The Massey Theatre Society is working to put reconciliation into action.
The theatre recently announced a new artistic partnership with Savage Society to launch an Indigenous multi-disciplinary arts series in New Westminster, thanks to a three-year grant from the Vancouver Foundation.
The two organizations will work to nurture, develop and showcase Aboriginal performance, visual and media arts.
“This program will see the considerable theatrical resources of a colonial institution opened up to help make the First Nations talent visible by raising awareness of Indigenous talent, artistic practices and fostering cultural exchange and dialogue,” a press release says. “It is truly reconciliation in action.”
Kevin Loring, Savage Society’s artistic director, will curate the series and take the artistic lead, working alongside Jessica Schneider, executive director of the Massey Theatre Society.
“This new partnership is an exciting opportunity for Aboriginal artists, community members and patrons of the Massey Theatre,” Loring said in the press release. “Our goal is to showcase amazing Indigenous artists and to introduce new audiences to their work. It is our belief that art can transcend the walls between communities and cultures and be a bridge to understanding and empathy.
“Art can be a conduit to understanding, or at the very least, a catalyst for dialogue.”
The press release notes that New Westminster has a deep colonial history, as the first capital of British Columbia, and is the traditional home of the Qayqayt First Nation.
Massey Theatre Society - which operates both the traditional, 69-year-old, 1,260-seat Massey and the modern, 360-seat Anvil Centre Theatre – is able to open doors for a place to learn and explore culture and identity and to provide opportunities to share it with audiences.
“I am proud of the work we have begun with Savage Society,” Schneider said in the release. “If we get it right, this program will break the mould on how artistic institutions participate in truth telling, becoming inclusive and engaging with Indigenous people. The support of Vancouver Foundation has enabled us to begin work we will sustain for the long term.”
See www.savagesociety.ca for more on the organization’s work.
