Native American Performance Comes to Waco ISD
This fall, Mahenwahdose will bring Native American music and performance to South Waco Elementary, a school that has not yet been served by the Cultural Art of Waco with a musical performance. South Waco Elementary School is a school that enrolls students from some of Waco’s poorest families who have limited exposure to the arts. Children love stories, bringing Native American stories to life through music and dance will seek to have children ask stories about their ancestors.
Mahenwahdose combines the tradition of storytelling with language, traditional flute, drum and comedy. Taught by his elders, the ancestry, language, history and traditions of his Muscogee people, founder Will Hill is a storyteller by destiny, and the performances include stories translated by Hill from the original native language and adapted for the stage. Mahenwahdose was the first company to perform at the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian before it opened in Washington, D.C. in 2004. They were chosen to represent Oklahoma with performances at Disney's EPCOT Center in Florida during the Centennial in 2007. Mahenwahdose's song, "The Trail of Tears" is part of the "Song of America" album, which was nominated for a Grammy in 2008.
Mahenwahdose, a Muscogean word meaning "True Native American Theater," is a Native American Indian performance company comprised of talented performing artists dedicated to performing accurate, educational and traditional stories of Native America. Mahenwahdose founder, Will Hill, is a full-blood Muscogee Creek and graduate of the College of Santa Fe, N.M. He is a traditional Nagonagogee Oni-yah (storyteller) in his generation and family from Alabama Corsadee. Hill told his first story at the age of 4 and has performed all over the United States, as well as appearing on television and in movies. Also performing is Jehnean Washington, a multi talented native performer and a graduate of AMDA, and Winona Henderson.
Through "Arts for All" outreach programming like Mahenwahdose, Cultural Arts of Waco fulfills its mission to champion the social and educational benefits of the arts in the Greater Waco Area. "Arts for All" means that without regard to age, race, socio-economic background, physical or mental ability, all individuals are invited to express themselves, and communicate through a variety of art mediums.
Since 2005, CAW has partnered with Waco ISD (WISD) by bringing performance arts experiences and curriculum for the district's students. The “Arts for All” outreach program serves economically disadvantaged children within the WISD system. All WISD schools are considered Title I schools, which is a designation defined by the U.S. Department of Education as a school with an "at risk" population. In Waco ISD, the total percentage of students who qualify for a free and reduced lunch is 87.87%. Each year, CAW directly serves elementary, middle or high school WISD students with performance activities, and serves 15,000 students indirectly through the WISD cable channel. Bringing arts programming to our underserved population of students in Waco ISD expands arts education opportunities for the students with exposure to the arts and arts in education beyond the traditional means of opportunities provided by the school district.