Fundraising for "The Betsy Ross Of the Bears" play
Duende Drama and Literature, the organization that produced "Gunpowder Man". Has just launched a fundraising campaign to bring our next play to Tuolumne County audiences. It's called "The Betsy Ross Of the Bears" and tells the story of Nancy Kelsey, the first US woman to cross the sierras in 1841.
Duende Drama & Literature, Inc., is a Sonora-based nonprofit theater company. The public fundraising campaign is to revive 'The Betsy Ross of the Bears,' a one-woman play about California pioneer Nancy Kelsey. The campaign will fund rehearsals, costumes, props, and regional outreach. Duende plans to be performing the play this fall.
The campaign follows the success of Duende's recent production of Gunpowder Man, which brought renewed attention to the company's mission of performing historically accurate drama in schools, theaters, and community venues across California.
The Betsy Ross of the Bears, written by Duende co-founder Rick Foster, tells the true story of Nancy Kelsey — the first American woman to cross the Sierra Nevada. Kelsey made the journey in 1841 with the Bidwell-Bartleson Party, her one-year-old daughter in her arms.
Years later, when California declared its independence from Mexico, it was cloth from her skirt that became the material for the first Bear Flag. The play last toured California in 1999, when Capital Public Radio called it "a marvelous, ambitious, insightful and original piece of work."
Actor Krista Joy Serpa has been cast in the lead role of Nancy Kelsey. The script is written and the cast is set; the production is ready to move into rehearsals, costume-making, and props as soon as funding is secured.
"'Betsy Ross' was one of our most beloved productions, and like 'Gunpowder Man' it's long overdue for re-staging," said Thomas F. Maguire, Artistic Director of Duende Drama & Literature. "Rick's history plays have always put women and cultural conflict at the center of the story, and it's always time for that."
Funds raised will cover actor, director, and stage manager fees during the rehearsal period, props and costumes, and outreach to schools and venues across the region. The play is suitable for audiences from fourth grade through adult and directly addresses multiple areas of California history, including the overland journey west, the Bear Flag Revolt, and the Mexican-American War.
Donors can give online at duendedrama.org/donate. Giving premiums start at $50 and include a ticket to the premiere performance and a signed poster by artist Gail Segerstrom.
Founded in 1998 by playwright Rick Foster and Artistic Director Thomas F. Maguire, Duende Drama & Literature has spent nearly 30 years bringing historically accurate plays to schools, theaters, national parks, and community venues across California. Filmed productions have aired nationally on PBS.
