Awaken Festival 2026
April 12th-26th | Whitehorse, YT & Online
Question… Honour… Celebrate… Awaken!
Gwaandak Theatre presents Awaken Festival 2026 - Featuring in-person and digital workshops, cultural presentations, performance showcases, and more - all in an effort to celebrate the different ways we can gather and connect! This hybrid festival is curated for Indigenous and Northern artists as well as interested members of the public.
As winter transforms into spring, life wakes up in the North. Mother Bears pass on knowledge to their cubs in order for them to thrive on their own. Awaken - so to speak - connects “cubs” (new and aspiring artists) to “mother bears” (experienced artists). Join us this spring from April 12th-26th, 2026 in Whitehorse YT and Online to learn, share, and Awaken new beginnings within yourself and your community.
We encourage you to check out the Festival pages below and to follow us on Instagram and Facebook to stay updated - more pages and events are being added, so stay tuned!
Find out more about our Current Season or get special updates throughout the year by subscribing to our e-newsletter using the link at the bottom of this webpage. If you would like to check out past Awaken Festivals, please click here.
*All details are accurate at the time of posting and are subject to change.
Thank you to the sponsors & supporters of the 2026 Awaken Festival!
We acknowledge the support of the Government of Canada (nous reconnaissons l'appui du gouvernement du Canada), the Canada Council for the Arts, the Government of Yukon, the City of Whitehorse and Lotteries Yukon. We acknowledge the support of the Canadian Race Relations Foundation with funding provided by the Government of Canada. Funding for Gwaandak Theatre is made possible through the assistance of Arts Operating Fund - Annual Operating Component, Department of Tourism and Culture, Jen Gehmair, Minister.
We also thank the Kwanlin Dün Cultural Centre and their staff for their generous support as our Festival Hosts as well as Air North, Yukon’s Airline and Northern Vision Development LP (NVD) for their continued support of visiting artists. We are also grateful to What’s Up Yukon for their promotional support and to Pivot Theatre for their support of the Awaken Theatre Gathering.
If you would like to support the Awaken Festival and Gwaandak Theatre through sponsorship, please check out our Sponsorship Opportunities package. Want to arrange a time to meet and discuss the possibilities? Please send an email to Colin Wolf, our Executive & Artistic Director, at colin@gwaandaktheatre.ca - we would love to hear from you!
- Save The Date -
You are invited to the Eighth Annual Awaken Festival, taking place April 11th-25th, 2027 in Whitehorse YT and Online!
