At the Matriarchs Uprising Festival, every performance exudes talent and energy. Now in its sixth year, running from February 19 to 25, the festival focuses on Indigenous women exploring physical expression through contemporary Indigenous dance and storytelling. Each show shares a soulful story, guiding the audience to see the impact and importance of legacy, connection, and community.
Following the theme of Noojimo’idizo – she cures herself, you’ll hear tales told through movement, music, and film. Watch on in awe or participate in one of the many masterclasses, workshops, and circle conversations happening this festival season.
Photo by Erik Pinkerton
On February 22, An Evening with Raven Spirit Dance presents Confluence, a group piece featuring the Raven Spirit ensemble, and a performance by special guest Sandra Lamouche, titled 9ᓀᐦᐃᔭᐍᐏᐣ (nehi-yawewin). The performances weave together artists’ perspectives, histories, and bodies to create a somatic tapestry that speaks to the resilience of Indigenous women. As artistic director and curator of the festival, Olivia C. Davies puts it, “Raven Spirit Dance brings together the spirit of healing through connections made across land, language and the love that binds women in kinship with the natural world”. The evening will also include the dance film, KARISKIS by Tin Gamboa, which is inspired by how we cultivate the future for new generations. Planting seeds and caring for the land, this dance promises abundance for the people ahead of us.
Then on Feb 23 + 24, Barbara Kaneratonni Diabo (A’nó:wara Dance Theatre) presents What We Carry. Exploring the many accumulated experiences we carry in the bundle of body, Diabo shares the path that Diabo walks that her ancestors started, whether it be in body, mind, or spirit.
Photo by Nish Media
Presented as a double bill with What We Carry, audiences will also see Pūheke (Māori for “to flow”), a new solo work by Louise Pōtiki Bryant. Originating from her personal journey of dealing with OCD, Bryant presents this journey using movement inspired by water and atua wāhine (female deities / ancestors) from Te Ao Māori. Davies adds, “Bryant brings to the stage a new multimedia creation that is inspired by her personal story of healing a psychological disorder through movement and careful articulation of her goal to find harmony in the experience of chaos”.
Whether you watch online, attend in person or observe performances as a fellow artist and dancer, you’re sure to be captivated by the mesmerizing stories of transformation and find yourself connected to time through art, sound, and movement.
See the full schedule of performances and events here: matriarchsuprising.com
By Jaclyn Hayward
Cover Photo of Raven Spirit Dance by Erik Pinkerton
The in-person events for the festival take place at The Scotiabank Dance Centre. To get there, you can take any bus going along Granville Street, and exit on Davie Street. It’s a 3-minute walk from there!
To further plan your route, you can visit TransLink Trip Planner.