G’ZAAGIIN: I Promise You a Forest

https://nac-cna.ca/en/event/29347

In-person event

Without words ● 18 months and older A joyful mix! A Polish-born director, an Indigenous performer and a musician from Abitibi: three women who join forces to create an enthralling forest show. At the foot of the majestic trees, we are all children of the world. Imagine a show, but in the form of a forest, a parent-child gathering under a quiet canopy. You’re part of the set; you can sit and listen to the warm and soothing voice of...

May 21 - 22, 2022

Azrieli Studio 1 Elgin Street Ottawa Canada

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G’ZAAGIIN: I Promise You a Forest

May 21 - 22, 2022

Azrieli Studio

“The rustling of the trees ”

In-person event
Ages 2-5
≈ 30 minutes · No intermission

Without words ● 18 months and older

A joyful mix! A Polish-born director, an Indigenous performer and a musician from Abitibi: three women who join forces to create an enthralling forest show. At the foot of the majestic trees, we are all children of the world.

Imagine a show, but in the form of a forest, a parent-child gathering under a quiet canopy. You’re part of the set; you can sit and listen to the warm and soothing voice of Franco-Anishinaabe actor and musician Emily Marie Séguin. You can also let your body resonate to the incredible range of sounds that Abitibi cellist Marie-Hélène Massy Emond coaxes from her wooden instrument. Guided by the wisdom of the traditional medicine wheel, the two artists will weave seasons of sound filled with textures and flavours to be experienced with all five senses.

The creative team from the Voyageurs Immobiles company promises you a forest, but not just any forest: one that will leave you feeling a little happier and more alive!

Learn more in the program notes ›

G’zaagiin - Je te promets une forêt

July 23, 2021 *English and French subtitles available An Abitibi experimental cellist, an Anishinabeg actress and traditional musician, and a Polish-born director, guided by the seasons and the Indigenous Medicine Wheel, to create an immersive space full of sounds, textures and poetic movement, where young children will be able to make their way. Drum, cello, voice, breath and the stage tell the story of the encounter of these three women who intertwine past and present, tradition and contemporaneity in a poetic and inclusive process. “G’zaagiin means

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Artists

Created by Emily Marie Séguin
Created by
Emily Marie Séguin

Planter of roots

Emily Marie Séguin (she/they) is an emerging performer, musician, theatre creator and visual artist. She is a queer, 2-spirit artist of French and Anishinaabeg descent (Ottawa, Mattawa-Northbay FN) creating work to honor those who walked before her, and to uplift those who will after her.

She primarily works on the unceded, unsurrendered territory of the Anishinabeg Nation, Ottawa (and surrounding areas).

Planteuse de racines

Emily Marie Séguin (elle/iel) est une interprète émergente, musicienne, créatrice de théâtre et artiste visuelle. Elle est une artiste bispirituelle queer, d’origine française et Anishinaabeg (Ottawa, Mattawa-Northbay FN), créant des œuvres pour honorer ceux qui l’ont précédée et pour élever ceux qui viendront après elle.

Elle travaille principalement sur le territoire non-cédé de la Nation Anishinabeg, Ottawa (et les régions avoisinantes).
NAC media featuring Emily Marie Séguin
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Created by Marie-Hélène Massy-Emond
Created by
Marie-Hélène Massy-Emond

Warmer of Woodwind Instruments

Performer, actor, author and musician Marie-Hélène Massy Emond lives in La Motte (Abitibi). All of her art, her practice, seems to be in constant dialogue with the vast boreal territory. Winner of the Prix UDA at the 2013 Festival en chanson de Petite-Vallée, she has composed albums, including La cendre et le miel (2019). In true symbiosis with her cello, she coaxes an astonishing range of sounds from this piece of wood, often accompanying the music with songs and poetic stories. She also creates performances, and collaborated with a group of artists from a small town in northern Italy on an audio walk that reflects on the solitude of our times.

