Margaret Grenier becomes emotional when she speaks about the impact of her mother, the late Indigenous elder Margaret Harris.

That’s because Harris, a choreographer and dancer, instilled in her a belief that their family would be strengthened by keeping Northwest Coast singing and dancing traditions alive.

Grenier, artistic and executive producer of Dancers of Damelahamid, has developed a newly choreographed short dance work reflecting her mother’s Cree heritage and the Gitksan bloodlines of her late father, Chief Kenneth Harris.

The two of them founded Dancers of Damelahamid in 1967 to revive traditional artistic practices that were outlawed during Canada's ban on potlatches from 1884 to 1951.

“All of her work was done out of love and hope,” Grenier told the Straight by phone. “I think that that hope for our children and for our future is a really integral part of what we’re working through to honour her.”

This work in progress will be presented at the 14th annual Coastal Dance Festival, which is taking place online this year.

Harris was 89 when she died last year. In 2019, she and her husband were inducted into the Encore! Dance Hall of Fame.

“I think about her age and what she endured as an Indigenous women, in terms of what she had to overcome to be fearless,” Grenier said. “To have the impact that she did is quite remarkable.”

When her mother married, she knew little of Gitksan traditions. But she immersed herself in revitalizing dance in several communities along the northwest coast of B.C.

"I had to be groomed by my mother-in-law," Harris said in the videotaped interview below. "We had to attend functions, feasts, and different things that I had to learn about. Part of it was teaching the traditional dances and songs because every song tells a story."

In addition, Harris encouraged greater understanding of Indigenous music, regalia, masks, and storytelling, which are all embraced by the Dancers of Damelahamid. And she trained her children how to make blankets, moccasins, and drums.

“She was so resourceful,” Grenier recalled. “She really gave us the ability to work within all these mediums. That was important to her: that knowledge would be passed forward.”

However, her death could not be properly mourned in a ceremony because of the pandemic, she said. So the new short dance work is a way for the family to process their loss.

Grenier plans on turning it into a full-scale production in the future.

Last November, the Canada Council for the Arts honoured Grenier with the 2020 Walter Carsen Prize for Excellence in the Performing Arts for her life’s work of elaborately choreographed multimedia presentations, which include projections on-stage.

She anticipates that the final completed work reflecting her mother’s contributions will include similar such elements.

“They have an ability to really support the story in a way that makes it accessible, especially to audiences that don’t already have a background and understanding of the mask dances and what’s being shared,” Grenier said.

The Coastal Dance Festival was inspired by a similar festival that Harris ran in Prince Rupert from the 1960s until 1987.

"It was such a wonderful way to connect with community," Grenier said. "It really shaped me and my practice as a young dancer, as well."

This year's festival is free with a series of prerecorded performances that will be available online.

In addition to Dancers of Damelahamic, the lineup includes Chinook Song Catchers (Squamish and Nisga'a), Dakhá Khwáan (Tlingit), Git Hayesk (Tsimshian led), Git Hoan (Tsimshian, Tlingit, and Haida), Spakwus Slulem (Squamish), 'Yisya'Winuxw (Kwakwa̱ka̱’wakw), Matoska & Nahpeyo Baker-Peters (Squamish and Kwakiutl with ties to the Cree), and The Rez Kids I Guess (Musqueam).

The Rez Kids I Guess are comprised of two youth artists, Casey James and Demetrius Kenoras-Paul, who recently released their first CD, Shxwelten Shxweli. It translates to “the spirit of our elders songs live”, according to the Coastal Dance Festival website.

Grenier said that James's grandmother, Gina Grant, used to bring him to the festival when he was a boy. And Grenier recalled him asking his grandmother many years ago why their family was not part of the event.

"I thought of how a young Indigenous boy could be impacted by what he saw and what he experienced—and then to step into his own place," Grenier said. "He's sharing two traditional songs. He composed both of them. I just find that really remarkable."