Border Crossings first worked with Indigenous artists in 2004, when we presented BULLIE'S HOUSE by Thomas Keneally, with four Aboriginal Australian performers. This experience led to a realistion of how important it is for the contemporary world to learn from its Indigenous people, particularly in relation to environmentalism and the need for post-colonial reconciliation. In 2009, we mounted the first ORIGINS Festival, which was presented bienially until the Covid-19 pandemic. Since the pandemic, we have continued to work with Indigenous artists, creating new performances and films in collaboration with them, and commissioning new artworks to engage UK audiences with Indigenous world views.
This opera-theatre performance explored the rich history and ongoing cultural significance of Latin America's Indigenous peoples. Combining ancestral dances, intricate embroidery, and shamanic ritual with the extraordinary baroque music born from the meeting of European and Indigenous traditions, the performance was a powerful journey from the oppressive colonial era towards renewal and hope. At its core was the rediscovered opera SAN FRANCISCO XAVIER, written in the Chiquitano language by an unknown Indigenous composer.
Our documentary film about this project is available here. (60 mins)
Commissioned by Border Crossings' ORIGINS Festival, and carved by Indigenous Totonac artist Jun Tiburcio, TOTEM LATAMAT is a messenger sent by the Totonac people. "Latamat" means "life" in Tutunakú, and the totem is expressive of Tot
onac spiritual ideas as they relate to the environment. It emphasises how deeply our existence is interwoven with nature, calls attention to the damage being done to the seas, the land and the air, and insists that we cannot ignore this destruction any longer.
TOTEM LATAMAT travelled to the UK by ship and toured important cultural hubs, drawing powerful links between Indigenous experience and local heritage. The totem finally arrived in Glasgow for the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26).
Following COP26 it was ceremonially returned to the Earth in Dumfries, emphasising the cyclical and transient nature of life and art.
The film of TOTEM LATAMAT's journey, introduced by our Patron Peter Sellars premiered on 21st January 2022 can be watched here. (51 mins)
To celebrate the Arctic and its importance to us all, Border Crossings' ORIGINS Festival presented a special online event in partnership with the British Museum on 3rd December 2020. The film features a range of Indigenous performers from the Arctic, and young climate activists from the Arctic and the UK.
"In times in which people are no longer connected but divided, the positive message shared [in the film is] that there is still time to reconnect the trinity of mind, heart, and spirit. And that we can take control of our actions and decisions. Global climate justice means that those who need it most, receive it. I only hope that people not having given up on educating others on uncomfortable facts will be offered more beautiful, aesthetic formats like these, combining history, arts, and culture with recent topics relevant to each of us." (London Theatre Reviews)
Watch the film here (85 mins)
Exploring a challenging shared history, the land on which we meet and the possibility of sharing ceremony; REMEMBRANCES is a unique collaboration between contemporary theatre-makers, dance artists and poets from the Midlands and First Nations Canada. it was made for the Birmingham 2022 Festival, on the occasion of the Commonwealth Games.
Watch the archive video here (47 mins)
HIDDEN HISTORIES: DISCOVERING INDIGENOUS LONDON
Documentary film (2016 - 45mins) – Narrated by Mark Rylance, the film unearths the stories of Indigenous people who travelled to London from the 15th century onwards. The extraordinary tales of Pocahontas, Joseph Brant, Bennelong and Mai are placed alongside Indigenous travellers from our own day, offering a timely re-assessment of our city and its relationship to the lands it once colonised.
Watch the trailer – Passworded link and license for full film available on request.
- The project made use of the migration histories of plants and crops, and their Indigenous cultural heritage in relation to ecology and reciprocity, as a way to stimulate young people to explore new ways of living.
- There is a playlist of short films suitable for KS2 and above.
- Project booklet which includes Indigenous gardening principles and stories behind some of the plants.
This project made use of archival photos featuring Native American people. Students used these are a stimulus to create their own photographic self-portraits. Their work, featured in this catalogue, represents a thoughtful and engaged response to the ways in which Indigenous people have been portrayed by non-Indigenous photographers.
Our Oral History archive includes interviews with Indigenous artists and partners from a range of disciplines including visual artists, musicians, actors, dancers, cultural activists and a puppeteer.
- Bella Lane
- Torgeir Vassvik
- Jun Tiburcio
- Johnny Figueroa Rodriguez
- Nathan Woodworth
- Salomón Bazbaz Lapidus
- Stephanie Pratt
- José Navarro
- Siliga Sani Muliaumaseali'i
- Rosanna Raymond
