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Prismatic-2020-program
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PRISMATIC 2020 FESTIVAL ANNOUNCMENT

Prismatic-2020-program

PRISMATIC 2020 FESTIVAL ANNOUNCMENT 

The Prismatic Arts Festival is a national, professional arts festival that showcases innovative work by Indigenous Artists and Artists of Colour from across Canada.

Based in K’jipuktuk (Halifax, Nova Scotia), Prismatic has been bringing audiences vibrant, boundary-pushing new works in theatre, dance, music, film, visual arts, media arts, and spoken word since 2008.

Through engaging performances, workshops, masterclasses, and artist-led talks, the Prismatic Arts Festival brings artists and audiences together for open dialogue. People of all ages and backgrounds are invited to experience Prismatic performances, engage with artists, and learn about new art forms and traditional cultural practices. Prismatic is Art for Everyone.

This year, in the midst of a pandemic, Prismatic is going to look different. But from obstacles, come inventiveness, hard work, and creativity.

We are thrilled to announce some artists for this year’s Festival, an all Atlantic roster

·       Dinuk Wijeratne
·       Liliona Quarmyne
·       Clyde A. Wray
·       Eastern Owl
·       Owen O’Sound Lee
·       Jah’Mila
·       Jenelle Duval
·       Shauntay Grant and Boca Del Lupo Theatre

Shifting Verse Prismatic Arts Festival 2020
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Shifting Verse
a Prismatic Arts Festival Production

Presented by
National Arts Centre English Theatre’s
Grand Acts of Theatre
Marking this Moment

As the performing arts sector continues to face unprecedented challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the National Arts Centre has responded with Grand Acts of Theatre, an initiative to bring Canadian artists and audiences together. Eleven of Canada’s most innovative theatre companies have been engaged to create and perform large-scale, new works in response to these times, which will be performed outdoors in front of live audiences in various Canadian locations, filmed, and later shared online. For more information on Grand Acts of Theatre and the companies involved please visit NAC’s website.

Grand Acts of Theatre is made possible thanks to the support from The Jenepher Hooper Fund for Theatre at the National Arts Centre Foundation, established as a result of a generous gift from the estate of Jenepher Margaret Hooper.
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The Prismatic Arts Festival will be making the city of Halifax its stage – filling the air with music and poetry while dancers grace the cobblestones with their movement. Join us for a special moment as we bring together artists from across Atlantic Canada to weave together a profound tapestry of art, in unity and response to the present time – Shifting Verse.

Shifting Verse is produced by Raeesa Lalani, the Artistic Director of the Prismatic Arts Festival.
Masterclasses

Co-presented with 

Fountain School of Performing Arts logo

Prismatic Arts Festival and The Fountain School of Performing Arts are proud to partner once again to continue bringing unique learning opportunities to students, through workshops and masterclasses, with some of Canada’s leading Indigenous artists and artists of colour.

Prismatic Arts Festival Open Spaces Program

Co-presented with 

Neptune Theatre Logo
Earlier this year, Prismatic Arts Festival and Neptune Theatre announced their co-presentation of two theatrical productions for their upcoming seasons, Finding Wolastoq Voice and Huff.
Due to the worldwide pandemic, these two productions have been postponed to a future date.

Brought together by a drive to empower all voices in our arts community, Prismatic and Neptune are pleased to continue working with one another on a new and exciting project, the expansion of Neptune’s Open Spaces program. Stay tuned for more details!
the TALK

Co-presented with 

Atlantic Presenters Association Logo

When the pandemic struck, the arts sector was turned upside down. Prismatic and the Atlantic Presenters Association noticed that a crucial voice was missing from the conversations taking place in our industry – the perspectives of artists, particularly Indigenous artists and artists of colour. In response, we created an online version of our TALK series, Voices We Need to Hear: Indigenous Artists and Artists of Colour.

Voices We Need to Hear has provided a space for artists to discuss their successes, challenges, and needs in order to move forward amidst the pandemic. By gathering these important and insightful perspectives, we can begin to think together about how we want to reshape the future of the performing arts in Canada.

