Iroquois Museum Presents – The Mush Hole: Truth, Acknowledgement, Resilience

The Iroquois Museum presents The Mush Hole: Truth, Acknowledgement, Resilience, a contemporary dance performance by Kaha:wi Dance Theatre at University of Albany Performing Arts Center. This award-winning performance is a moving composition inspired by the residential school experience at Six Nations Reserve. For nearly 15 decades The Mohawk Institute (aka The Mush Hole) strove to forcefully assimilate native children into Euro-Christian society and sever the transfer of culture from parent to child. Run in military fashion, students experienced a range of abuses including sexual, food deprivation, and corporeal punishment. Created from survivors' testimonials and featuring an all-Indigenous cast, the Mush Hole is a story about truth, hope and finding light in dark places. This award-winning performance will take place at the University of Albany Performing Arts Center, 1400 Washington Ave, Albany, NY, 12222. This will mark the first time this compelling piece will be performed in the Capital Region. 7:30 pm. No admission charge. Performance made possible through a grant from the Institute of Museum & Library Services. The Mush Hole is a component of the Iroquois Museum's 2024 feature exhibit, Outside the Box. For information about the Mush Hole and other upcoming programs, please visit http://www.iroquoismuseum.org or 518.296.8949.

Founded by Artistic Director Santee Smith, Kaha:wi (Ga-HA-Wee) means "to carry" in the Kanien'kéha (Mohawk) language and is a traditional name for Smith's family. Operating as an artist-run sole proprietorship since 2001, KDT incorporated into a not-for-profit in June 2005 and received charitable status in 2006. The company's home community is Six Nations of the Grand River and home city is Toronto, Ontario. KDT carves space for Indigenous audiences to witness themselves, their story's, body and voice, a very rare occurrence in the performing arts. For non-Indigenous audiences, KDT's performances offer counter-narratives and insight into culture not represented in mainstream narratives. Kaha:wi operates with support from the Canada Council on the Arts and the Toronto and Ontario Arts Councils.

The Iroquois Museum is an independent nonprofit located in Schoharie County, 45 minutes west of Albany, NY. Founded in 1981, the Museum offers a window into Haudenosaunee/Iroquois culture and history through archaeology and the visual and performing arts. The 7,300 square-foot facility maintains and interprets one of the largest and most comprehensive collections of contemporary Iroquois art worldwide. Housed in a state-of-the-art building inspired by the traditional Haudenosaunee longhouse, the Museum features changing and permanent exhibits, an interactive area, classroom, gift shop, and 500-seat outdoor amphitheater. Artist demos, workshops, presentations, and special events are programmed April through November.