Show Information
October 15 - November 10
Upperstage
Tickets start at $25
About the Play
And So We Walked: An Artist's Journey Along the Trail of Tears
created & performed by DeLanna Studi
directed by Corey Madden
October 15 - November 10, 2019
inspiring personal quest
Join Cherokee actor and artist DeLanna Studi as she explores her personal and cultural identity while traveling the Trail of Tears with her father—and her family spirits. This one-woman play probes the complexities and conflicts that the Cherokee Nation still wrestles with today, almost 200 years after their forced relocation. Past and present intertwine with dreams, history, and legend in this frank and moving memoir of doubt and discovery.
APPROXIMATE RUN TIME: 2 hours and 30 minutes, including a 15-minute intermission
And So We Walked: An Artist’s Journey Along the Trail of Tears is an inspiring drama that contains mild language and adult situations including references to addiction and the mass genocide of indigenous people. Recommended for patrons 7th grade and above.
Artistic Note:
"Four years ago, my father and I embarked on a journey of a lifetime—retracing our family's footsteps of their forced removal from our original homelands in North Carolina to our current home in Oklahoma. When I began writing And So We Walked, it read more like a travel log. It wasn't personal. I was terrified to confront the impact the Trail of Tears has on my family today. Only when I became more specific did the story become universal and relatable. In the end, And So We Walked is a story of trauma, loss, resilience, and most importantly, hope. Yes, it was challenging writing such a personal story that highlights all my failures and shortcomings, but it's these flaws that make us human; thus putting a human face on an often forgotten part of our shared American history." –DeLanna Studi, Creator and Performer
ACKNOWLEDGING THE LAND
READ THE PROGRAM
While we do not have a designated Sensory Friendly performance for this production, we do create Sensory Friendly materials for every show in our season. Below is the Sensory Friendly Guide for And So We Walked: An Artist's Journey Along the Trail of Tears (contains spoilers!)
sensory friendly guide
And So We Walked: An Artist’s Journey Along the Trail of Tears is part of our new INclusion Series celebrating diverse storytelling. This series features work by female playwrights on the Native American, African American, and Chinese American experience. The full series consists of And So We Walked: An Artist’s Journey Along the Trail of Tears, The Watsons Go to Birmingham—1963 and The Paper Dreams of Harry Chin.
Multimedia




Cast Members

Creator & Performer