Chauffeuse d’instrument à bois

Performeuse,autrice et musicienne, Marie-Hélène Massy Emond vit à La Motte (Abitibi). Tout son art, sa pratique, semble en dialogue constant avec le vaste territoire boréal. Lauréate du Prix UDA au Festival en chanson de Petite-Vallée 2013, elle a composé des albums, dont La cendre et le miel en 2019. En véritable symbiose avec son violoncelle, elle fait jaillir de ce morceau de bois une étonnante gamme de sonorités qu’elle accompagne souvent en chants et en récits poétiques. Elle crée également des spectacles avec des citoyens et des citoyennes, et collabore avec le collectif italien Wundertruppe à un cycle portantsur la solitude de nos temps.
NAC media featuring Marie-Hélène Massy-Emond
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Created by Milena Buziak
Created by
Milena Buziak

Artist Without Borders

As the founding director of the children’s theatre company Voyageurs Immobiles, Polish-born director Milena Buziak delights in inviting people of all backgrounds, cultures and identities to her creative table. In 2020, she was awarded the John Hirsch Prize in recognition of her talent and the uniqueness of her artistic vision.

For young audiences, her directing credits include Estelle Savasta’s Traversée (presented at the NAC in 2017) and Marcel Cremer’s Le cheval de bleu (NAC 2019), both of which featured a mixed cast of deaf and hearing actors. Her latest creation project, Cycle des utopies fertiles, will invite European, African and Indigenous creators to blend their voices in the universal language of art.

Artiste sans frontières

Fondatrice et directrice de la compagnie Voyageurs Immobiles, la metteuse en scène d’origine polonaise Milena Buziak prend plaisir à convoquer à sa table de création des gens de tous horizons, cultures, identités. En 2020, elle se voit remettre le prix John-Hirsch, qui souligne son talent et l’unicité de sa vision artistique.

Pour les jeunes, elle crée, entre autres, Traversée d’Estelle Savasta (présenté au CNA en 2017) puis Le cheval de bleu de Marcel Cremer (CNA 2019), qui rassemblaient tous deux une distribution mixte, composée d’actrices et d’acteurs sourds et entendants. Baptisé Cycle des utopies fertiles, son nouveau chantier de création invitera des créateurs européens, africains et autochtones à parler ensemble dans cette langue universelle qu’est l’art.
NAC media featuring Milena Buziak
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Set and lighting Chann Delisle

Set and lighting
Chann Delisle

Lighter of spaces

Chann Delisle is a graduate of the École européenne supérieure d’art de Bretagne (2016) and the stage design program at the École supérieure de théâtre de l’UQAM (2019). During her studies, Chann enriched her artistic practice by learning several techniques (engraving, silkscreening, silver halide photography, drawing, sculpture, performance, installation, puppetry, lighting, set design...). She became a multi-skilled artist, specializing in all kinds of crafts. Today, her main goal is to build a personal artistic approach, between theatre and visual arts, with the manipulation of materials as a primary consideration in order to create a narrative. Lately, in addition to her practice as a stage and lighting designer, Chann has added another string to her bow: technical director.

Allumeuse des espaces

Chann Delisle est diplômée de l’École européenne supérieure d’art de Bretagne (2016) et de l’École supérieure de théâtre de l’UQAM, en scénographie (2019). Au cours de ses études, Chann a enrichi sa pratique artistique grâce à l’apprentissage de plusieurs techniques (gravure, sérigraphie, photographie argentique, dessin, sculpture, performance, installation, marionnette, éclairage, décor...). Elle devient une touche-à-tout, spécialisée en bricolage de tout genre. Aujourd’hui, elle aspire surtout à bâtir un projet artistique personnel, entre le théâtre et les arts plastiques, avec comme considération première la manipulation de matières pour faire surgir un récit. Dernièrement, en plus de sa pratique de scénographe et de conceptrice d’éclairage, Chann a pu ajouter une corde à son arc : la direction technique.

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Stage manager Patrick Champagne

Stage manager
Patrick Champagne

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