If you would like to see any of the previous TALK sessions you can view them on our website:
Prismatic Arts Festival – The TALK 2020

save the date
September 17th 2020 – a night of live music with Prismatic at The Carleton

including performances by: Jah’Mila and Owen O’Sound Lee


September 19th 2020 – Shifting Verse in Downtown Halifax

a night to remember including performances by: Jenelle Duval, Eastern Owl, and Prismatic‘s newest production: Shifting Verse


More details about these performances will be launched soon! Make sure to check out our social media channels for all of the updates.
Raeesa Lalani Prismatic Arts Festival
“This year, our programming was shaped by two guiding principles: sustaining live performance and nurturing relationships with organizations to foster inclusivity within the arts sector. We are pleased to present an all Atlantic performance roster, along with new and innovative industry events to continue Prismatic‘s mission to be a leading Canadian arts festival that engages diverse stakeholders through performance, networking and collaborative learning.”

Raeesa Lalani, Artistic Director
Prismatic Arts Festival New staff Kelly Li
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2020 New Staff Announcement

The past few months of this pandemic have been a trying time for many people and organizations within our sector. From the bottom of our hearts, we hope that you and all of your loved ones have been staying safe and healthy.
 
We’ve worked hard and are looking forward to continuing to bring communities together by sustaining the future of live performance at the Prismatic Arts Festival.
 
Today, we want to share an update with you about what we’ve been doing at Prismatic!
Prismatic Arts Festival New staff Kelly Li

Alix Wilson – Marketing and Administrative Assistant

Alix is an artist, graphic designer and photographer currently working and living in Halifax Nova Scotia. Alix’s work has a strong focus on the blending of traditional and digital mediums, allowing her work to be heavily influenced by her background in film photography, and her love of working with code. Alix is excited to join the Prismatic team to partake in the promotion and celebration of the work created by the community of indigenous artists, and artists of colour

 

Prismatic Arts Festival New staff

Kelly Li – Event Coordinator

Kelly is an artist and filmmaker based in K’jipuktuk (Halifax, NS). She is a recent graduate of Dalhousie University and holds a Bachelor’s degree in Cinema and Media Studies. She is thrilled to be joining the Prismatic Arts Festival and to be part of a team that supports Indigenous artists and artists of colour.

Prismatic Arts Festival New staff Alix Wilson

Kim Liu – Communications Assistant

Kim has an immense passion for marketing and communications. She enjoys discussing ideas about life, music and social issues with people. Kim believes that Prismatic is a market place that combines art and culture together. Living in a country with different cultures combined together, and growing up with a different culture gives her a better understanding of the importance of showing respect and spreading out opportunities.

Raeesa Lalani
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Raeesa Lalani named Artistic Director of Prismatic Arts Festival

Raeesa Lalani
Shahin Sayadi

The Prismatic Arts Festival is pleased to announce that Raeesa Lalani has been selected to be Prismatic’s new Artistic Director. She will work in partnership with Prismatic’s founding Artistic Director, Shahin Sayadi, for the next year and will formally take over after Prismatic 2020, next September.

In Fall 2019, Shahin Sayadi and the Prismatic Board of Directors decided that it was time for Shahin to pass on the artistic leadership of Prismatic to a new Artistic Director, Raeesa Lalani. Over the next year, Shahin and Raeesa will work together to ensure a smooth transition in the organization’s leadership.

Rhia Perkins, the Chair of Prismatic’s Board of Directors, is enthusiastic about this development: “Raeesa brings a wealth of experience and a fresh point of view to the Prismatic Festival. We at the Board are delighted to place this role in her capable hands and can’t wait to see her bring her vision to life.”

Shahin, the founding Artistic and Executive Director of the Prismatic Arts Festival since 2008, sees the opportunities that this transition will have to continue the organization’s work in Canada and beyond: “I’m very proud to have built a nationally important arts festival that is now internationally recognized and I am looking forward to the energy and vision that Raeesa will bring to Prismatic as the new Artistic Director. I have full confidence in her abilities to lead Prismatic into the future, contributing to the Canadian cultural Identity.”

