Gathering Light (Photo credit: Chris Randle)

TOUR CITIES:

EDMONTON

4th Annual Rubaboo Arts Festival
June 6 to 17, 2012
Performance: June 9
Time: TBC
Venue: Catalyst Theatre
More information to follow.

OTTAWA

Canada Dance Festival
June 8 to 16, 2012
Ottawa, Ontario
Peformance: June 12
Time: 7pm
Venue: La Nouvelle Scene
For more information and to buy tickets click, here.

WHITEHORSE

Adaka Cultural Festival
June 22 – 28, 2012
Whitehorse, Yukon
Performance: June 27
Time: 8pm
Venue: Kwanlin Dun Cultural Centre

For more information click, here.

DAWSON CITY

KIAC (Klondike Institute of Art & Culture)
Performance: June 30
Time: 8pm
Venue: Odd Fellows Hall

More information to follow.

Hope to see you at the show!

Raven Spirit Dance & Nyla Carpentier presents:
Pow-Wow Bootcamp no. 2
Sundays April 1 – May 13, 2012 from 11am-1pm
at the Dance Centre in Vancouver!

Photo credit: Kahente Horn-Miller

Work up a sweat, build stamina & muscles dancing to the fast
heartbeat of the drum…

As part of our ongoing training and artist development workshops we are pleased to present again, Traditional Pow-Wow Dancer, Nyla Carpentier for this active, fun, dance filled bootcamp!

Basic steps and formations will be shown as well as the history & origins of dance styles. Please dress in comfortable clothing & be ready to work up a sweat while dancing to the rhythm of the drum. No experience necessary. Ages 16+.

Rates:
Full 7 week program ~ $65
Early-Bird Rate* $50 if registered & paid before March 30th
Drop-in class ~ $15
*pre-registration or pay at door
FREE class on April 29th in celebration of International Dance Week!

Fancy Dancer Nyla Carpentier
Dates: Sundays April 1 – May 13th, 2012
Time: 11am-1pm
Location: Scotiabank Dance Centre at 677 Davie Street
Registration: Please email martine@ravenspiritdance.com

Bio & Description
Nyla Carpentier has 25 years experience of Pow-Wow dancing and will guide each class with a natural flow of warm up, pow-wow cardio then cool down, & will build upon pow-wow basics, themes and history as well as the origins of different dance styles. We will build towards the final class where all participants can dance for at least 6 songs with no stopping, having discovered their own style of movement and fitness through Pow-Wow.
For more information and to register, contact us at:
Raven Spirit Dance
677 Davie Street
Vancouver, BC V6B 2G6
604-646-0010
Email: martine@ravenspiritdance.com
Website: www.ravenspiritdance.com

Brian Solomon

Rulan Tangen - Photo credit: Henry Weinstein

Join us for 2 distinct evenings of Contemporary Aboriginal Dance featuring the work of choreographers from across Canada and the United States who will be joined by Vancouver’s talented local artists for two evenings of thought-provoking new dance as we push the boundaries, perceptions and possibilities of our contemporary Indigenous dance practice.

      Daina Ashbee

Jesse McMann-Sparvier

Curated by Raven Spirit Dance in partnership with the 2012 Talking Stick Festivaland complimented by a series of artist talks, panels, dance workshops and professional development opportunities.

Click here for a link to the Talking Stick Festival.

“The moment of an impulse is the collision of inherited world-views, traditional and urban cosmologies, and personal and collective histories. From this place, one dances and creates and it is how one arrives at an expression that is a distinct reflection and response to our cultural selves.” – Raven Spirit Dance Society

Curatorial Statement:
What is it to be “On the Cusp” of something? Something that is new, something that pushes the edge of what is comfortable, challenges the notion of what you thought you knew something to be? The artists have been selected as part of the first Contemporary Aboriginal Dance showcase at this year’s Talking Stick Festival as the questions of who am I? where am I? what am I? In quiet contemplative ways, in still ways, in loud, erratic, provocative and challenging ways. In ways that search for an answer that is sometimes found amongst a vast northern landscape or in abstracted digital urban-scapes, in high mountain deserts that thirst for water or in the depths of our own dark inner caverns sometimes slipping just out of grasp. These moments in time allow you, the audience, to dig deeper with us as artists as we find a new place, a new edge and a new understanding of what is possible together as we push the boundaries and perceptions of our Contemporary Indigenous dance practice. We hope you enjoy the journey with us.

