Trickster Performance

By Philip Jonah Logan Geller

Wednesday, April 15th - 6PM-8PM (Doors @ ~5:30PM) - Dënäkär Zho / KIAC Ballroom, Dawson City YT

Co-presented by Gwaandak Theatre and Klondike Institute for Art and Culture

To pre-register for this workshop, please visit kiac.ca by clicking here.‍ Admission to this event is Pay-What-You-Want and tickets will be available at KIAC.CA / KIAC Office / At the Door prior to the event when doors open.

Join experienced creator and performer Philip Jonah Logan Geller to explore trickster methodologies of performance and creation. Drawing from contemporary clown, physical theatre, Indigenous knowledges, and Land-based practices we will uncover our tricksters to play and generate material for performance.

As we stand at the very serious edge of the end of the world I truly believe Trickster is a key to how we can move and play forward in right relation with each other. Trickster is the one who teaches us about subversion and challenging power. Trickster tells us to celebrate the other, the strange, and the queer. Trickster offers a new-ancient knowledge system that is ancestral and future oriented.

In this workshop we will move our bodies and play, and we will explore ancestral and generational narratives that can stir up emotional responses, everyone is welcome to participate in whatever way feels best for them.

Please come ready to experiment and play! There will be some movement and writing, all abilities are welcome. Please be aware that smudging will take place prior to this workshop. All are welcome to participate but none are required.

—

Philip Jonah Logan Geller (they/them) is a Jewish and Red River Métis theatre creator, performer, director, dramaturge, producer, and clown. They have worked across Turtle Island with companies including The Stratford Festival, Native Earth Performing Arts, Buddies in Bad Times Theatre, Gwaandak Theatre, and Centre for Indigenous Theatre. They are a graduate of the MFA directing program at York University and the BFA Acting Program at the University of Alberta.

Image by Andy Carroll

Storytelling Workshop

By Whitehorse Aboriginal Women’s Circle

Friday, April 17th - 4PM-5:30PM (Doors @ ~3:45PM) - Artists’ Studio, Kwanlin Dün Cultural Centre, Whitehorse YT

The first Friday during the Awaken Festival will feature an evening of Indigenous Storytelling facilitated by the Whitehorse Aboriginal Women's Circle. Prior to this Local Presentation, they will also be hosting an in-person storytelling workshop and we hope you will join us! Please stay tuned for more information about the Workshop Facilitator who will be leading this event.

Funding Opportunities for Yukon Artists

By Heather Steinhagen & Virginie Hamel

Monday, April 20th - 4PM-5:30PM (Doors @ ~3:45PM) - Classroom A, Kwanlin Dün Cultural Centre, Whitehorse YT

Join members of the Yukon Government's Arts Branch as we explore funding opportunities for artists! This workshop will include a Q&A period and is intended for artists who already have a project in mind that could benefit from this type of support. Attendees are encouraged to come prepared with thoughts and questions relating to their specific projects and to also bring a notebook.

To find out more about the funds that will be discussed (including links to their official information and application webpages), please continue to check this space!

Exploring Indigenous Play Readings

By Colin Wolf

Tuesday, April 21st - 4PM-5:30PM (Doors @ ~3:45PM) - Classroom A, Kwanlin Dün Cultural Centre, Whitehorse YT

Gwaandak Theatre’s EAD Colin Wolf will host us online during week one and in-person during week two of Awaken as we read plays created by Indigenous writers. We will share them out loud together with vigour, experience what it feels like to perform with emotion (and without the addition of sets or props!) and explore the mechanics of a group script reading. If you have ever been interested in being involved with Indigenous Summer Play Readings, this is a great way to try it out!

If you are interested in attending the online version of this event on Tuesday April 14th from 4PM-5:30PM via Zoom, make sure you pre-register in order to receive the Zoom link!

—

Colin Wolf is a Métis performer, theatre maker, and activist from Moh’kins’tsis (Calgary), AB on Treaty 7 Territory. He graduated with a BFA in Dramatic Arts from the University of Lethbridge in 2014, and then spent five years making theatre all over the prairies. Colin co-founded Thumbs Up Good Work Theatre Collective with his sister Caleigh Crow in 2013. Colin felt the call of the North and moved to Whitehorse in October 2019 to serve as Artistic Director at Gwaandak Theatre. He wrote and produced CoyWolf, a story about loss and grief backdropped by a story of land displacement. Colin produced it as Thumbs Up in partnership with the Guild Hall Theatre in Whitehorse, and toured it to four rural communities in 2023. CoyWolf was published by Playwrights Canada Press and presented by Gordon Tootoosis Nīkānīwin Theatre in October 2025.