Raeesa has been with Prismatic for several years; she started working at Prismatic as the Marketing and Communications Manager.  Her career in arts presentation progressed steadily at Prismatic, where she became the Festival Producer and then the Associate Artistic Director. Over the years, Raeesa has made vital contributions to the Prismatic Arts Festival; she is dedicated to Prismatic’s mandate to showcase and celebrate the work of Indigenous artists and artists of colour.

Raeesa is looking forward to the opportunity to lead Prismatic: “I am ecstatic to be given the opportunity to continue the vision and execution of this incredibly important festival. I feel truly humbled that Shahin has bestowed his trust in me to help lead the organization that he has built and that is very close to his heart. I will continue to work within the current framework of the festival along with building key relationships in our community to continue to make Prismatic a household name – Indigenous artists and artists of colour deserve to be at the forefront.”

As the new Artistic Director, Raeesa will continue to work with founding Managing Director, Maggie Stewart, and Shahin will be available to provide advice and guidance, as needed, after the transition has been finalized in 2020.

Maggie reflects on this new era of Prismatic: “I have had the privilege of being part of the evolution of Prismatic over the past decade and am pleased to be able to work with Raeesa to support the next phase of the Festival’s development and operations.”

Based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Prismatic Arts Festival is an internationally recognized annual arts festival that celebrates the works of professional Indigenous artists and artists of colour from across Canada in all artistic disciplines.

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Prismatic Arts Festival 2019: in Ottawa & Halifax

Prismatic 2019 Program cover photo

The Prismatic Arts Festival, Canada’s premier multi-arts festival that exclusively features the work of Indigenous artists and artists of colour, will be hosted, September 2019, in Halifax, NS and Ottawa, ON with an extensive line-up of performances, industry events and important new initiatives.

After over a decade of successful Prismatic Arts Festivals hosted in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Prismatic is expanding the Festival to Ottawa September 12-22, where the Festival will be hosted with Ottawa’s largest independent theatre company, Great Canadian Theatre Company (GCTC). In addition to a fantastic line up of theatre, dance, music, film, spoken word, visual and media arts events, Prismatic 2019 will include two nationally important new events: the Prismatic International Arts Assembly and the Prismatic International Film Festival.

The Prismatic Arts Festival 2019 will include the following:

Theatre

· Cliff Cardinal – CBC Special

· The Tashme Project: The Living Archives

· Hong Kong Exile – FoxConn Frequency (no. 3)

· Onelight Theatre – Asheq: Ritual Music to Cure a Lover

Dance

· Esie Mensah the Artist – Zayo

· Nyata Nyata – Mozongi

· Kaha:wi Dance Theatre Blood Water Earth

Music

· Sina Bathaie

· Quantum Tangle

· Ensemble Kamaan

· The Battle of Santiago

· Diyet & The Love Soldiers

· Dinuk Wijeratne

Visual Arts / Media Arts / Spoken Word

· Rebecca Thomas

· Stephanie Yee – Broken English Karaoke

· Rah Eleh

· Zoey Pricelys Roy

Prismatic will be announcing additional artists, performances and events leading up to the Festival in 2019. There will be performances by international artists in Halifax and Ottawa and a special night of performances at the Halifax Central Library.
Tickets for all performances go on sale July 1.

Prismatic’s Artistic Director,  Shahin Sayadi, highlights the importance of Prismatic in the Canadian arts community: “Canadian artists of color are breaking barriers and are challenging the artistic landscape – their work is world class and Prismatic is stepping up to ensure that Indigenous and culturally diverse artists in Canada take their place in the national and international spotlight.”

The Prismatic International Arts Assembly, Canada’s first gathering focused on promoting the work of Indigenous and culturally diverse artists to international presenters and producers, will take place in Ottawa September 16-20. The Assembly will include pitch sessions, showcase performances and networking events that will provide opportunities to international stakeholders to connect with Canadian artists and their work. Additionally, there will be conference events, open to the public, where Prismatic will lead a dialogue on new, artist-centered approaches to presentation, touring and arts marketing.

