Scenofest

JUMP DOWN TO CALLS FOR PARTICIPANTS

The Three Sisters

Located near Canmore, Alberta, between Calgary and Banff National Park, is a mountain known as the Three Sisters. The mountain is known for its three peaks and is a significant landmark to the area with stories and the name originating with the Stoney Nakoda First Nation. This mountain has served as an inspiration for our thinking around World Stage Design writ large and small. WSD is a multi-summit event, like the Three Sisters.

Through our discernment of priorities for this event, the planning committee has been inspired by landscape of the region. While travelling from Banff to Calgary, surrounded by the Rocky Mountains and looking onto the prairie unfolding before us, we crafted our three sisters of Scenofest. These sisters are individual peaks but also closely connected as they share a singular base, and extend from the same piece of earth. Like the base of the Three Sisters mountain, the coming together of our Three Sisters will be a fertile and lively place.

Big Sister

Indigenous Ways of Knowing

Saa’kokoto, our friend, a Blackfoot Elder and member of the Blood Tribe, has graciously agreed to be the knowledge keeper for WSD 2022. We look forward to working with Elder Bottle, Saa’kokoto, to learn more about the Blackfoot way of living in Mohkinstsis and how interaction with land, landscape and storytelling have meaning for cultures of today. Canada is at a watershed moment in our history where many truths are being unearthed and brought to light, where our history as a settler culture is calling current generations to begin to repair damages and live together in a good way with Indigenous peoples. Scenofest will offer opportunities for professionals and students to explore the beautiful landscape in Southern Alberta and learn about Blackfoot ways of knowing the land, landscape and storytelling.

Middle Sister

Ecoscenography

Coined by Tanja Beer, the term ecoscenograpy, conjures ideas of ecology, economy, landscape, scenographic theory, and possibility. We are living in complex times, facing climate change, animal extinction, and resource depletion. As artists, creators, and makers, we have been asking, “what can we do to consume less, pollute less, and yet maintain aesthetics that appeal to our audiences?”. Beer’s theories of ecoscenograpy are appealing because they are rooted in aesthetic thinking and hopeful approaches to the creation of performance. We look forward to events that will encourage innovation and hopeful exploration of the impossible. The Sustainable Theatre Project will be a central part of Scenofest activities on the Main Campus of UCalgary.

Little Sister

Multiple Realities

While the name of this sister seems diminutive, it is in fact, the hardest peak to climb of the Three Sisters mountain. The world of performance design has expanded to include virtual reality, artificial reality, and digital reality. Yet, we are still grappling with contextual and historical realities, cultural realities, and of course as designers, architects and technicians we cannot escape material reality. Multiple Realities allows the exploration of many aspects of performance design and lets us engage with digital methodologies and practices while connecting to our current state.

The effect of the whole or the trickling of ideas from these peaks to the base of Scenofest will be the connection of all WSD events. For example, the Sustainable Theatre Project may host Indigenous Ceremony or performance which may engage the creators and audience in cultural realities explored through digital expression. We look forward to seeing what the commissions of OISTAT and the artists of Scenofest will create!