≈ 55 minutes · No intermission
Last updated: April 8, 2024
Creator’s Note
Inner Elder is my love letter to all of us that made it through. Thank you for being here.
Thank you to all the Elders who hold the stories of this territory,
Thank you, Lori Marchand and Kevin Loring,
Thank you to the staff and crew of National Arts Centre.
A Note From NAC Indigenous Theatre
We are so honoured to be finally welcoming Michelle Thrush and this personal and profound production to the NAC stage! Meant to be part of our first season, honouring the beauty, strength and resilience of Indigenous women, it is a theme that has resonated throughout every season, and Michelle's story, beautifully told, reminds us of this: Our culture is the source. Kukstayp! Limlemt! Tansi! Miigwetch! Thank you, Michelle. And thank you for joining us to honour the incredible Michelle Thrush!
About
Inner Elder was developed during workshops in 2017, supported by Lunchbox & One Yellow Rabbit. The performance premiered at the 2018 High Performance Rodeo at Lunchbox.
Creator Q&A with Michelle Thrush
When developing the story and character for your show, what inspirations were you able to take from your own life? Has this impacted how you view your family relationships?
This solo show is actually my real-life story. So, all of it came from my life. All of it is real. I do not feel like Inner Elder impacted any relationships in my life or with my family as it’s my truth.
How is performing in a one-women show different than other forms of acting, such as ensemble theatre productions or film sets?
When you are doing a one woman show, it can be a lot more difficult as you do not have other characters to rely on or to react to. Doing a solo show, you are all the characters, and it means that for 60 minutes I do not get a break, or to be able to walk off stage and catch my breath as you do in large ensemble pieces. I find doing solo shows (as this is my third one) that it can also be easier in a lot of ways too because I do not have to rely on others either. Sometimes when you’re doing a big theatrical piece or on a film, there are so many other moving parts and people that you work with in unison, and when you’re doing a solo show, you rely on your own timing and instincts in the show.
Of course, with Inner Elder I have a great technical team supporting me. This part is essential with the development, the direction, the set and lighting, and all that wonderful stuff that makes a show come alive, but the content is about relying on my memories and my abilities as an actor to be able to step into those different memories. One thing I can say is standing on stage for an hour and sharing some of the most intimate memories of my life can also make you feel very vulnerable as a human being. To be on stage and open your heart to an audience is something that is not always easy.
The show combines many different elements of humour in storytelling with experiences of trauma and resilience. How were you able to balance these two viewpoints while developing and performing your script?
Balancing humour and storytelling with trauma and resilience is something that I feel we do as Indigenous people quite easily. Because of how much trauma we’ve experienced in our history, and in our immediate families, I am very much aware of what it means to balance that with humour. It is what has kept us going and one of our superpowers, I think. I know some of the funniest people in my life happened to be in my own family.
There’s a certain sense of humour that comes with trauma – a humour that allows us to be able to step aside and look at what is happened, AND not to take things too seriously. I know with this show I took all the experiences that have happened in my life that could be seen as traumatic, and I flipped them around so that the humour is a different angle of looking at them. I love doing comedy. It’s one of my favourite things and to be able to take my life and turn it into a bit of a comedy was such an incredible experience.
Artists
Michelle Thrush has been involved in the arts as an actor, writer, director, and producer for more than thirty years professionally and is most well-known for her roles in film and television. If she is not on a stage or working on a film, you will likely find her working across the country with youth and children in Indigenous communities, utilizing the arts and storytelling as a force for healing.
A multi-award-winning actress who most recently received the Lieutenant Governor Distinguished Artist of Alberta Award, Michelle is thrilled to bring Inner Elder to the unceded and unsurrendered territory of the Anishinaabe Algonquin people and is thankful for the Elders of this territory who hold the stories here.
She is also very grateful to Lori Marchand (Managing Director of NAC Indigenous Theatre) and Kevin Loring (Artistic Director of NAC Indigenous Theatre) for believing in Inner Elder and for everything it took to bring our show here.
“My greatest achievement in this life is my two beautiful daughters, which I admit was a co-production...”
Karen Hines began her theatrical career as an underground comic and emerged as the author of multiple award-winning plays presented across North America at venues including One Yellow Rabbit, Tarragon Theatre, Boca del Lupo, Alberta Theatre Projects, Factory Theatre, Actors Theatre of Louisville, Dallas Theatre Centre, Soulpepper and Joe's Pub (Public Theatre).
She is a two-time finalist for Canada's Governor General's Literary Award for Drama and a recent finalist for the Siminovitch Prize. She is a Dora Award-winning performer and director, alongside collaborations with Canadian theatre artists such as Linda Griffiths (Age of Arousal), adult horror clowns Mump & Smoot (Mike Kennard and John Turner), and Michelle Thrush (Inner Elder).
Karen is an actor in Canadian and American television and film, and her short films featuring the character Pochsy have presented around the world.
