Billie (Part of the Oklahoma Cycle)

by Tara Moses

Billie girls don't doubt themselves when it comes to love. In 1950, Billie Starr meets Charles Tiger, the love of her life, outside a bus station during a road trip to Oklahoma City from Seminole Nation - and she doesn't waste a single moment. We see the soulmates still happily in love 58 years later in 2008 as Charles tends to Billie while she is in home hospice care for advanced kidney cancer. Paralleling...

Billie girls don't doubt themselves when it comes to love. In 1950, Billie Starr meets Charles Tiger, the love of her life, outside a bus station during a road trip to Oklahoma City from Seminole Nation - and she doesn't waste a single moment. We see the soulmates still happily in love 58 years later in 2008 as Charles tends to Billie while she is in home hospice care for advanced kidney cancer. Paralleling their love story is another: Billie's granddaughter who shares her names and her unapologetic attitude towards love, Billie Cloud-Harjo. In 2005, Billie Cloud-Harjo and best friend Vanessa Lowe have some realizations - they've been in love with each other for years and both been too chicken to do something about it. Being a young queer couple in Oklahoma during 2005 comes with its fair share of challenges, but ultimately those challenges aren't the biggest problems they have. By 2008, granddaughter Billie is no longer talking to Vanessa - and there's nothing her loving grandparents can do to change her mind. But is everything exactly as it seems? A multi-generational story about unconditional love and trusting spirit spanning 58 years, Billie is the third play in the Oklahoma Cycle.

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Billie (Part of the Oklahoma Cycle)

Recommended by

  • Blyss Cleveland: Billie (Part of the Oklahoma Cycle) by Tara Moses
    “

    "Billie" is a beautiful multigenerational love story that centers on a Native American family in Oklahoma. The play uses multiple timelines to great effect and shows how the love of one's family can be transformative and carry individuals through difficult times. I loved reading this and can't wait to see a full production!

    "Billie" is a beautiful multigenerational love story that centers on a Native American family in Oklahoma. The play uses multiple timelines to great effect and shows how the love of one's family can be transformative and carry individuals through difficult times. I loved reading this and can't wait to see a full production!

    ”
  • Red Theater: Billie (Part of the Oklahoma Cycle) by Tara Moses
    “

    BILLIE is everything you want in a love story: sensuality, confidence, grief, humor, self acceptance. It's a beautiful example of a play's capacity to choose intentional windows of time to bring to life that provide larger context for lives fully lived. Can't wait to read the rest of the Oklahoma cycle!

    BILLIE is everything you want in a love story: sensuality, confidence, grief, humor, self acceptance. It's a beautiful example of a play's capacity to choose intentional windows of time to bring to life that provide larger context for lives fully lived. Can't wait to read the rest of the Oklahoma cycle!

    ”
  • Shaun Leisher: Billie (Part of the Oklahoma Cycle) by Tara Moses
    “

    I really, really loved this play. I loved how Moses refuses to drown her play in trauma and pain. She tells an authentic story of her culture that defies stereotypes and tropes. The way these love stories flow into each other across time was absolutely brilliant. Moses masterfully keeps all these timelines distinct while also finding ways to blend them together. I loved that this is also a beautiful queer love story that is told with such care and nuance. These are such rich roles for Native actors.

    I really, really loved this play. I loved how Moses refuses to drown her play in trauma and pain. She tells an authentic story of her culture that defies stereotypes and tropes. The way these love stories flow into each other across time was absolutely brilliant. Moses masterfully keeps all these timelines distinct while also finding ways to blend them together. I loved that this is also a beautiful queer love story that is told with such care and nuance. These are such rich roles for Native actors.

    ”
View all 5 recommendations

Character Information

All roles must be played by Native American actors.
  • Billie Starr
    BILLIE STARR (BILLIE), a 78-year-old Seminole and Mvskoke woman. She is the matriarch of the family.
    70s
    Indigenous/Native American/First Nations,
    Indigenous/Native American/First Nations -- Alaskan Native
    Female
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      50s,
      60s,
      70s+
    • Actor Race/Ethnic Identity
      Indigenous, First Nation, or Native American
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Woman
  • Young Billie Starr
    YOUNG BILLIE STARR (YOUNG BILLIE), a 20-year-old Seminole and Mvskoke woman.
    Early 20a
    Indigenous/Native American/First Nations,
    Indigenous/Native American/First Nations -- Alaskan Native
    Female
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      20s,
      30s
    • Actor Race/Ethnic Identity
      Indigenous, First Nation, or Native American
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Woman
  • Charles Tiger
    CHARLES TIGER (CHARLES), an 80-year-old Seminole man. This role also plays the OFFICIANT.
    70s
    Indigenous/Native American/First Nations,
    Indigenous/Native American/First Nations -- Alaskan Native
    Male
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      50s,
      60s,
      70s+
    • Actor Race/Ethnic Identity
      Indigenous, First Nation, or Native American
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Man
  • Young Charles Tiger
    YOUNG CHARLES TIGER (YOUNG CHARLES), a 22-year-old Seminole man.
    20s
    Indigenous/Native American/First Nations,
    Indigenous/Native American/First Nations -- Alaskan Native
    Male
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      20s,
      30s
    • Actor Race/Ethnic Identity
      Indigenous, First Nation, or Native American
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Man
  • Billie Cloud-Harjo
    BILLIE CLOUD-HARJO (BILLIE C.H.), a 21-year-old Seminole and Mvskoke woman. She is the granddaughter of BILLIE STARR. We also see her as an 18-year-old.
    18-21
    Indigenous/Native American/First Nations,
    Indigenous/Native American/First Nations -- Alaskan Native
    Female
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      Teens,
      20s,
      30s
    • Actor Race/Ethnic Identity
      Indigenous, First Nation, or Native American
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Woman,
      Non-binary
  • Vanessa Lowe
    VANESSA LOWE, a 21-year-old Seminole and Mvskoke woman. We also see her as an 18-year-old. This role also voices the RADIO and SPORTS CASTER.
    18-21
    Indigenous/Native American/First Nations,
    Indigenous/Native American/First Nations -- Alaskan Native
    Female,
    Femme,
    Two-Spirit
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      Teens,
      20s,
      30s
    • Actor Race/Ethnic Identity
      Indigenous, First Nation, or Native American
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Woman,
      Non-binary

Development History