Co.ERASGA's Eternal Gestures premieres at the Scotiabank Dance Centre, October 9 and 10

Alvin Erasga Tolentino performs three solos commissioned from Indigenous choreographers Starr Muranko, Michelle Olson, and Margaret Grenier

SPONSORED POST BY Co.ERASGA

Alvin Erasga Tolentino in Eternal Gestures. Photo by Yasuhiro Okada

The Dance Centre presents the world premiere of Co.ERASGA’s Eternal Gestures on October 9 and 10 at 8 pm as part of the Global Dance Connections series. Both performances take place at the Scotiabank Dance Centre, with a post-show talkback on October 10.

Eternal Gestures is a trilogy of evocative solo works commissioned from Coast Salish choreographers Starr Muranko, Michelle Olson, and Margaret Grenier. Performed by Co.ERASGA artistic director Alvin Erasga Tolentino with lighting by Tory Ip, the poetic work uplifts the voices of Indigenous women and asserts deep connections to the land while speaking to truth, healing, and the decolonization of art.

This milestone production celebrates Co.ERASGA’s 25th anniversary and reaffirms the company’s fierce commitment to cross-cultural, experimental dance which explores identity, ancestry, and the environment. Tolentino’s captivating performance becomes both a spiritual journey and a vessel for knowledge-sharing.

Tolentino, who is of Filipino descent, is a renowned choreographer as well as performer who has created many solo works over the past three decades. Eternal Gestures shares his reflections as a mature artist, migrant visitor, and settler living on Coast Salish territories. This new commission sees him focus on interpreting the choreographic works of three Indigenous women.

Grenier is of Gitxsan and Cree ancestry. She is executive and artistic director for the Dancers of Damelahamid and has produced the Coastal Dance Festival since 2008. Grenier’s multimedia choreographic works bridge Gitxsan and Cree dance forms with current expressions.

Dancer, choreographer, and educator Muranko is of mixed Cree (Moose Cree First Nation), German, and French ancestry. She is a mother and co-artistic director of Raven Spirit Dance. As a choreographer, she is most interested in the stories people carry within their bodies, and ancestral connections to land that transcend time and space.

Olson is a member of the Yukon’s Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in First Nation, the artistic director of Raven Spirit Dance, and an instructor at Langara College’s Studio 58 Acting Program. Her work as a performer and creator embraces the arenas of dance, choreography, theatre, opera, dance education, and community arts.

For tickets and more information, visit https://thedancecentre.ca/event/co-erasga-2025/

Post sponsored by Co.ERASGA.

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