CANADIAN-INDIGENOUS BALLET

From award-winning director and choreographer Igor Dobrovolskiy, and multi-disciplinary artist Nipahtuwet Naka Wespahtuwet (Possesom) Paul (Wolastoqiyik, Sitansisk First Nation), Pisuwin is an epic first ever Wolastoq story-ballet set to the soaring music of Polaris Prize and Juno award-winning composer Jeremy Dutcher (Wolastoqiyik, Neqotkuk First Nation).

Based on a Wolastoq tale, this multidisciplinary piece reflects on the current state of dis-ease in our world, illuminating a path to wholeness and rebalance. The project features eight dancers and blends Indigenous storytelling and ballet, redefining this classical form for a diverse, savvy and contemporary audience. Electronic sound, industrial landscapes and digital projection, juxtaposed with Wolastoq visual motifs of the spiritual and natural world, create the Indigenous cosmology within which the story takes place. “Why does the water no longer quench our thirst?” Pisuwin pushes us to confront our greed and alienation, while inspiring us to take a different path; one of connection, community, and wholeness.

Choreographer: Igor Dobrovolskiy, MSM, OM
Director: Nipahtuwet Naak Wespahtuwet Possesom
Composer: Jeremy Dutcher
Principal: Jera Wolfe
Costume, Scenic, and Projection: Andy Moro
Lighting Design: Pierre Lavoie
Costume Design: Emma Hassencahl-Perley
Beading & Costume: Oakley Rain Wysote Gray
Sound: Dawson Sacobie (M3D14)