Indigenous dance artist Lara Kramer’s Gorgeous Tongue makes Vancouver comeback at Matriarchs Uprising, February 21

The solo for Jeanette Kotowich addresses the choreographer’s mixed Oji-Cree and Mennonite ancestry

Gorgeous Tongue. Photo by Mathieu Verreault

 
 
 

O.Dela Arts and The Dance Centre present Matriarchs Uprising from February 17 to 22 at the Scotiabank Dance Centre, with Gorgeous Tongue on February 21 at 8 pm

 

IN GORGEOUS TONGUE, Anishinaabe choreographer Lara Kramer has Nêhiyaw and Métis dance artist Jeanette Kotowich embodying stories, dreams, and songs that stem from her Indigenous heritage.

Kramer, who is also a performer and multidisciplinary artist, is of mixed Oji-Cree and Mennonite ancestry and lives in Montreal (known as Tiohtià:ke in the Mohawk language Kanien’kéha, and Mooniyang in Anishinaabemowin). She has described Gorgeous Tongue as a celebration of “Indigenous transmission, transformation and futurity”. The artist is known for incorporating unexpected everyday objects—from mattresses to trash heaps—into her works as a way to address colonialism and her mixed lineage.

Having grown out of the two artists’ friendship, the solo alternates between the need for regulation and the discovery of a new hunger. On the heels of past works Windigo and Them Voices, Kramer explores the desire and drive for pleasure and the strength of instinctual connections. Gorgeous Tongue had its Western Canadian premiere at Dancing on the Edge 2024. 

 
 
 
 
Featured
Gail Johnson
Gail Johnson

Gail Johnson is cofounder of Stir. She is a Vancouver-based journalist who has earned local and national nominations and awards for her work. She is a certified Gladue Report writer via Indigenous Perspectives Society in partnership with Royal Roads University and is a member of a judging panel for top Vancouver restaurants.

 
 

Related Articles

Articles
Hamlet, Prince of Denmark captures the inner turmoil of a man zeroed in on revenge
Hamlet, Prince of Denmark captures the inner turmoil of a man zeroed in on revenge

In a DanceHouse presentation, Guillaume Côté and Robert Lepage stage their tightly paced adaptation of Shakespeare’s story

In Fall(se) Circ(us), dancers embrace cycles of frenzied work and relatable exhaustion
In Fall(se) Circ(us), dancers embrace cycles of frenzied work and relatable exhaustion

At the Roundhouse, Little Room Productions’ inaugural piece draws on choreographer Isak Enquist’s lifelong experience in martial arts

Renowned choreographer Noam Gagnon performs a deeply personal solo live-scored by Stefan Smulovitz, March 11 to 14
Renowned choreographer Noam Gagnon performs a deeply personal solo live-scored by Stefan Smulovitz, March 11 to 14

The piece by Vision Impure, called being, comes to KW Studios courtesy of Kokoro Dance Theatre Society

In Show Gone, Ame Henderson and Matija Ferlin question the nature of endings
In Show Gone, Ame Henderson and Matija Ferlin question the nature of endings

The Dance Centre and Vancouver International Dance Festival coproduction concludes a triptych spanning over 15 years

Dance review: At Ballet BC's INFINITY, Jiří Kylián and Crystal Pite take viewers into strange, subconscious limbos
Dance review: At Ballet BC's INFINITY, Jiří Kylián and Crystal Pite take viewers into strange, subconscious limbos

Contemporary-art-like 27’52’”makes elaborate play with shadows and time, while Frontier reveals new narrative and thematic complexity

Little Room Productions premieres inaugural piece Fall(se) Circ(us), March 21
Little Room Productions premieres inaugural piece Fall(se) Circ(us), March 21

New Works copresents Isak Enquist's genre-defying fusion of martial arts and contemporary dance influences

Arts Umbrella Dance Company hosts Tempus Fugit: A Midseason Performance, February 26 and 27
Arts Umbrella Dance Company hosts Tempus Fugit: A Midseason Performance, February 26 and 27

Program features pieces by leading choreographers, including Anne Jung, Lukas Timulak, Rebecca Margolick, and Cyril Baldy

At Ballet BC’s INFINITY, Medhi Walerski pays tribute to two works that impacted his career
At Ballet BC’s INFINITY, Medhi Walerski pays tribute to two works that impacted his career