Image by Brian Pelchat

Trickster Performance

By Philip Jonah Logan Geller

Wednesday, April 22nd - 3PM-5PM (Doors @ ~2:30PM) - Multi-Purpose Room, Kwanlin Dün Cultural Centre, Whitehorse YT

Join experienced creator and performer Philip Jonah Logan Geller to explore trickster methodologies of performance and creation. Drawing from contemporary clown, physical theatre, Indigenous knowledges, and Land-based practices we will uncover our tricksters to play and generate material for performance.

As we stand at the very serious edge of the end of the world I truly believe Trickster is a key to how we can move and play forward in right relation with each other. Trickster is the one who teaches us about subversion and challenging power. Trickster tells us to celebrate the other, the strange, and the queer. Trickster offers a new-ancient knowledge system that is ancestral and future oriented.

In this workshop we will move our bodies and play, and we will explore ancestral and generational narratives that can stir up emotional responses, everyone is welcome to participate in whatever way feels best for them.

Please come ready to experiment and play! There will be some movement and writing, all abilities are welcome. Please be aware that smudging will take place prior to this workshop. All are welcome to participate but none are required.

—

Philip Jonah Logan Geller (they/them) is a Jewish and Red River Métis theatre creator, performer, director, dramaturge, producer, and clown. They have worked across Turtle Island with companies including The Stratford Festival, Native Earth Performing Arts, Buddies in Bad Times Theatre, Gwaandak Theatre, and Centre for Indigenous Theatre. They are a graduate of the MFA directing program at York University and the BFA Acting Program at the University of Alberta.

Image by Andy Carroll

Bodies and Water

By Erica Wilson

Thursday, April 23rd - 4PM-5:30PM (Doors @ ~3:45PM) - Multi-Purpose Room, Kwanlin Dün Cultural Centre, Whitehorse YT

This workshop is an interactive educational based workshop exploring a beginner friendly intro to understanding our bodies to work with us for every day activities. This workshop is aimed to have the participants feeling refreshed and curious to view their bodies as a puzzle - connecting the pieces together.

This workshop will include burlesque-inspired elements. Please bring a water bottle, yoga matt/blanket if you don't like the ground, comfortable clothing, a notebook and pen. Tea and fruits will be provided to the participants. If you have any dietary restrictions, please plan to pre-register for this workshop using the online form and leave a comment accordingly.

—

Erica Wilson is an Indigenous Artist and community connector located in Winnipeg, Manitoba on Treaty 1. All aspects of their art is rooted in Authenticity, Curiosity, Humor and Wisdom. Their work is currently focused on as an individual artist exploring solo projects for the first time. Where they normally thrive is within community spaces promoting education, communication and the arts.

Image by Vincent Wolfgang

Verbatim Theatre Tools - Telling Our Stories

By Yvette Nolan & Joel Bernbaum

Friday, April 24th - 4PM-5:30PM (Doors @ ~3:45PM) - Multi-Purpose Room, Kwanlin Dün Cultural Centre, Whitehorse YT

Our workshop will give participants the tools to make a verbatim theatre play. Based on a decade of making verbatim theatre together, we will teach students how to craft questions around a chosen topic, interview in a relational way, transcribe the interview material and edit text into scenes. We will also discuss ethical issues connected to verbatim theatre practice.

Up to ten attendees who have pre-registered online prior to 12PM on Monday April 20th will be invited to attend the private Friday April 24th matinee of Climate Play, subject to seating availability. All attendees should bring with them to the workshop a smartphone with voice memo functions, headphones, a notebook and pen.

—

Yvette Nolan (Algonquin) is a playwright, director and dramaturg. Her plays include The Unplugging, Annie Mae’s Movement, The Birds. From 2003-2011, she served as Artistic Director of Native Earth Performing Arts. Her book, Medicine Shows, about Indigenous performance in Canada was published by Playwrights Canada Press in 2015.

Joel Bernbaum is a playwright, director, and journalist. From 2013-2023, he served as the Artistic Director of Sum Theatre. His dissertation is about verbatim theatre’s potential to be used as a community development process. He has co-created and co-produced multiple verbatim theatre plays.

Image by Philip Adams