Festival Art Souterrain

For the launch of the Festival, Ivanie Aubin-Malo revisits her recent research by presenting an excerpt from her interdisciplinary show Wahsipekuk: Au-delà des montagnes, which premiered at the Agora de la danse in November 2024. This production takes the form of a renewed tale that invokes the giants of the Wabanaki Confederation. For the Festival Art Souterrain, her performance is based on a Wolastoqey poem that mainly mimics the sounds of nature. For instance, the sound “k” followed by a breath resembles a drop of water, evoking both the melting of ice and the initial oscillation that gives rise to a wave. Central to Aubin-Malo’s movements is an iliacus, a part of the bone from a giant woman’s pelvis, symbolizing the origin of creation—an ancestor that must be cared for. The iliacus, adorned with double-curved motifs unique to the Wabanaki Confederation, also connects to Wolastokuk and signifies the interrelationship between the spirit and material worlds.

In this performative interpretation, Aubin-Malo aims to revive ancient stories, words, and sounds of the language, contributing to the vitality of Wolastoqey culture.

“The Wolastoqiyik Wahsipekuk First Nation, formerly called the Maliseet of Viger First Nation, is the only Wolastoqey Nation in Quebec territory. Six other [Wolastoqiyik] Nations are in New Brunswick, and [another is in Maine, in the United States]. After the loss of Viger’s reserve lands in 1869, the community dispersed over the territories of Quebec, Canada and the United States. Today, the [Wahsipekuk] Nation owns a small reserve land at Cacouna in Bas-Saint-Laurent and the members still constitute a diaspora living on the Québec territory and beyond. Several members of the Nation still go to Wolastokuk, ancestral territory, to practice traditional activities.”
(Source: https://wolastoqiyikwahsipekuk.ca/. Modifications made by the artist)

Aubin-Malo is a Wolastoq and Quebec choreographer, performer, and curator residing in L’Islet (QC), located in Wolastokuk. She won the Prix de la danse de Montréal in 2023 in the Revelation category. She has coordinated events for the MAQAHATINE collective, which she founded in 2020. These gatherings bring together Indigenous performers to explore new collaborations and share cultural and technical knowledge. Additionally, she contributes to the conceptualization of Indigenous artistic programs such as OHAKWARONT (heron) at the Centre de Création O Vertigo and Nikak Tagocniok (les outardes arrivent) at the Théâtre Gilles-Vigneault in Saint-Jérôme, QC. She envisions a Wolastoqey cultural center in her region to allow members of the Wolastoqiyik Nation to reconnect with their culture through artistic and community gatherings.

To find out more about this vision, visit www.wolastoqiyikatonikek.ca.