Prismatic 2019 will also include the debut of the Prismatic International Film Festival, which will be curated and produced by Winnipeg-based filmmaker and musician, Jorge Requena Ramos. The Prismatic International Film Festival will showcase and celebrate the work of Canadian Indigenous and culturally diverse filmmakers and international film artists of colour. Watch for more news about the Prismatic International Film Festival, including a call for submission that will be coming soon.

The Prismatic team (Shahin Sayadi,  Maggie Stewart, Raeesa Lalani, Patrick Gauthier) is thrilled to be working with our presenting partner in Ottawa, GCTC, led by Artistic Director, Eric Coates: “The world needs a bit of Prismatic right now. This festival exemplifies what it means to be curious about humanity in the best possible way. We are thrilled that our friends are bringing their extraordinary achievement to Ottawa.”

Prismatic is supported by the Canada Council for the Arts | Conseil des Arts du Canada, Canadian Heritage, Nova Scotia’s Department of Culture, Ontario Arts Council – Conseil des arts de l’Ontario and the Halifax Regional Municipality. Sponsorship opportunities for Prismatic 2019 in Ottawa and Halifax are available to corporations who want to support the Prismatic Arts Festival, International Arts Assembly and International Film Festival.

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Prismatic 2017 – New Chapter Grant Recipient

A special, one-time program created on the occasion of the 150th anniversary of Confederation.

The Canada Council funded New Chapter as part of a historic re-investment in the arts. The highly-competitive program attracted over 2,000 applications – from which 200+ exceptional projects have been selected. Together, these projects showcase the diversity of artistic expression across our country and will create a lasting legacy for all Canadians.
These are three of the 200 exceptional projects funded through the Canada Council for the Arts’ New Chapter program. With this $35M investment, the Council supports the creation and sharing of the arts in communities across Canada.
Ces projets sont les trois des 200 projets exceptionnels soutenus par le programme Nouveau chapitre du Conseil des arts du Canada. Avec cet investissement 35 M$, le Conseil des arts appuie la création et le partage des arts au cœur de nos vies et dans l’ensemble du Canada.

Cris Derksen – The Orchestral Powwow Project

with members from Symphony NS

 

For her third studio album, Orchestral Powwow, Cris Derksen paired up with Tribal Spirit Music and traveled, researched, worked and collaborated with powwow groups to create a cinematically symphonic and truly Indigenous album. She’s a classically trained cellist and composer whose music braids the traditional and contemporary. Derksen weaves her classical background and her Indigenous ancestry together with new school electronics to create genre-defying music. In her words “what excites me most about this project is bringing our Indigenous music to the centre of the European model and we as Indigenous artists lead the way with our drums and our heart beat to create new forms of music.”

Onelight Theatre – Asheq: Ritual Music to Cure a Lover

 

Asheq Ritual Music to Cure a Lover
Set in a sun-baked fishing village on the shores of the Persian Gulf, Asheq explores forbidden love, a family divided by long-held secrets, and a community balancing traditions and the modern world. The play culminates in a zar exorcism ceremony to rid a young man of the “sickness” of his love for an outcast young woman, that reveals a father’s long-buried secrets. See a workshop presentation of Asheq in its early stages of development under the artistic leadership of Onelight Theatre’s Shahin Sayadi.

The Mariachi Ghost – Rencor Vivo

featuring local dance artists from Nova Scotia

Mariachi Ghost Prismatic Arts Festival

Winnipeg based music sensation, The Mariachi Ghost, has been commissioned by the Prismatic Arts Festival to develop a new theatre/music hybrid performance: Rencor Vivo. In Rencor Vivo, The Mariachi Ghost brings to life Juan Rulfo’s novel, Pedro Paramo, in a spectacle of theatre, music, dance, and video projection. Inspired by magical realist literature, Rencor Vivo is a visceral story told using the local lowbrow slang of Rulfo’s homeland. The style is a perfect mix of tradition and modernity.

The Mariachi Ghost are coming to Halifax to develop Rencor Vivo. They will perform excerpts from the production and a concert of their unique music. The full production of Rencor Vivo will debut at Prismatic 2018!

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