As a young dancer at Nederlands Dans Theater, the artistic director was in on the creation of both Jiří Kylián’s 27’52” and Crystal Pite’s Frontier

Dance community mourns Peter Bingham, father of contact dance in Vancouver
Dance community mourns Peter Bingham, father of contact dance in Vancouver

Based for decades at Western Front, long-time EDAM artistic director created more than 50 works and took part in hundreds of performances

DanceHouse hosts the B.C. premiere of Ex Machina and Côté Danse's Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, March 18 to 21
DanceHouse hosts the B.C. premiere of Ex Machina and Côté Danse's Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, March 18 to 21

With community partners Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival and Théâtre la Seizième, bold reinterpretation of the tragic play hits the stage

Dance review: Flowing forms and abstract storytelling in Royal Winnipeg Ballet double bill
Dance review: Flowing forms and abstract storytelling in Royal Winnipeg Ballet double bill

T’əl: The Wild Man of the Woods heralds an exciting new voice, while Carmina Burana strips the work down to its essence

Hoop dance and Métis jigging meet as Beany John and Sophie Dow take the stage at Matriarchs Uprising
Hoop dance and Métis jigging meet as Beany John and Sophie Dow take the stage at Matriarchs Uprising

The Dance Centre and O.Dela Arts present the piece that draws on the performers’ Indigenous ancestors

New Works hosts inaugural dance-focused Leadership in Practice Symposium, March 22
New Works hosts inaugural dance-focused Leadership in Practice Symposium, March 22

One-day gathering for artists, educators, and choreographers explores how leadership can be more responsive to the dance world

Royal Winnipeg Ballet’s T’əl: The Wild Man of the Woods braids Indigenous storytelling with classical dance
Royal Winnipeg Ballet’s T’əl: The Wild Man of the Woods braids Indigenous storytelling with classical dance

Rising Tla’amin choreographer Cameron sinkʷə Fraser-Monroe draws on a tale he heard growing up for a large-scale work that joins Carmina Burana on a double bill

Ballet Jörgen gives Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream a ’50s Albertan twist
Ballet Jörgen gives Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream a ’50s Albertan twist

Fun riffs on the classic include a moose-headed Bottom wearing buffalo plaid and an appearance by a royal couple

Dance review: Coregulation and calm, as Action at a Distance’s WAIL sculpts vocal sound and movement
Dance review: Coregulation and calm, as Action at a Distance’s WAIL sculpts vocal sound and movement

In this PuSh Fest, Music on Main, and Dance Centre premiere, humming songs, whispered words, and hypnotic movement bring a sense of serenity and connection to a chaotic world

In The Brutal Joy, Justine A. Chambers channels the overwhelming beauty of Black living
In The Brutal Joy, Justine A. Chambers channels the overwhelming beauty of Black living

With staging that evokes a Chicago jazz bar, the Dance Centre and PuSh Festival co-presentation draws on matrilineal fashion and line dancing

Ballet BC highlights masterful choreographers Crystal Pite and Jiří Kylián with INFINITY, February 26 to 28
Ballet BC highlights masterful choreographers Crystal Pite and Jiří Kylián with INFINITY, February 26 to 28

Program features Pite’s Frontier, a deep dive into the unknown, and Kylián’s 27’52”, an exploration of theoretical elements

Dance review: JEZEBEL challenges the stereotype of the booty-poppin’ backup dancer
Dance review: JEZEBEL challenges the stereotype of the booty-poppin’ backup dancer

In a riveting PuSh Festival and New Works copresentation, Belgium’s Cherish Menzo plays with repetition, chopped-and-screwed music, and flashing dental grillz

Review: Liquid limbs and mesmerizing visual magic at Recirquel’s Paradisum
Review: Liquid limbs and mesmerizing visual magic at Recirquel’s Paradisum

In DanceHouse and The Cultch co-presentation, the Hungarian company is full of flowing bodies and rippling fabric

At PuSh, Alan Lake Factori(e)’s mythologically driven Orpheus paints a visceral picture of loss
At PuSh, Alan Lake Factori(e)’s mythologically driven Orpheus paints a visceral picture of loss

In the deeply moving production, dancers embody the ancient tale of death and longing by tapping into their own experiences of tragedy

DANCE, FESTS, WHAT'S STIRRINGJanet SmithMatriarchs Uprising, Lara Kramer, Jeanette Kotowich, Indigenous, O.Dela Arts, The Dance Centre, Scotiabank Dance Centre