Honouring Indigenous stories, song, and dance from across Canada and around the world, the 17th annual Coastal Dance Festival presented by Dancers of Damelahamid comes to the Anvil Centre, March 1st – 3rd
This year’s festival will feature an exclusive excerpt from Dancers of Damelahamid’s upcoming full-length work, Raven Mother, created in honour of the late Elder Margaret Harris, co-founder of Dancers of Damelahamid in 1967. The culmination of generations of artistic and cultural work, Raven Mother is the group’s most ambitious production to date.
“My mother, Elder Harris, dedicated her life to the revitalization and teaching of Indigenous cultural practices, including song, dance, stories, and regalia making,” says Margaret Grenier, Festival Executive & Artistic Director. “This new work speaks to her indelible legacy and the integral role of women in holding cultural knowledge. Through her profound leadership, a cultural resurgence was awakened, marking the shift between generations that has sparked a new role for our daughters as the force to hold their grandmother’s vision.”
The excerpt will showcase a striking and intricate new raven transformation mask to represent the work’s generational collaboration, with the larger raven opening up to reveal several smaller interconnected human faces inside – each mask representing a generation of daughters inspired by their matriarch, Elder Harris. Also featured is a raven cloak made of feathers, designed by Dancers of Damelahamid performer and regalia designer Rebecca Baker-Grenier. A traditional Gitxsan piece of regalia, this type of cloak has not been danced for many generations.
Dancers of Damelahamid will be joined at the 17th annual Coastal Dance Festival by a host of the festival’s signature artists and performance groups, including returning favourites from around the region as well as special guests, including Saskatchewan’s award-winning Métis fiddler Adam Daigneault, and M?ori artist Karena Koria.
This year’s programming represents the spirit of Elder Harris’ legacy – the support and celebration of the ongoing artistic practice of the songs, dances, and stories from Indigenous communities across British Columbia, Canada, and the world.
Adds Grenier: “Cultivating a caring community has always been at the core of the Coastal Dance Festival’s values and is more important than ever in the aftermath of the pandemic, from which the forced disruption of cultural practices is still impacting communities today. Artistic practices shape the cultural identity and well-being of our community members, and we wanted to emphasize a regional focus in 2024 to support the many artists who are integral members of our festival’s dance family.”
The 17th annual Coastal Dance Festival presented by Dancers of Damelahamid takes place at the Anvil Centre, 777 Columbia Street, New Westminster from March 1st to 3rd, 2024. Tickets are available from $30 adults/$25 students for March 1 & 2 Signature Evening Performances, or by donation for March 2 & 3 Festival Stage Performances online at damelahamid.ca