Sovereignty
Written by Mary Kathryn Nagle

Directed by Caroline Dunn
https://www.threebonetheatre.com/events/2526/sovereignty

Starring
Nathan Ahlgrim* is Mitch/Samuel Worcester
Lance Claymore* is John Ridge
Ryan Dunn* is Chorus Man
Marco Fuller* is Major Ridge/Rodger Ridge Polson
Mvnte July* is John Ross/Jim Ross
Keely Kidwell* is Sarah Bird Northrup/Flora Ridge
Billie Merritt* is Sarah Ridge Polson
Josh Orsi* is Elias Boudinot/Watie
Kyle Riggs* is Andrew Jackson/Ben
*denotes Three Bone Theatre debut

August 21-September 6, 2026
Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays at 7:30 p.m.
Sundays at 2 p.m.​

Performances will be held at
Arts Factory
1545 W. Trade St

About the Show
In present-day Oklahoma, a young Cherokee lawyer, Sarah Ridge Polson, and her colleague Jim Ross defend the inherent jurisdiction of the Cherokee Nation in the U.S. Supreme Court when a non-Indian defendant challenges the Nation’s authority to prosecute non-Indian perpetrators of domestic violence. Their collaboration is juxtaposed with scenes from 1835, when the Cherokee Nation was eight hundred miles to the east in the southern Appalachians. That year, Sarah’s and Jim’s ancestors, historic Cherokee rivals, were bitterly divided over a proposed treaty with the administration of Andrew Jackson, the Treaty of New Echota, which led to the nation’s removal to Oklahoma on the infamous Trail of Tears.
A direct descendant of nineteenth-century Cherokee leaders John Ridge and Major Ridge, Mary Kathryn Nagle has penned a play that twists and turns from violent outbursts to healing monologues, illuminating a provocative double meaning for the sovereignty of both tribal territory and women’s bodies. Taking as its point of departure the story of one lawyer’s passionate defense of the rights of her people to prosecute non-natives who commit crimes on reservations, Sovereignty opens up into an expansive exploration of the circular continuity of history, human memory, and the power of human relationships.

Community Partner Organizations: Safe Alliance, Museum of the Cherokee People

""One of the most necessary plays ever written." - TRIBAL COLLEGE: JOURNAL OF AMERICAN INDIAN HIGHER EDUCATION

“Fundamental and revelatory.” -GLORIA STEINEM

“The parallels between the past and present in this play are beautiful and heart-wrenching, often at the same time. It unpacks this world of dualities—Cherokee and White, past and future, Ross and Ridge. It’s an amazing journey. ” - MARYLAND THEATER GUIDEå