Chicago born, Toronto bred, she currently lives in Calgary, where she recently performed new works, including the fourth in its series, Pochsy IV. Her real estate horror Crawlspace has toured micro theatres across Canada and recently premiered in its French translation at Théâtre Francais de Toronto. Pochsy IV is currently touring across Canada.
Over the last few decades, Sandi Somers has lit and designed stages for companies such as OYR, ATP, The Alberta Ballet and Lunchbox Theatre.
Productions include lighting and projection design for Making Treaty 7, set and lighting design for The University of Lethbridge’s Caucasian Chalk Circle, lighting and set design for Karen Hines’ Pochsy IV, and lighting design for Denise Clarke’s Room 333.
Outside of designing for theatre, Sandi is the lighting designer for The Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology in Drumheller, Alberta, and is an award-winning filmmaker.
Sandy Scofield is a multi-award-winning Metis singer/songwriter who holds an undergrad degree in music composition. She has won several awards for her diverse work, such as a Western Canadian Music Award and a Canadian Folk Music Award, as well as three consecutive nominations for a Juno award.
She has toured most major Canadian festivals and has performed in Borneo, Austria, Seoul, Australia, France and Germany. Sandy composes original music, including folk, roots, traditional, blues-influenced and electronic sound design and music for dance, film theatre and opera. She also works as an educator at all levels of music education.
Dianne Goodman is honoured to be on the Inner Elder production team and welcomes the opportunity to share this incredible work!
She retired from Alberta Theatre Projects in 2021 after almost 40 years with the company. In her career, Dianne has worked in every aspect of theatre and with many arts organizations in Calgary. She received the Distinguished Alumni Award from the University of Regina, the Betty Mitchell Award for Distinguished Achievement in Production, and the Harry and Martha Cohen Award for Significant and Sustained Contribution to Theatre in Calgary.
Since retirement, Dianne has freelanced as a producer, production manager and stage manager.
Special thanks to Michelle and the team!
Originally from Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Neil Fleming grew up in the Anishinaabe territory of the Robinson-Huron Treaty. He is honoured to have been part of Making Treaty 7 for the last eight years, helping amplify the stories, practices and cultures of the Treaty 7 peoples.
Neil is an award-winning playwright and screenwriter based in Calgary. Neil is best known for his work at Lunchbox Theatre, including Outside, Anomaly, Security, Last Christmas, The After Party, He Said, She Said (with Glenda Stirling), and Spare Parts (Stage One 2018). Neil is a member of the Playwrights Guild of Canada, the Past President of the Alberta Playwrights’ Network, and a tenacious winger most mornings between 7-8 am.
Neil is also a theatrical designer. Some past design credits include Napi & The Rock, Okotoks, 509 (Making Treaty 7), Come Home (Urban Stories), Gruesome Playground Injuries (Ground Zero, Hit & Myth), In A World Created By A Drunken God, And So It Goes, Goodness, Bone Cage (Downstage), A Mid-Summer Night’s Dream (CYPT), The Vajayjay Monologues (Pot of Jam, Urban Curves), Snowblind, Last Christmas, Shopaholic Husband Hunt (Lunchbox Theatre), An Almost Perfect Thing, The Kitchen Witches, The Attic, the Pearls, and Three Fine Girls (New West Theatre).
Grant Burns is excited to work with Michelle and this talented group of artists on Inner Elder.
Grant worked with One Yellow Rabbit Performance Theatre as General Manager and High Performance Rodeo Producer for eleven years, producing over 60 original theatrical presentations and yearly Canadian and International Tours. Grant has also consulted and worked as a producer for the Old Trout Puppet Workshop for 20 years, organizing tours across North America.
He was the Calgary Producer of The Magnetic North Theatre Festival in 2012. Grant is the recipient of the Chalmers National Award for Arts Administration and the Betty Mitchell Award for Outstanding Achievement in Theatre, honouring his contributions to the Calgary theatre community.
Credits
Inner Elder
Creator/Performer
Michelle Thrush
Director
Karen Hines
Lighting/Scenic Designer
Sandi Somers
Composer
Sandy Scofield
Company Manager
Dianne Goodman
Technical Director
Neil Fleming
Producer
Grant Burns
NAC Indigenous Theatre
Managing Director
Lori Marchand
Artistic Director
Kevin Loring
Producer
Michelle Yagi
Associate Producer
Brit Johnston
Producing Resident
Jessica Campbell-Maracle
Associate Producer #ReconcileThis
Josh Languedoc
Technical Director, Theatre Department
Spike Lyne
Cultural Advocate
Mairi Brascoupé
Education Coordinator
Kerry Corbiere
Communications Strategist
Ian Hobson
Marketing Strategist
Marie-Pierre Chaumont
Senior Marketing Manager
Bridget Mooney
Production Team - Azrieli Studio
Head
Stephane Boyer
Assistant
Leigh Uttley
Wardrobe Head
Monique Duval
International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees