option.