Raven Spirit Dance
Curators of ‘On the Cusp’
Contemporary Aboriginal Dance Showcase
Talking Stick Festival 2012

On the Cusp: Program 1
Thursday, March 1st, 2012
Vancity Cultch Lab
Doors, 7pm, show 7:30 pm

Featured choreographers: Margaret Grenier (Dancers of Damelahamid), Michelle Olson &
Floyd Favel (Raven Spirit Dance), Starr Muranko (Starrwind Dance Projects) and Rulan
Tangen (Dancing Earth)
Post-show artist talk

On the Cusp: Program 2
Friday March 2nd 2012
Vancity Cultch Lab
Doors 7pm, show 7:30pm
Featured choreographers: Daina Ashbee, Waawaate Fobister, Jesse McMann-Sparvier &
Elijah Sweetgrass and Brian Solomon
Post-show artist talk

Tickets can be purchase online at: www.thecultch.com or phone Box Office at:
604-251-1363

Workshops, Artist Talks & Professional Development opportunities during the festival
include: (all events below by donation)

Saturday Feb 25th – 1pm – 3pm: Master Dance Class, The Scotia Dance Centre with
Rulan Tangen (Dancing Earth)

Sunday Feb 26th – 10am – 12noon: Community Dance Workshop, The Dance Centre with
Rulan Tangen

Wednesday Feb 29th 7:30pm – Screening of Video and Artist Talk (Sharing
Perspectives: The Paths We’ve Travelled) The Vancity Culture Lab with Rulan Tangen

Saturday Mar 3rd 10:30-11am – Meet the DTRC (Dancers Transition Resource Centre),
The Dance Centre

Saturday Mar 3rd 11am – 12:30 pm Aboriginal Choreographers Panel , The Dance Centre

Saturday March 3rd 2pm-4pm Raven Spirit Dance Training Sampler (Pow-Wow, Westcoast
Traditional, Contemporary) with Margaret Grenier, Nyla Carpentier and Michelle Olson
at The Dance Centre

Sunday March 4th 1-2:30pm – Traditional Hoop Dancing workshop with Jesse
McMann-Sparvier at The Dance Centre

Photo credit: Kahente Horn-Miller

Work up a sweat, build stamina & muscles dancing to the fast
heartbeat of the drum…

As part of our ongoing training and artist development workshops we are excited to welcome Traditional Pow-Wow Dancer, Nyla Carpentier for this active, fun, dance filled bootcamp!

Basic steps and formations will be shown as well as the history & origins of dance styles. Please dress in comfortable clothing & be ready to work up a sweat while dancing to the rhythm of the drum. No experience necessary. Ages 16+.

Rates:
Full 6 week program ~ $65
Early-Bird Rate* $50 if registered & paid before Dec 31, 2011
Drop-in class ~ $15
*pre-registration or pay at door

Fancy Dancer Nyla Carpentier
Dates: Sundays Jan 15th – Feb 19th
Time: 11am-1pm
Location: Scotiabank Dance Centre at 677 Davie Street
Registration: Please email martine@ravenspiritdance.com

Bio & Description
Nyla Carpentier has 25 years experience of Pow-Wow dancing and will guide each class with a natural flow of warm up, pow-wow cardio then cool down, & will build upon pow-wow basics, themes and history as well as the origins of different dance styles. We will build towards the final class where all participants can dance for at least 6 songs with no stopping, having discovered their own style of movement and fitness through Pow-Wow.
For more information and to register, contact us at:
Raven Spirit Dance
677 Davie Street
Vancouver, BC V6B 2G6
604-646-0010
Email: martine@ravenspiritdance.com
Website: www.ravenspiritdance.com

My blog post title for today is a little misleading because as I sit here and write this from the 7th floor of the Dance Centre it is more soggy wonderland than winter. It is Vancouver, so it does rain a bit.

It is hard to believe that it is almost December and after a busy month of grant writing in November and two performances of Frost Exploding Trees Moon we are busy with our plans for the upcoming year and beyond.

I would first like to take this opportunity to introduce you to, Martine Kleissen. Martine has joined Raven Spirit on a part-time basis as our new training coordinator. Martine is already busy at work promoting our program that takes place here at the Dance Centre from May 25th to June 2, 2012. We have many returning instructors who participated in our 2010 program as well as expanding our program to include more classes and development workshops. We are busy finalizing the schedule but you can see the prices for the training by visiting the training section of our site.

Currently it is Dance in Vancouver this weekend and it always an excellent opportunity to meet other dance professionals from the community and elsewhere. There are panels to attend, workshops, studio showings and presentations of some fabulous local dance. It is always inspiring to see other work, to hear what others are doing and to just be with your community and fellow artists. Or for me, fellow administrators!

We will back soon with more information on what is up and coming for Raven Spirit Dance and especially about our Spring Fling Fundraiser in the New Year. We will also be offering a Pow Wow class over 6 weeks starting in January to help work off the holiday extras. So go ahead, and enjoy yourself.

Cheers
Janice Beley
General Manager, Raven Spirit Dance

Come join us NEXT SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 17TH from 1-2:30pm

at the Scotia Dance Centre for a FREE WORKSHOP

and sneak-peek at our

2012 Training Program scheduled from May 25th-June 2nd 2012 in Vancouver!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As part of the Dance Centre’s 10th Anniversary and Open House celebrations

NEXT WEEKEND Raven Spirit Dance is happy to be providing

a FREE workshop sampler of our 2012 Training program.

