ABOUT
With support from the California Arts Council, National Endowment for the Arts, and Arts in California Parks, the Wiyot Tribe and artistic directors Michelle Hernandez and Zuzka Sabata have partnered to develop a new multimedia play:
"Wusatoumuduk: we make it burn"
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Based on the vision of Wiyot Tribe member and former Cultural Department Director Marnie Atkins this play is about the historical role fire has played in California Native land stewardship and the barriers to tribal people bringing back "good fire" to the land within settler-colonial systems of land and resource management. The play was written by an inter-tribal group with direct connections to local efforts to restore fire to the landscape.
The play centers the story of a young Wiyot woman who is learning about fire ecology in college and through her culture at the same time. With the support of her family she navigates cultural and emotional dissonances, grief, and a deeply personal relationship to fire. The play features traditional Wiyot stories told through shadow play integrated into a full length script with a cast of 5 actors.
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In June of 2024 "Wusatoumuduk: we make it burn" enjoyed a staged reading of a first draft, supported by the California Creative Corp grant of the CAC and produced by North Coast Repertory Theatre with an all native cast.
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The script was further developed thanks to funds from the NEA and in 2025 the project came under the fiscal sponsorship of Ink People for the Arts.
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In November of 2025 the project was awarded the Planning and Development grant from Arts in California Parks. These funds will support the completion of the shadow play and videography portions of the play, the set design and build, as well as the establishment of partnerships with multiple local and regional organizations engaged in prescribed and cultural fire activities.
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We aim to fully produce and tour "Wustoumuduk: we make it burn" in 2027 throughout Humboldt County, Ca. and to neighboring areas.
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Interested in bringing this play to your area or otherwise supporting the realization of this production?
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Help us spread the good word about good fire.
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