NanaBush
NanaBush is the spirit of the trickster in Cree belief. We see this trickster take the form of many characters including Gazelle Nataways in the opening scene who has just slept with Zachary who is married. Once we learn that Zachary has been dreaming the entire play we see how the trickster has manipulated him in order to confuse him and set out chaos amongst his mind.
Misogyny
As a theme, misogyny is represented in the men loathing the fact that the women of the reservation have formed a hockey team. This is a sport traditionally seen as a man's game and by the women choosing to play it represents to them an upheaval of the value within the community of the reservation.
Dreams vs. Reality
Highway's play creates a dream landscape for a community of Indian men who sleep with one another's women and have babies they don't claim. It is a bleak picture, but this theme serves as a contrast to the message that arises in the final scene where Zachary and holds his son high up with his arms as both are naked. It has been the picture of the conceptualized idea of the Indian man, and Highway's imagery creates a demand to see the Indian man as beautiful and a loving father.
