- Playwright and performer Quelemia Sparrow
- Fire Creator | Director Kim Senklip Harvey
A black hole, hungry ghosts, a Grandmother wolf - Quelemia Sparrow’s Skyborn is an epic odyssey grounded in Indigenous ancestral knowledge. Guided through the universe on a river made of stars, Sparrow makes a journey by canoe to recover her lost soul from the land of the dead.
Deeply rooted in the cosmology and teachings of Sparrow’s Musqueam heritage, this adventure introduces never-before-seen Musqueam/Sto:lo visual storytelling and animation, as well as inter-Indigenous sound and puppetry. Imaginatively constructed and fiercely poignant, Skyborn invites the audience to bear witness to a reclamation of culture, land and self.
Company
Based in Vancouver, Savage Production Society operates as a collective of theatre and film artists of Indigenous descent. They tell stories sourcing myth, tradition and the contemporary Indigenous experience: modern Indigenous voices, telling their own stories, endeavoring to positively affect awareness of the contemporary Indigenous perspective by carrying on the tradition of Indigenous storytelling through contemporary mediums of expression.
Creative team
- Playwright and performer Quelemia Sparrow
- Fire Creator | Director Kim Senklip Harvey
- Indigenous Framework Consultant Lindsay Lachance
- Dramaturg David Bloom
- Set Design Andy Moro
- Video Design Emily Sousanna
- Costume Design Evan Ducharme
- Lighting Design Itai Erdal
- Illustrations Chief Lady Bird, Chrystal Sparrow and Carrielynn Victor
- Sound Team Lead Mishelle Cuttler
- Sound Team Christie Lee Charles and Russell Wallace
- Puppet Design Stephanie Elgersma
- Puppeteer Kelsey Kanatan Wavey
- Stage Manager Lois Dawson
- Apprentice Stage Manager Brody Halfe
- Soundscape Vocals Renae Morriseau, Chelsea Rose Tucker and Kaitlyn Yott
National Creation Fund investment
The National Creation Fund’s investment of $160,000 supported an extended workshop process, allowing the creative team to collaboratively develop the visual design and animation and experiment with integrating projections with the live performance. The Fund’s investment also provided additional time for further script development and land-based dramaturgy.
Credits
Development Support: Canada Council for the Arts, BC Arts Council, City of Vancouver. Developed with support from the National Arts Centre's National Creation Fund.
Presenting Partners: The Cultch, Gateway Theatre
In-kind Development Support: Boca del Lupo, Urban Ink
Performance dates
Past performances
January 23 to February 1, 2020: The Cultch (Vancouver), presented with PuSh International Performing Arts Festival
