tsekan

And if our visions of the future are rather echoes of a past long gone?

In the not-too-distant future, a giant, turtle-shaped starship lands on Earth. Nanabush, creator of Turtle Island, appears to remind us that the coming times will be critical for the survival of the human species. Indigenous peoples have been prophesying about this for a long, long time. What kind of future awaits us? If any exists at all?

Tsekan is part of a cycle of creation initiated in 2013, for recompose at the Phenomena Festival in Montreal. Divided into thirteen scenes, which mirror the thirteen moons in a year, the concept of time and space in Tsekan is inspired by the lunar cycle. The boundaries between past, present, and future are continually blurred.

Combining poetry, indigenous languages and technology, Tsekan offers a dream-like vision of what is at stake in today’s world. Projections skillfully overlaid on an ingenious set design reinforce the breadth of the performance, plunging the spectators into a timeless, often mysterious atmosphere. Enhanced by a lm-like soundtrack, spectators are taken on a voyage into the boundless time of the prophecy.

The project’s collaborators come from different indigenous nations and artistic practices. Together, they create a unique theatrical language immersed in technology, yet anchored in secular mythology.

Original concept and direction: Émilie Monnet Collaboration on artistic direction: Charles Koroneho Writing of scenes: Émilie Monnet avec Cris Derksen, Waawaate Fobister, Geronimo Inutiq, Charles Koroneho, Caroline Monnet, Sabrina Ratté Interpretation: Waawaate Fobister Et Émilie Monnet Music and sound design: Cris Derksen Et Geronimo Inutiq Sound design (narration): Alexander Macsween Video design: Caroline Monnet Et Sabrina Ratté Additional images: Sonny Assu Set design: Charles Koroneho Et Émilie Monnet Lighting design: Gonzalo Soldi Costume design: Swaneige Bertrand Technical design and video integration: Hub Studio / Thomas Payette, Gonzalo Soldi Et Hugues Caillières. Technical direction: Maxime Bouchard Pre-recorded voices: Joy Blacksmith, Véronique Thusky, Delbert Sampson, Sylvia Cloutier Cultural and anishnaabemowin consultation: véronique thusky Illustration: Amanda Stron

PERFORMANCES

Co-presentation with OFFTA, May 31, June 1 and 2, 2016 at the Monument-National (Montreal).

“This year, OFFTA is drawing attention to indigenous people’s creations, most notably in Tsekan, a fantasy drama by Émilie Monnet about a spaceship that lands on Earth to remind us about the need to treat our environment with respect. Monnet and Waawaate Fobister perform to music by Cris Derksen and Geronimo Inutiq.”

“Here, in “Tsekan” are the elaborations of (counter-) myths as alternative cosmologies to our present global Western visions of where we are, where we are going, and how we can act [… ] Necessary ceremonies in critical times. ”

And if our visions of the future are rather echoes of a past long gone?

PERFORMANCES

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