Two weeks ago actor Michelle Thrush struck out on Stephen Avenue to ask Calgarians what they knew about Treaty 7.
“The only person who really knew about Treaty 7 of course was a native person” she says. “There were even other native people who didn’t know what Treaty 7 was about.”
Calgarians’ sparse knowledge didn’t surprise Thrush. She was part of Calgary 2012’s Aboriginal Advisory Circle during Calgary’s Cultural Capital year and the group along with Calgary 2012’s creative producer Michael Green wanted to create a legacy based on a topic that Albertans didn’t know much about. So began the Making Treaty 7 project which is now presenting public theatrical performances at Heritage Park on September 11 13 and 14. Thrush acts in the show and co-directs alongside Blake Brooker with Green as creative and executive producer.
So what is Treaty 7? The short version is that it was an agreement signed on September 22 1877 between Queen Victoria and southern Alberta First Nations including several Blackfoot and Stoney-Nakoda nations as well as the Tsuu T’ina Nation. A longer more detailed version is presented in the Making Treaty 7 production. And the long long version? Maybe the world we see around us today.
“The scope of the subject matter is just wildly immense” says Kris Demeanor a key contributor to the show who’s participating as both a musician and actor. “We can’t talk about the signing of the treaty in 1877 without talking about all that happened before and all that happened after and all of the people that were involved.”
“All of the people” encompasses a lot of perspectives; the project has had dozens of collaborators of many cultural backgrounds both First Nations and non-indigenous peoples. And this isn’t only about Blackfoot and British but also Chinese-Canadian black Canadian and more. The cast currently sits at 26.
“Who knows next time we mount it how many people will be a part of this cast?” says Thrush. “But that is truly what southern Alberta is about: we’ve got all different types of people here.”
Of course First Nations are central to the story and were central to the creative process too. From the start the creative team worked closely with elders both in terms of gathering information about the treaty and the effects it had on First Nations people and also to get artistic feedback as the show took shape.
“There’s such a gulf sometimes between the way the facts are recorded and disseminated through the written tradition as opposed to the oral tradition” says Demeanor explaining why consulting elders was integral to the process. Thrush agrees commenting that this project was “the first time I have ever sat down and just listened to elders and used that to create a performance.”
After over two years of work Making Treaty 7 has evolved into an ambitious multidisciplinary performance (albeit one presented outdoors so be sure to dress for the weather). “Music dance comedy there’s going to be some tears there’s going to be some shocking moments. People are going to be entertained on so many levels when they come see this show” says Thrush. “We’ve got a whole array of performances a whole spectrum of voices from southern Alberta who live here who are part of the tapestry of this earth here.”
While the show is non-linear it naturally centres on the historic treaty and you’re sure to leave knowing a little more than when you came in. “We really want to bring across what was in that treaty what was promised and what was understood and what was mistakenly heard or interpreted how that influenced the way we still think and feel today” explains Demeanor.
And of course it doesn’t end there: “Ultimately the point of this piece is to say what now? What is the relationship now going to look like?”
The idea is that Making Treaty 7 can be presented year after year and the number in the project’s title is another clue to where this can grow. With 11 treaties in Canada Thrush would love to see Making Treaty 7 inspire other treaty lands to tell their own stories through their peoples and artists. “I would like to see the people from all over Canada understanding [to] the full level what happened in the history of that area why the First Nations people of this land feel like we’re misunderstood or we’re not listened to” she says.
“With everything that’s going on in Canada we need to hear each other — we need to truly on a heart level hear each other.”
Making Treaty 7 runs September 11 13 and 14 at Heritage Park.
