DANIELLE LAROSE

Creator

BIOGRAPHY

Taanishi kiyawâw. Danielle LaRose dishinikashoon. Ni wahkômâkanak michif de nipaapaa, au nom de Daze, Nadeau, Marchand, Bouvette i LaRose, Pembina (Red River Valley) d’ooshchiw. My matrilineal Mennonite family, names Abrams and Kehler, also trace our settler roots back to the Red River Valley. Aen koonteur niya, okitohcîkew niya. I am a guest on Treaty Six territory and a proud member of the Métis Nation of Alberta. I currently live in Amiskwâcîswakahikan and I have had the privilege of working as a playwright, performer, director, composer, and storyteller across Turtle Island and the UK. "The Poisoner's Daughter" will delve into my family history using elements of Michif language, Métis folklore, and traditional Métis music. With this piece, I hope to share the story of my great-great-grandmother, Hélène LaRose nee Bouvette, in the spirit of kwayaskâstâsowin- setting things right.

COLLABORATOR

Valerie Planche

BIOGRAPHY

Valerie is an award-winning actor, director, and arts educator of Metis, French and European heritage, with close to 40 years’ experience on Stage and in Film and Television. She has an MFA from the University of Alberta.

As an actor, Valerie has performed across Canada and in the US, garnering awards such as an Elizabeth Sterling Haynes Award for Little Elephants and Queen Lear is Dead, Betty Mitchell Awards for The Importance of Being Earnest, Communion and The Good Life, as well as nominations for Gaslight, Music for Contortionists, Elizabeth Rex, The Constant Wife, Perfect Pie.

As a Director some credits include Steel Magnolias for Theatre Calgary, Honour Beat for The Grand Theatre and New West Theatre, Queen Lear is Dead for the Fox Den Collective (won Best Director, Best new script and Best Production), Sweat (nominated for Best Production) for The Arts Club and Citadel Theatres, Constellations for Alberta Theatre Projects, Skylight and Bad Jews (won Best Director) for Theatre Calgary; Arden of Faversham for The Birmingham Conservatory – Stratford Festival.

Film and TV roles include Under the Banner of Heaven, Billy the Kid, Blackstone, Burn Your Maps, It’s not my Fault (And I don’t Care Anyway), Broke Back Mountain, Right Side of Wrong, In Cold Blood, Shanghai-Noon, The Jack Bull, Blackstone, Heartland, Caitlin’s Way.

Awards include the Flare Creativity Award from the Banff Centre for the Arts in 2019, the Michelle Dias Award from Theatre Alberta in 2018, the Gina Wilkinson Award from the Shaw Festival in 2015 and an Alberta Graduate Teaching Award in 2014 from the University of Alberta.

She is a member of Canadian Actors Equity, the Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists, the Association of Acting Coaches and Educators, and the Canadian Guild of Stage Directors and Choreographers.