Candice Hopkins is a curator and writer of Tlingit descent originally from Whitehorse, Yukon. She is Senior Curator of the Toronto Biennial of Art and co-curator of the 2018 SITE Santa Fe biennial, Casa Tomada. She was a part of the curatorial team for documenta 14 in Athens, Greece and Kassel, Germany and a co-curator of the major exhibitions Sakahàn: International Indigenous Art, Close Encounters: The Next 500 Years, and the 2014 SITElines biennial, Unsettled Landscapes in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Her writing is published widely and her recent essays and presentations include “Outlawed Social Life” for South as a State of Mind and Sounding the Margins: A Choir of Minor Voices at Small Projects, Tromsø, Norway. She has lectures internationally including at the Witte de With, Tate Modern, Dak’Art Biennale, Artists Space, Tate Britain and the University of British Columbia. She is the recipient of numerous awards including the Hnatyshyn Foundation Award for Curatorial Excellence in Contemporary Art and the 2016 the Prix pour un essai critique sur l’art contemporain by the Foundation Prince Pierre de Monaco. She is a citizen of Carcross/Tagish First Nation.
Rawlco Radio and the MacKenzie Art Gallery Free Admission Day | May 24 2025
Installation image from Indian Theater: Native Performance, Art, and Self-Determination since 1969, June 24 – November 26, 2023. Hessel Museum of Art, Center for Curatorial Studies, Bard College, Annandale-on-Hudson, NY. Photo: Olympia Shannon, 2023.
About
Join us for a special day of art, performance, and community at the MacKenzie Art Gallery, in celebration of the exhibition Indian Theater: Native Performance, Art, and Self-Determination since 1969—A blockbuster exhibition of Indigenous art, performance, and resistance, curated by Candice Hopkins, Executive Director & Chief Curator, Forge Project, and organized by the Center for Curatorial Studies, Bard College (CCS Bard), New York.
EXHIBITION TOURS
Attend a public tour of Indian Theater, every hour on the hour.
CURATORIAL TALK WITH CANDICE HOPKINS – 1 PM
Native Performance and the Self-Determination Era
Dive deeper into the exhibition with a special Curatorial Talk by curator Candice Hopkins (Carcross/Tagish First Nation).
LIVE PERFORMANCE – 3 PM
âcimowin by mêtawê Theatre
Experience a live Indigenous theatre piece from Treaty 4, directed by Skyler Anderson.
There is no cost to attend.
Programming for this event is supported by TD.
ABOUT THE CURATOR, CANDICE HOPKINS
Photo provided by Skyler Anderson
ABOUT THE LIVE PERFORMANCE
âcimowin (Cree for “sacred story”) is written by Skyler Anderson, Founding Artistic Director of mêtawê Theatre. The show contains many different types of storytelling using several artistic facets including: puppetry, narration, traditional song and dance, and stage play. acimowin is a collection of stories told by wîsakîcahk, and each story has either been passed down to the writer or is an original story.
metawe Theatre Cast and Bios
Skyler Anderson: Writer/Director/Chuck
Sky is a proud nehiyaw from Treaty 4 and father of four boys whom he dedicates all of his work to. A nationally funded artist, Sky is the founder and Artistic Director of metawe Theatre, an indigenous theatre company based out of Treaty 4. He holds a degree in Theatre, specializing in Acting, from the First Nations University of Canada and two decades of experience working as a professional artist. Sky has been setting his sights on passing down knowledge to emerging indigenous actors working at Chief Payepot School and creating the acimowin artists, a group of students who are showing immense talent in theatre and storytelling. Most recently, Sky was chosen by the chiefs of Treaty 4 to write and direct a reenactment performance of the Treaty signing for the 150th year anniversary held last September.
Teddy Bison: Buffalo Warrior, nohtahwiy, ohtahwimow, Choreographer
Teddy Bison is a Cheyenne/Lakota/Nakoda from the Ocean Man First Nation. He is an accomplished Fancy Dancer and has performed internationally in front of many audiences. Father of 7 children, he obtained a degree in Set/Stage Design at the First Nations University of Canada. He is most proud of his recent work as a vocalist for the Louis Vuitton Fall 2024 Collection Show in Paris, France.
Kiana Toto: Quillwork Girl, nikawiy
Calm After the Storm – 20 years old from Piapot First Nation. Kiana is a Jingle Dress Dancer and has taught powwow dancing at the Mamaweyatitan Centre in Regina, Saskatchewan. She recently traveled to Long Beach California to compete for the World Championships of Performing Arts.
Cante Bison: acahkosis, napesis, puppeteer
Cante Bison is a Cheyenne/Nakoda/Cree from the Ocean Man First Nation. His love of traditional singing and dancing has given him the opportunity to perform for many international audiences. Cante dances competitively and has claimed many championships in Canada and the USA.
Leslie Anderson: Star Boy, apsis wisahkecahk, puppeteer
Leslie Anderson is a nehiyaw boy from the Peepeekisis First Nation. He is in grade 7 and has won several championships in Basketball and Softball. Leslie trained with the Globe Theatre School for 5 years and performed in, metawemin, a play that he wrote with his dad, Sky.
Angel Whitestar
Angel Whitestar is Cree, Assiniboine, and Sioux from Oceanman First Nation, residing on Piapot First Nation with her children and husband. She has been a fancy dancer for over 30 years and artist for over 20 years. Angel loves to create and dance, and is an entrepreneur creating skirts, shirts, regalia, beadwork and quillwork. Angel is an Alumni in Indigenous Social work at First Nation’s University of Canada, registered social worker for SASW and mental health counselor with NIHB. Angel and her husband have helped create mental health and wellness programs on healthy relationships, holistic approach and traditional teachings together as one.