Native Earth Performing Arts

Native Earth Performing Arts
Name	Native Earth Performing Arts
Founded	1982
Location	Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Genre	Indigenous theatre, performing arts
Notable people	Tomson Highway, Yvette Nolan, Marie Clements, Drew Hayden Taylor, Lee Maracle

Native Earth Performing Arts is a Canadian professional theatre company based in Toronto, Ontario, founded in 1982 to produce and promote Indigenous playwrights and performers. It has served as a launching pad for contemporary Indigenous dramaturgy, collaborating with artists across Turtle Island and engaging institutions in North America and Europe. The company has intersected with major cultural organizations, festivals, and funding bodies while influencing Indigenous cultural policy and artistic practice.

History

Founded in 1982 amid the cultural movements of the late 20th century, the company emerged during a period marked by activism linked to events such as the Constitution Act, 1982, the Oka Crisis, and rising visibility of Indigenous arts in Canada. Early seasons featured plays that dialogued with works by playwrights like Tomson Highway, whose playwriting and advocacy intersected with the company’s mission, and collaborations with institutions such as the National Arts Centre, the Harbourfront Centre, and the Shaw Festival. Over decades, seasons included premieres alongside tours that connected to festivals including the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, the Toronto Festival of Arts and Culture, and presentations at venues like Factory Theatre and the Royal Alexandra Theatre. Leadership changes involved figures connected to organizations such as the Canada Council for the Arts, the Ontario Arts Council, and allies from the Native Women’s Association of Canada and Assembly of First Nations who influenced governance and programming.

Mandate and Mission

The organization’s mandate centers on producing, developing, and presenting Indigenous theatrical works by playwrights, directors, and performers from diverse Nations including Cree Nation, Haudenosaunee Confederacy, Anishinaabe (Ojibwe), Mi’kmaq, Métis Nation, and Inuit. The mission emphasizes cultural sovereignty in performing arts, advocacy for Indigenous intellectual property echoed by groups such as the Assembly of First Nations and the Indigenous Languages Act milieu, and partnership-building with entities like the Canadian Museum of History, the Art Gallery of Ontario, and university theatre departments at University of Toronto, York University, and Concordia University. The company’s policy framework has been informed by national dialogues including reports by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada and recommendations impacting arts institutions.

Productions and Programs

Productions have ranged from premieres of new scripts to revivals of landmark works by playwrights such as Marie Clements, Yvette Nolan, Drew Hayden Taylor, Tomson Highway, Ellen Gabriel, and Lee Maracle. Programming has included playwright development labs, youth apprenticeships modeled on partnerships with organizations like Indspire and MaRainey Theatre School, touring collaborations with the National Arts Centre and community residencies in places such as Winnipeg, Vancouver, Montreal, Sault Ste. Marie, and northern communities including Iqaluit. Season initiatives have intersected with festivals including the Stratford Festival outreach programs, the Toronto International Film Festival cross-disciplinary projects, and interdisciplinary collaborations with companies like Buddies in Bad Times Theatre and Factory Theatre.

Notable Artists and Alumni

Alumni and collaborators include playwrights and artists connected to broader cultural networks: Tomson Highway, Marie Clements, Yvette Nolan, Drew Hayden Taylor, Lee Maracle, Sharon Pollock, Sky Lee, Santee Smith, Michelle St. John, Lorne Cardinal, Moya Bailey, Kaitlin Tickner, Craig Lauzon, Santee Smith, August Schellenberg, Susan Aglukark, Adam Beach, Gord Downie (collaborative contexts), Wab Kinew, Jackie Torrens, Lisa Meeches, Tommy Prince (historic portrayals), Kateri Akiwenzie-Damm, Waawaate Fobister, Harlan Pruden, Nadia Nakai, Alanis Obomsawin, Ellen Gabriel, Shawn O’Neill, Rita Joe, Marie Wilson (broadcast journalist). Many alumni later engaged with institutions such as the National Aboriginal Achievement Foundation and academic appointments at University of British Columbia and McGill University.

Indigenous Cultural Impact and Community Engagement

The company’s community engagement reached urban Indigenous communities in Toronto, partnerships with friendship centres like the Native Canadian Centre of Toronto, and outreach to reserves such as Six Nations of the Grand River and Mohawk Council of Akwesasne. Programs addressed language revitalization in collaboration with First Peoples’ Cultural Council initiatives, land-based cultural education aligned with groups like Idle No More, and cross-cultural exchanges with Indigenous artists from Aotearoa New Zealand and Hawaii. Impact has been documented through collaborations with researchers at institutions including Ryerson University (now Toronto Metropolitan University), University of Waterloo, and community archives such as the Indigenous Performing Arts Alliance records.

Funding and Governance

Funding streams have involved partnerships and grants from the Canada Council for the Arts, the Ontario Arts Council, municipal arts councils such as the City of Toronto, and project-specific support from foundations like the Trillium Foundation and corporate sponsors including national media partnerships. Governance structures have included boards with representatives from Indigenous organizations such as the Assembly of First Nations, the Native Women’s Association of Canada, and liaison with cultural policy bodies like the Department of Canadian Heritage. Financial oversight and charitable status intersected with regulations under the Income Tax Act (Canada) concerning nonprofit arts organizations.

Awards and Recognition

The company and its productions have received recognition through nominations and awards connected to the Dora Mavor Moore Awards, the Governor General's Awards in Visual and Media Arts milieu, and acclaim within Indigenous cultural award networks including the Indspire Awards. Individual artists associated with the company have been honored by institutions such as the Order of Canada, the Lieutenant Governor’s Award for the Arts, and festival prizes at events like the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and the Toronto Fringe Festival.

Category:First Nations theatre companies Category:Theatre companies in Toronto