Our Mission & Vision
Our Mission
Standing Elk Collective was created to provide theatrical experience to Native Americans here in the Black Hills of South Dakota. We have a rich cultural heritage that spans generations but whenever opportunities arise to expand our skills we leave the beauty of our state to pursue work. By training and teaching the necessary skills in staged productions such as acting, lighting, set construction, or directing, we can make a difference in storytelling and keeping our ways alive for the generations to come.
Our Vision
Our Core Philosophy
1 ) Survivance, Not Just Survival
The combination of the words survival and resistance; survivance is a term that relates to the ongoing struggle and resilience of the Native American. By telling our own stories on our own terms, we can better understand ourselves and heal as a people. We move towards reclaiming our history while celebrating the humor, complexity, and resilience that allowed our ancestors to endure and continue to inspire beyond our intergenerational trauma.
2 ) The Rural-to-Urban Bridge
Talent exists both on the rez and in the city. Sometimes it feels like two separate worlds. Our work aims to bridge this gap. By gathering people from on and off these rural places we create a living, breathing entity that changes how we view each other. We want to create an accessible pipeline for budding talent, providing the training and essential stagecraft skills necessary to keep our brightest storytellers anchored in South Dakota.
3 ) Economic Justice for Artists
In the past, film crews, playwrights and the like came and paid us to star in their professional works, then they leave. But when was the last time we had our own theater? We are committed to treating theatrical production as a respected profession, ensuring that our artists, technicians, and directors are compensated for their cultural labor and artistic excellence. When we invest financially in our people, we invest in the sovereign future of our art.
4 ) Language as Medicine
Just as the sacred medicine wheel heals, so does our culture. One cannot have the culture without the language and the language without the culture. Whether it is ceremony, dance, social gatherings, or storytelling, language reverberates strongly throughout. By weaving our linguistic heritage into our scripts and rehearsal spaces, we breathe life back into our words, ensuring our ways remain a living, breathing force.