Bowwow Powwow
September 16 – 27, 2026
Adapted by Benay McNamara and Blossom Johnson
From the book by Brenda Child, Bowwow Powwow © 2018
Illustrations by Jonathan Thunder
Translation by Gordon Jourdain
Music by Bizhiki and Keith Secola
In collaboration with Mni Giizhik Theatre Ensemble
A powwow ‘tail’ for the ages.
Windy Girl is blessed with a vivid imagination. When she falls asleep under the stars, her Uncle’s stories of powwows burst into magical visions—where dancers, drummers, and the whole celebration transform in delightful and unexpected ways. In collaboration with the Mni Giizhik Theatre Ensemble, Benay McNamara, and Blossom Johnson bring the childhood wonder of the powwow to life in this vibrant stage adaptation. Brenda Child’s Bowwow Powwow is a 2020 American Indian Youth Literature Award winner, listed among the 2019 ALA Notable Children’s Books, and the American Indians in Children’s Literature Best Books of 2018.
Recommended for: All Ages
Location: Jaycees Studio Theatre
Show Run Time: 50 Minutes
Resource Guide: Coming soon!
A collaboration with:
Mni Giizhik Theatre Ensemble is a newly formed theater company that brings together three active, accomplished Native theatre professionals Adrienne Zimiga-January (Oglala Lakota), Sequoia Hauck (White Earth Anishinaabe/Hupa), and Sara Pillatzki-Warzeha (Sisseton-Wahpeton Dakota) working in a collaborative leadership model that honors the circle of our communities. The company celebrates the stories specificity in Mni Sota Makoce while making our productions accessible and nurturing to Native audiences in the Twin Cities and throughout Indian country in the midwest region. Our name – Mni Giizhik – which translates in English to Cedar Water is reflective of our drive to bring together and celebrate our respective cultures. Mni from the Dakota/Lakota word for water, and giizhik from the Anishinaabe word for cedar, is evocative of the living, changing, and healing properties of live performance. We strive to work within the values of relationality, ethical creative practice, humility, and commitment to our community.
Bowwow Powwow is produced with permission of the author, Brenda Child, and the Minnesota Historical Society.
Show Calendar
Single Ticket Prices
- Ages 2-17: $20
- Ages 60+: $20
- Adults: $22
- Lap pass age 3 and under: $5
*All listed pricing includes processing fees.
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Videos
Learn more about the show
Photos
Publicity Photos by Amy Rondeau Photography
Music
Preview songs from the show!
The Creative Team
- PLAYWRIGHT – Benay McNamara
- PLAYWRIGHT – Blossom Johnson
- AUTHOR – Brenda J. Child
- DIRECTOR – Sara Pillatzki-Warzeha
- MUSIC – Bizhiki
- COLLABORATOR – Mni Giizhik Theatre Ensemble
Check back closer to Opening Night for a complete list!
Creative Team Bios
Benay McNamara
Playwright
Benay McNamara – Benay is Red Lake Ojibwe from St. Paul and teaches art and Ojibwe language in Minneapolis. She was raised in the Twin Cities theatre community and is an alum of the Saint Paul Conservatory for Performing Artists. Her work is grounded in a deep commitment to storytelling, shaped by her background in theatre, ceramic sculpture, and language.
This marks her debut as a playwright. She draws inspiration from her everyday life, including her dog, Ricky Baker. Her mother is the author of Bowwow Powwow
Blossom Johnson
Playwright
Blossom Johnson – Blossom Johnson is Yé’ii Dine’é Táchii’nii, and her maternal grandfather is Deeshchíí’nii. Her plays have been developed and presented by Bag&Baggage and Native Performing Arts Network, Alternative Theater Ensemble, La Lengua, Mixed Blood Theater, Durango PlayFest, and New Native Theatre. She has been supported by FPF Cultural Capital Fellowship, The Playwrights’ Center’s Jerome Fellowship, UC Berkeley’s Arts Research Center, and the Minnesota State Arts Board. She is currently the Education & Engagement Associate at the Guthrie Theater. She is a 2025 Jerome Hill Artist Fellow and thrilled to announce she is a Democracy Cycle 2025 recipient with Daniel Leeman-Smith. She is honored to co-write an adaptation of Bowwow Powwow with Benay McNamara and collaborate with an amazing team at Stages. www.blossomjohnson.com
Brenda Child
Author
Brenda J. Child – (Red Lake Ojibwe) is a Guggenheim Fellow and the Northrop Professor of American Studies at the University of Minnesota, where she received the President’s Community Engaged Scholar Award. She is the author of many award-winning books of American Indian history, and the best-selling book for children, Bowwow Powwow (2018) and the follow up, Blue Bearies (2026).
Sara Pillatzki-Warzeha
Director
Sara Pillatzki-Warzeha – Dr. Sara Pillatzki-Warzeha is a theatre director, scholar, and educator. She is a co-founder of Mni Giizhik Theatre Ensemble along with Adrienne Zimiga-January and Sequoia Hauck. Sara’s directing work has been seen across the Twin Cities with the Jungle Theatre, Full Circle Theatre, Stages Theatre Company, Minneapolis Musical Theatre, Guthrie Theatre, and others. Favorite directing credits include High Fidelity the Musical (Minneapolis Musical Theatre), 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee (St. Olaf College), Fly By Night (Northern Fort Playhouse), SIXPACK (Jungle Theatre), and Men on Boats (UMN). Sara holds a PhD in Theatre Historiography from the University of Minnesota. Her research focuses on intercultural collaborations between Indigenous artists and PWIs. In addition to her directing work, Sara serves on the Native Advisory Council at the Guthrie Theatre and has worked as an Indigenous consultant, advocate, and scholar with organizations such as the Jungle Theatre, the Stratford Festival, Native Voices, History Theatre, New Harlem, and UMN. She is an enrolled member of the Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate from the Big Coulee District and currently teaches in the Theater Department at St. Olaf College.
Bizhiki
Music
Bizhiki – Bizhiki is a Wisconsin-based band that fuses traditional Ojibwe songs into an expanded musical palette. The music of Bizhiki blends the ethereal vocals and visceral drumming of Dylan Bizhikiins Jennings ( Bad River Ojibwe) and Joe Rainey Sr. (Red Lake Ojibwe) with contemporary soundscape multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and producer S. Carey.
Mni Giizhik Theatre Ensemble
Collaborator
Mni Giizhik Theatre Ensemble – Mni Giizhik Theatre Ensemble is a newly formed theater company that brings together three active, accomplished Native theatre professionals Adrienne Zimiga-January (Oglala Lakota), Sequoia Hauck (White Earth Anishinaabe/Hupa), and Sara Pillatzki-Warzeha (Sisseton-Wahpeton Dakota) working in a collaborative leadership model that honors the circle of our communities. The company celebrates the stories specificity in Mni Sota Makoce while making our productions accessible and nurturing to Native audiences in the Twin Cities and throughout Indian country in the midwest region. Our name – Mni Giizhik – which translates in English to Cedar Water is reflective of our drive to bring together and celebrate our respective cultures. Mni from the Dakota/Lakota word for water, and giizhik from the Anishinaabe word for cedar, is evocative of the living, changing, and healing properties of live performance. We strive to work within the values of relationality, ethical creative practice, humility, and commitment to our community.
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