Animated Short to Open Native Dance Performance ‘Still Here’

Indigenous Enterprise, the Native American dance troupe celebrating its 10th anniversary year, returns to New York City this Fall with Still Here, a new performance running September 16–21 at The Joyce Theater. Known for bringing authentic powwow dance styles to global stages — including the Super Bowl, the Sydney Opera House and Lincoln Center — the collective’s mission is to expand the reach of Indigenous art and storytelling.

Notably, Still Here marks the group’s collaboration with filmmaker Stephanie Gumpel of documentary and animation boutique Studio Novella, who co-directs the animated short film that opens the show. Combining oral tradition with visual storytelling, the short anchors the first half of the performance. Gumpel’s work — seen in LA Times features and on projects for ShadowMachine (Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio, BoJack Horseman) — blends with the performance’s themes of legacy and identity.

Still Here is described as, at its core, a tribute to resilience. Through a mix of champion dancers, live powwow drumming and singing and animated storytelling, the show reflects on cultural memory, intergenerational knowledge and Native joy. Framed around the relationship between a grandfather and his grandson, the performance weaves personal narrative with collective history, reminding audiences: Indigenous culture is not a relic of the past, but a living heritage.

Tickets are now available at joyce.org.