ZUNI, N.M. (Dec. 9, 2025) — The Zuni Youth Enrichment Project announced today that preparations are under way for the 8th Annual Delapna:we Project. Made possible with support from the First Nations Development Institute, U.S. Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), and New Mexico Behavioral Health Services Division, this innovative project brings the Zuni people’s traditional oral stories to life through the performing arts.
The Delapna:we Project is a collaboration among Zuni community members across all sectors who deeply care about the continuation and elevation of Zuni language and culture, collectively forming Ho’n A:wan Productions. To date, the partners have held two leadership meetings to plan the new season.
The 2026 live stage performances are scheduled for 6 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 13 and 1 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 15. At this month’s planning meeting, Ho’n A:wan Productions will finalize both the story and the venue.
“In our meetings, we discuss the topics we’d love to address, and that helps us select the story for the production,” explained Kiara “Kiki” Zunie, ZYEP’s youth development coordinator. “Our top four for the 2025-26 season include gratitude, determination, self-reliance, and familial relationships.”
Zuni community members of all ages are invited to Ho’n A:wan Park at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 7 to audition for roles in this year’s production. Additional auditions will be held Jan. 8 for those who were unable to attend the evening before.
The following week, all participants and their families will come together for the eagerly anticipated Delapna:we Family Night on Wednesday, Jan. 14. After a few icebreaker activities, project leaders will introduce themselves, share information about the 2026 production and featured story, and go over storytelling protocols. Families also will have an opportunity to listen to a 1960s audio recording of a Zuni elder telling the story.
“We also will make previous Delapna:we scripts available for families to read and re-enact within groups,” said Rani Yamutewa, ZYEP youth development leader. “This will give families a chance to interact with each other.”
During the evening event, the ZYEP food sovereignty team will serve a home-cooked meal of Three Sisters bison stew, oven-baked bread, and wheat berry salad with prickly pear vinaigrette. For dessert, sweet blue corn tamales are on the menu.
Then, rehearsals will begin, taking place every Sunday morning and Monday evening until showtime. Zunie said the team is hoping to make the rehearsals even more engaging this year, adding a variety of theater games and exercises.
“We want to help get participants comfortable with each other and come out of their shells a little bit,” she explained.
The team is planning to set up interactive stations throughout the rehearsal area at Ho’n A:wan Park. These might include Shiwi’ma, or Zuni language, tongue twisters as well as facial expression warm-ups, body movement exercises, and games such as What Are You Doing, Zip Zap Zop, and Space Walk.
“These interactive games help participants strengthen their voices and encourage them to animate their bodies,” Zunie said. “We also would like to incorporate more Zuni language in the way we direct and guide our participants.”
While the live showcase events are the highlights of the season, ZYEP Executive Director Tahlia Natachu-Eriacho said project leaders also hope to collaborate with KSHI, the Zuni radio station, to air some of the stories and a script read-through in order to reach even more people across the community.
The ZYEP team expects to stream the stage performances live on YouTub as well. Thanks to this streaming technology, last year’s Delapna:we Project production, “Rabbit Prays for Snow,” reached more than 650 people in the community.
Delapna:we, traditional stories, are priceless treasures for the Zuni people. After being shared and passed down for generations, they were in danger of being lost forever by the mid-20th century. Fortunately, the Doris Duke Foundation in New York provided necessary funding in the 1960s so the Zuni community could record 19 elders sharing more than 800 stories.
The recordings were housed at the Library of Congress. Later, with support from Washington, D.C., Zuni leaders brought them back to Zuni Pueblo.
Cultural educator Curtis Quam, who is curator of the A:shiwi A:wan Museum and Heritage Center in Zuni, digitized nearly 400 hours of those archived stories. He approached ZYEP in 2018 to see if there might be a way to bring the stories to life through the performing arts, which would bridge the learning gap between the elders from 60 years ago and today’s Zuni youth.
This is critical for Zuni language as well as culture. When participants engage in the Delapna:we Project’s theater workshops and rehearsals, they are learning about more than stagecraft; they also are learning about the cultural context around the stories, they are hearing the voices of the elders and they are learning and practicing the Zuni language in a safe, positive and encouraging space.
Post-Delapna:we Project surveys have revealed that approximately 75 percent of parents and guardians reported that their children spoke more Zuni at home during the project, and 90 percent of the youth said they believe speaking Zuni is important. In the surveys, all respondents said traditional Zuni stories are important to them.
To learn more about how Zuni youth feel about the Delapna:we Project experience, visit zyep.org/delapnawe-project-youth-participants/.
More information about the 2025-26 Delapna:we Project will be available in the days and weeks to come. ZYEP will share flyers and news bulletins as more details are available, and supporters also are encouraged to follow the youth project on social media for the latest updates.
To learn more about the Zuni Youth Enrichment Project and its programs, and for information about making donations, partnering with ZYEP, and volunteering, call (505) 782-8000 or visit zyep.org. And, to stay up to date on the latest news and events, follow the nonprofit youth organization on Facebook (/zuniyouthenrichmentproject), Instagram (@zuniyouthenrichmentproject), YouTube (/ZuniYouth), and TikTok (/zyep09).
Founded in 2009, the nonprofit Zuni Youth Enrichment Project is dedicated to promoting resilience among Zuni youth so they will grow into strong, healthy adults who are connected with Zuni traditions. ZYEP fulfills its mission by providing positive role models, enriching programs, and nurturing spaces that contribute to the healthy development of Zuni youth. ZYEP strives to provide every child with the encouragement and opportunities they need to reach their full potential.
