Performance as Medicine: Indigenous Performance Art Symposium

Performance as Medicine is a one-day interdisciplinary and inter-generational symposium that will seek to present and explore Indigenous philosophies and contemporary expressive forms. The program was developed by Iroquois Mohawk artist Lindsay Delaronde, who is currently the Indigenous Artist in Residence with the City of Victoria. Register to enjoy a series of interactive workshops and a lunch, or drop in later in the day for a site-specific performance and a panel discussion.

This is a City of Victoria initiative, presented in collaboration with the Royal BC Museum.

Workshops (9:00 am - 3:00 pm, registration required)

  • The day will begin with a formal welcome by Lindsay Delaronde. Workshops will be facilitated by local Indigenous artists Jessica Sault, Sarah Pocklington, Krystal Cook and Bradley Dick. This workshop portion includes a catered lunch and snacks.
  • 10:00 am - 12:00 pm, a choice of workshops with Krystal Cook (The Celebration of Oral Tradition) or Jessica Sault (an interactive dance workshop).
  • 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm, catered lunch
  • 1:00 pm - 3:00 pm, a choice of workshops with Bradley Dick (Sxwamalas Sunopsis: Gift from our Ancestors) or Sarah Pocklington (an interactive music and voice workshop).

Performance and panel discussion (3:30pm - 5:30pm, no registration required)

Performance

  • Following the workshops, Lindsay Delaronde and Erynne Gilpin will perform “Rage Flowers”, a co-created and choreographed performance. The fusion of movement, sound vibrations, sacred ceremony and creativity will convey a complex and interconnected relationship between First Nations, people and government. The performance will be free and open to the public. No registration required.

Panel Discussion

  • A panel discussion will follow. The panel will be moderated by Lucy Bell, head of the Royal BC Museum’s First Nations Department and Repatriation Department, and will feature a discussion between Erynne Gilpin, a performance artist with PhD studies in women’s leadership in land-based governance and Indigenous healing methodologies, France Trépanier, a visual artist, curator and researcher, and Lindsay Delaronde. The panel discussion will be free and open to the public. No registration required.