• Performances
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Skyborn: A Land Reclamation Odyssey

Showing on Jan 23–26, 28–31, Feb 1

Playing at Historic Theatre, The Cultch

Quelemia Sparrow in a black dress holding a small blue model of a house
Quelemia Sparrow Photo: ©Emily Cooper

Savage Production Society (Canada) Presented with The Cultch

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. This adventure is deeply rooted in the cosmology and teachings of her Musqueam heritage. It invites the audience to bear witness to a reclamation of culture, land and self.

Skyborn is imaginatively constructed and fiercely poignant. It introduces never-before-seen Musqueam/Sto:lo visual storytelling and animation, as well as inter-Indigenous sound and puppetry, but at its heart is the simple, irreducible force of human presence: Sparrow is a natural performer, endowed with grace and magnetism. This work is her gesture of liberation.

Quelemia Sparrow in a black dress holding a small blue model of a house
Quelemia Sparrow Photo: ©Emily Cooper
Quelemia Sparrow in a black dress standing on a beach
Quelemia Sparrow Photo: ©Emily Cooper

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Artist Bio

Savage Production Society (Canada)

Writer, director and actor Quelemia Sparrow is a proud member of the Musqueam nation. A graduate of the Studio 58 theatre program, she has applied her performing skills everywhere from Bard on the Beach to television to works of independent theatre. As a writer, she’s worked in film and podcasting, and her directing credits include Salmon Girl and Oleanna.

Venue

Historic Theatre, The Cultch

1895 Venables Street, Vancouver

Showtimes

January 23–25
January 25–26
January 28–31
February 1
Post-Show Talkback: Jan 26, 28
90 mins, no intermission

7:30PM
2PM
7:30PM
2PM, 7:30PM

Tickets

Single tickets from $26
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Sold via The Cultch 604.251.1363

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Access

Icon signalling a performance with signed interpretation

ASL-Interpretation on Jan 28

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Live Description on Feb 1 at 2pm / Touch Tour after the show

Content Note: Includes use of scents, smoke/haze and flashing lights.

ASL Introduction

Credits

PLAYWRIGHT AND PERFORMER Quelemia Sparrow DIRECTOR Kim Senklip Harvey DRAMATURG Lindsay Lachance SET DESIGN Andy Moro VIDEO DESIGN Emily Sousanna COSTUME DESIGN Evan Ducharme LIGHTING DESIGN Itai Erdal ILLUSTRATIONS Chief Lady Bird, Chrystal Sparrow, Carrielynn Victor SOUND TEAM Mishelle Cuttler, Christie Lee Charles, Russell Wallace PUPPET DESIGN Stephanie Elgersma

SUPPORTED BY National Arts Centre’s National Creation Fund FURTHER FUNDING FROM Canada Council for the Arts, Government of Canada, British Columbia Arts Council, The First Peoples’ Cultural Council, City of Vancouver, Province of British Columbia, Boca del Lupo.