Oil pipeline court decision and one act play performance

Pending an appeal by Enbridge Energy, the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa won a significant court battle June 17 with a judge’s ruling that the oil and gas giant must remove its Line 5 pipeline from tribal land within three years and pay the band $5.2 million.

The dispute between the energy company and Native communities is the subject of WPR’s “Simply Superior” at 10 a.m. Friday, June 23. Bad River Tribal Chairman Mike Wiggins and Whitney Gravelle, president of Michigan’s Bay Mills Indian Community, spoke with WPR’s Kate Archer Kent just ahead of U.S. District Judge William Conley’s ruling. Dissecting his decision are WPR reporter Danielle Kaeding, who has long covered the case, and “Simply Superior” host Robin Washington.

Plus — Twenty years ago, a few Twin Ports theatrical impresarios tried an experiment: commissioning eight writers and eight directors to come up with eight one-act plays within 24 hours, performed by even more actors. The result, 311 plays, later are the Chicken Hat Plays, which the Rubber Chicken Theatre celebrates by staging another set this weekend. Rubber Chicken’s Brian Matuszak speaks with Washington on what to expect.