Chan Centre unveils programming for ʔəm̓i ce:p xʷiwəl Come Toward the Fire festival, September 20 and 21
Expanded Indigenous celebration includes concerts by Northern Cree and Tia Wood, as well as a marketplace, films, and more
Northern Cree.
Tia Wood.
THE CHAN CENTRE FOR the Performing Arts is set to expand its ʔəm̓i ce:p xʷiwəl Come Toward the Fire festival into two days of programming, hands-on workshops, and performances on indoor and outdoor stages and screens, on September 20 and 21.
Presented in partnership with the Musqueam Indian Band, the fourth annual festival celebrates Indigenous culture ahead of the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, all organized by Chan Centre head curator Jarrett Martineau.
On the Sunday evening of the fest, a ticketed concert features Grammy Award–nominated powwow group Northern Cree and Juno Award–nominated Cree and Salish pop singer Tia Wood. Traditional dance groups Git Hayetsk and Coastal Wolf Pack also join the performance.
The rest of the weekend boasts a range of Indigenous performers and vendors, as well as screenings of films curated by Indigenous filmmakers. Films include shorts from the imagineNATIVE Film and Media Arts Festival, the Oscar-nominated documentary Sugarcane, and the world premiere of The Road to Hasalala Danxalax, a concert documentary of about Kwagiulth and Stó:lō mezzo-soprano Marion Newman’s production of the same name, staged when she was the Chan Centre guest curator in 2021.
Other musicians performing at the event include Choctaw artist Samantha Crain, Ombiigizi, Wyatt C. Louis, Inuvialuit music legend Willie Thrasher and Linda Saddleback, and Odanak composer Mali Obomsawin. Contemporary DJs, curated by Indigenous collective HOTLATCH, will also perform throughout the two days of the festival.
Come Toward the Fire’s Indigenous marketplace will span food trucks, artisanal vendors, children’s authors and literary programming created by Iron Dog Books, and resource booths, including Up the River Baking, Sweetgrass Soap, Amanda Ruth Beads, the Indian Residential School History and Dialogue Centre, the Museum of Anthropology at UBC, Massy Books, and much more.
For the full schedule and tickets for ʔəm̓i ce:p xʷiwəl Come Toward the Fire, head to cometowardthefire.com 
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