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	An Evening of Indigenous Dance Performance; Evening In Paris & Iskwew
	Raven Spirit Dance in partnership with Indigenous Performance Initiatives in association with Native Studies Department, Trent University and Peterborough New Dance presents an Evening of Indigenous Dance Performance; Evening In Paris & Iskwew (Artistic Producer Marrie Mumford), Evening in Paris (Directed by Muriel Miguel, Created by Muriel Miguel and Michelle Olson, Performed by Michelle Olson); Iskwew (Created and Performed by Geraldine Manossa). March 1, 2, 3 & 4th, 2006 8 p.m. NOZHEM: First Peoples Performance Space, Trent University Enweying: First Peoples House of Learning and Gzowski College, East Bank Trent University Tickets $10, $5 Elders, Students and Unwaged Reservations, Tickets & Info 705.748.1011 x 7466 Not Suitable for Children under 13yrs Indigenous Performance Initiatives and Raven Spirit Dance are pleased and honored to present the work of two outstanding Choreographers/Dancers. This program features the Canadian premiere of Evening in Paris by Michelle Olson and Muriel Miguel along with Iskwew by Geraldine Manossa. Each of these works explore, from a variety of perspectives, the passages and the journeys of Indigenous women past, present and future. Evening in Paris is a breathtaking new work created by Muriel Miguel and Michelle Olson. Inspired by the remarkable life of Molly Spotted Elk and the lives of our grandmothers, this dance/theatre piece uncovers and honors the complexity of Aboriginal women's experience. Like the swallows that fly far across the world to return to their home places, Evening in Paris travels this same infinite journey. It is one of remembering and forgetting, of flying far away from our selves, only to return, broken or whole, to the place that we call home. Raven Spirit Dance's Artistic Director, Michelle Olson has collaborated with founding member and Artistic Director of Spiderwoman Theatre, Muriel Miguel. This partnership brings together years of professional creativity, wisdom, talent and respect. Michelle Olson recently choreographed the 2006 NAAF Achievement Awards for Global TV and critically acclaimed Muriel Miguel is currently working on her one woman show, Red Mother. Iskwew ("woman" in the Plains Cree language) is created and performed by Geraldine Manossa and was inspired by the work of Anishinaabekwe (Ojibway) multi-media artist, Rebecca Bellmore. Iskwew explores the delicate, unspoken rhythms of womanhood. Manossa uses movement and stark metal sculptural elements to gently suggest the passages of womanhood but the central premise of the dance is much more sinister. Manossa explores her responses to the Pickton farm West Coast murders of predominantly First Nations women missing from the streets of Vancouver. The case relies heavily on DNA analysis of the remains. Iskwew examines some of the themes around this particular archaeological dig and DNA in respect to the found objects and stories embedded in the landscape. Geraldine Manossa is a member of the Bigstone Cree Nation in Northern Alberta. She completed a Master of Arts degree from the University of Lethbridge, with a specialization in the evolution of Cree Indigenous knowledge and performance and since has been writing about Indigenous performance methodologies and showcasing her work at various venues and festivals across Canada. Presently, she is an instructor at the En'owkin Centre, an educational institute dedicated to cultural arts and ecological initiatives and training. She is a recent member of the National Dance Advisory Council for Canada Council for the Arts. "I needed to portray the strength of these women. I was inspired by the strength, power, sacrifice, and endurance of our mothers, grandmothers, sisters, aunts and great grannies" Geraldine Manossa Raven Sprit Dance and Indigenous Performance Initiatives gratefully acknowledge the support of the Canada Foundation for Innovation, Department of Canadian Heritage Arts Presentation Canada, Native Studies Trent University, Peterborough New Dance, Urban ink productions fatham labs, Canada Council for the Arts and the British Columbia Arts Council. Click on the image above to download pdf of poster. Posted February 20, 2006
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An Evening of Indigenous Dance Performance; Evening In Paris & Iskwew