Come out and join us for this mixed introduction to Contemporary and Traditional
Aboriginal Dance which will include samplers in Contemporary Dance led by Michelle
Olson (Raven Spirit Dance) as well as Traditional WestCoast Song & Dance led by
Margaret Grenier (Dancers of Damelahamid) and Pow-Wow dance led by Nyla Carpentier
who just got back to Vancouver from being on the Pow-Wow trail this summer!

All levels of experience are welcome. Please dress comfortably.

LOCATION: Scotia Dance Centre (Kraul Studio on the 4th floor) 677 Davie Street in
Vancouver

DATE: Saturday September 17th 2011

TIME: 1pm-2:30pm

COST:FREE!!

More info about all of the weekend events held at the Dance Centre can be found
by clicking here

SAVE THE DATE!

Our 2012 training program dates have been confirmed…May 25th-June 2nd 2012

in Vancouver at the Scotia Dance Centre.

This will be 9 amazing days of classes, workshops, artist talks and professional
development with an inspiring faculty of instructors in Contemporary and Traditional
Aboriginal Dance, Song & Story. We hope to see you there!

For more information, contact us at: info@ravenspiritdance.com
[mailto:info@ravenspiritdance.com]
or by phone at: 604-646-0010

Frost Exploding Trees Moon
Choreographers, Floyd Favel and Michelle Olson
Sound Score, Wayne Lavallee
Music, Meewasin Oma
Performer, Jeanette Kotowich

This solo piece follows the journey of a woman traveling her trap line.
She finds a place to set up camp, builds her temporary home, and settles
into the centre of her world of breath and perception.

The piece is a movement score derived from the body positions and
attitudes of Indigenous hunting cultures of the northern forests. The
movement is close to the ground and does not impose upon the environment
but rather seeks to disappear into the forests so to blend into the
natural environment.

Floyd Favel is a theatre director, playwright, and essayist. Over the last
twenty years he has developed a theatre training derived from the
Indigenous Peoples social and ceremonial structures.

Jeannete Kotowich is a Metis contemporary dance artist from Regina, Sask.
She her Bachelor of Fine Arts and currently trains and performs locally in
and around Vancouver.

Michelle Olson is a performer and choreographer and the Artistic Director
of Raven Spirit Dance Company. She has been involved in many previous
productions at the Firehall Arts Centre.

July 13, 14, 15 and 16th at 7pm – Dusk Dances, Queen Elizabeth Park. (33rd and Cambie)

Photo Credit: Chris Randle

Ashes on the Water by Quelemia Sparrow and Noah Drew
Choreographers: Michelle Olson and Kimberly Tuson
Co-produced by Raven Spirit Dance and Neworld Theatre
Commissioned by Neworld Theatre

Ashes on the Water is an invitation into a sensory landscape of words, movement, breath and song. A podplay/site-specific dance piece unearths the story of two women divided by culture and the waters of the Burrard Inlet. The work charts their fateful meeting ignited by the Great Vancouver Fire in 1886 and spurred on by a song’s desire to be born.

The podplay will guide audience into the park and to the water. Once in the park, audience members will experience a site-specific dance.The podplay casts a shadow on the inner and outer experience of the fire and the dance springs from this. Ashes on the Water is a collision of technology, memory, body and breath to tell a story inspired by the Squamish First Nation’s Women’s Paddle Song and the contribution the First Nations communities made during this moment in Vancouver’s history.

Podplays are site-specific radio plays that take participants on a walk through the geography of the city and urban obsessions and imaginings of the commissioned artists. Much like you would listen to an audio guide in a museum, audience members download the plays onto portable media players and are guided on a journey by narration that combines story, music and directional cues. This is an intimate theatrical experience that will reveal a Vancouver you will not find in the tourist brochures.

Dancing on the Edge, 2011

Site Specific – Main Street and Crab Park at Portside (Leaving from Main & Alexander)

July 14, 15 and 16th.
2pm, 2:45 pm, 3:45 pm, 4:30 pm and 5:15 pm.

Please arrive at least 15 minutes at the Firehall Theatre (280 Cordova) before start time for podplay distribution.

Choreographers:
Michelle Olson and Kimberly Tuson
in collaboratation with Daina Ashbee, Julia Carr, Tasha Faye Evans,
Jeanette Kotowich, Kathleen McDonagh and Kimberly Tuson

Rehearsal Direction: Starr Muranko

Bob Baker: Cultural Advisor and Song Creation

Costume Design: Alison Roy

Stage Management: Catherine Ballachey

Podplay: Actors Margo Kane, Elizabeth McLaughlin and Quelemia Sparrow

PodPlay Direction and Dramaturgy by Adrienne Wong and Martin Kinch
Playwright – Quelemia Sparrow

Sound Design: Noah Drew

Created by Neworld Theatre and PTC production partner: CBC Radio One

Ashes on the Water is part of PodPlays 125, an initiative created by Neworld Theatre and PTC. The Ashes on the Water podplay was commissioned and developed by Neworld Theatre and PTC.

Dancing on the Edge, July 14, 15 and 16, 2011