Borealis

• Published in: Canadian Theatre Review
• Main Author: Lee, Susan
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: University of Toronto Press Inc. (UTPress) 2013
• Subjects: Visual Arts and Performing Arts; Arctic
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.3138/ctr.155.008; https://ctr.utpjournals.press/doi/pdf/10.3138/ctr.155.008

Alejandro Ronceria, founding Artistic Director of the Aboriginal Dance Program at the Banff Centre for the Arts (1996-2001), is an influential figure in indigenous dance. This article examines Alejandro Ronceria's dance dramaturgical process as the artistic director for the Cultural Gala Performances of the Arctic Winter Games 2012 in Whitehorse, YT. The participants of the Cultural Gala consisted of sixty young performing artists representing twelve groups from nine regions of the Arctic Circle, whose disciplines ranged from contemporary to traditional indigenous styles in music, dance, and storytelling. This article describes how Ronceria's creative and dramaturgical process for the Cultural Gala was informed by his deep knowledge of indigenous worldviews and proposes that Ronceria's methodology stems from his extensive experience as a dramaturge with aboriginal artists.