Presented in Partnership with PuSh Festival
Get TicketsScotiabank Dance Centre
677 Davie St, Vancouver, BC
The Faris Family Studio (Black Box Theatre)
Level 1
$20 – $40 (Pay What You Wish)
Wolastoq and Quebecois artist Ivanie Aubin-Malo takes us on a journey through dance, music, and song into a reimagined tale, invoking the Giants, entities from the oral traditions of the Wabanaki peoples. A captivating performance brought to the stage with violinist Julian Rice (Mi’kmaq et Kanien’keha:ka), this creation transports us on a fascinating journey through the oral, sung, and danced traditions of the Wabanaki peoples. Wahsipekuk: Au-delà des montagnes is a leap into the invisible space of dreams, an attempt to reconnect and continue the transmission of knowledge. This project, co-initiated by Ivanie Aubin-Malo and Natasha Kanapé Fontaine in 2020, invites the audience to experience a vibrant celebration where the past and present meet. *Special Opening Address and Performance by Spakwus Slolem of the Squamish Nation.
double bill
Scotiabank Dance Centre
677 Davie St, Vancouver, BC
The Faris Family Studio (Black Box Theatre)
Level 1
$20-$40 (Pay What You Wish)
An old ancestor and a new ancestor exchange experience and tradition as they pass each other on their journeys out of and into this world. Passing through the portals, they dream of timelines bridging and uniting to bring about a new vision of their shared future. Created and performed by World Champion hoop dancer, Beany John, and Contemporary dancer, choreographer and musician, Sophie Dow, carriers and keepers of the ancestral portals is a high energy duet weaving together their Taino-Cree (John) & Michif (Dow) cultures into an enticing exchange of Hoop Dance, Métis Jigging and Contemporary choreography.
Fire ignites, grows, burns, and devours. Once it decays, what destruction does it leave behind? How does the earth regrow out of the ashes? ʔa·kinq̓uku, the word for fire in the Ktunaxa Language, is the choreographer’s expression of the life cycle of a BC wildfire, and the subsequent regrowth that follows. Created and performed by Samantha Sutherland, (Ktunaxa), the solo is inspired by the wildfire that burned through Sutherland’s home community of ʔaq̓am in the summer of 2023.
Photo taken at Morrow through venue sponsorship by Odd Meridian Arts
Presented in Partnership with Odd Meridian Arts
Get TicketsMorrow
910 Richards St, Unit 204
Vancouver, BC
By donation
Remembering Our Return Home is a scored improvisational performance weaving spoken word poetry, dance, and sacred objects brought to life by the performers. Now in its fourth year, the intergenerational performance collective includes Coast Salish storyteller and historian, Rosemary Georgeson; Anishinaabe Elder and artist, Sharon Jinkerson-Brass; Vuntut Gwitchin spoken word artist, Melissa Matheson-Frost; DTES long-time artist and founder of Vancouver Moving Theatre, Savannah Walling along with dance artists Sophie Dow, Rianne Svelñis, Ziyian Kwan and Olivia C. Davies.
double bill
NEW! Post-show Talkback with artists, hosted by Olivia C. Davies
Get TicketsScotiabank Dance Centre
677 Davie St, Vancouver, BC
The Faris Family Studio (Black Box Theatre)
Level 1
$20 – $40 (Pay What You Wish)
Created and performed by Sandra Lamouche, ‘Out of Wounds’ is inspired by the choreographer’s experience of discovering the diamond willow fungus, waukimusigan, and how her connection with the traditional Cree plant medicine helped ease her anxiety. In this solo, Lamouche taps into her ancestral blood memory, activating the spiral path of ‘Nitohnahk Miyo Pimadisiwin’ which translates from Cree to English to mean, ‘Seeking a Good Life’.
Australian choreographer Amelia Jean O’Leary describes ‘Ngambaa’ (Mother in Gamilaraay) as a duo dance work told through the Gamilaraay legend of the emu sisters. After going through the fire, they return as spirits who time travel to two generations of women to protect and guide them. From the ashes, both sisters transcend time and space, journeying across generations to witness two yinarrs (Gamilaroi women) living in the 1960s and in 2025. These yinarrs, act as descendants of their legacy and navigate disconnection and resilience, and rediscover the power of Ngambaa, the Mother, and the strength found in care, renewal, and community.
Studio showing of new work in development
Get TicketsScotiabank Dance Centre
677 Davie St, Vancouver, BC
The Birmingham Studio
Level 3
By donation
Where did you go? is a new solo work by Indigenous choreographer and Raven Spirit Dance co-artistic director, Michelle Olson and directed by Salome Nieto. The piece sits in the unravelling losses that are close to one’s heart. By asking, where did you go, Olson maps out a physical and metaphorical process of grief finding its way to hope.
Scotiabank Dance Centre
677 Davie St, Vancouver, BC
The Faris Family Studio (Black Box Theatre)
Level 1
$20-$40 (Pay What You Wish)
Choreographed by Olivia Adams (Wulli Wulli) and featuring the artwork of her sister, Arabella Walker (Wulli Wulli), Matriarchs is an intimate and mesmerizing contemporary dance work reflecting on the lived histories of First Nations women. A celebration of identity through the stories of our Matriarchs; Mothers, Aunties, Grandmothers, Great Grandmothers, witness these Wulli Wulli sisters retrace country to reconnect with their Matrilineal bloodlines.
Scotiabank Dance Centre
677 Davie St, Vancouver, BC
Judith Marcuse Studio
Level 7
Admission included with purchase of ticket to Friday night program / by donation $10
Join us for our festival closing reception party with live music by Tsimka and Michael Red. Their music blends electronic soundscapes with Tsimka's vocals and drumming, often incorporating field recordings of natural sounds (e.g., breaking ice, ocean waves, frogs) from her traditional Tla-o-qui-aht territories. 19+. Admission included with purchase of a ticket for the evening performance OR suggested donation $10.
