THE VOICE OF THE RIVER: Grand River Community Play Project
A list of upcoming PRE-PRODUCTION events.
| DATE & TIME | EVENT & LOCATION | DESCRIPTION |
| June 5, 2025 8:00 PM | Songs of the Grand River and beyond The Fergus Grand Theatre 244 St. Andrew Street, Fergus, ON | In Benefit of The Voice of the River: Grand River Community Play Project Featuring James Gordon Tickets: $28 Purchase tickets here |
| May 3, 2025 12:00 – 3:00 PM | Quilt Workshop Six Nations of the Grand 30 Cao Lane, Ohsweken, ON, N0A 0A7 | Anyone can participate! Click here to learn more about the quilting workshops. Various dates and locations. To register, contact Pat Flood pflood@uoguelph.ca Free to attend. |
| April 22, 2025 7:00 – 9:00 PM | Public Community Meeting The Paris Wincey Mills Co. 31 Mechanic Street, Paris, ON | Public meeting for information, sharing stories, and getting involved in this multi-location theatre production along the Grand River. Learn more with no pressure of commitment by attending this meeting. Please bring a story to share about you and the Grand River! Free to attend. |
| April 12, 2025 10:30 AM – 1:30 PM | Quilt Workshop Southgate Public Library Library Mill Room, 80 Proton Street, North, Dundalk, ON, N0C 1B0 | Anyone can participate! Click here to learn more about the quilting workshops. Various dates and locations. To register, contact Pat Flood pflood@uoguelph.ca Free to attend. |
| April 8, 2025 Two times: 10:30 AM – 1:00 PM 2:00 – 4:30 PM | Quilt Workshop Dunnville Community Lifespan Centre 275 Ramsey Dr. Dunnville, ON, N1A 0A7 | Anyone can participate! Click here to learn more about the quilting workshops. Various dates and locations. To register, contact Pat Flood pflood@uoguelph.ca Free to attend. |
| April 4, 2025 2:00 – 4:00 PM | Story Circle Schneider Haus National Historic Site 466 Queen St S, Kitchener, ON N2G 1W7 | Come join us for a story circle! |
PAST EVENTS
On Saturday, July 20, the telling the story of the Grand River – celebrating 30 years since its induction into the Canadian Heritage Rivers System in 1994 – was experienced with creative workshops in puppetry, music, art, and movement at the Hillside Festival!
Saturday, July 6 from 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm
Participants came together at the Queen’s Square studio at the Idea Exchange in Cambridge for a Community Quilt Workshop with the Grand River Community Play Project.
A GRAND SPRING played in Brantford and in Dunnville May 25 and May 26th, 2024 as well as at the Chiefswood Park on June 8th, 2024.
Photo: Aisin, Sam, Neo and Brett
Community Quilt Project & Story Circle Workshop (Ongoing)
Be a part of the story of the River, created and developed by the people of the River, and ultimately told to those who are engaged and impacted by the River.
This was an info/workshop session happening to explore ideas for you to create own square for our quilt celebrating the Grand River.
This is your opportunity, anything goes! The only limitation is a 10X10-inch square and your imagination
Bring your own material or use the material provided. All skill levels are welcome!
What happened in 2023?
We continue to gather in story circles, weaving song with story, and poetry, performance with quilting, mapping, photography and documentary film. The structure for the piece is based on the Two Row: indigenous stories will flow alongside settler stories with the third structural piece being the voice of the River herself. Over the next year and a half, the project will continue to evolve and grow – leading to a full production in August of 2025. At that time the company will travel by horse-drawn wagons journeying from the headwaters to the mouth of the Grand. Each day we will stop in a community and weave ceremony with music, dance, theatre, and interactive art installations. We will share a meal and the next morning be on our way, inviting people to join us as we travel. And on the fourteenth day there will be a final performance/celebration at the mouth of the Grand in sight of Great Lake Erie.
November 2022
Season One – Play Prologues
The first season saw two presentations over two weekends in November of 2022 – one set in Chiefswood Park at Six Nations, and the other at Abe Erb’s Grist Mill in Waterloo, Ontario.
The Canadian Centre for Rural Creativity in association with Six Nations Tourism, the Two Row Wampum, Six Nations Polytechnic, RTO4, and the City of Waterloo, offered two unique presentations – one held at Six Nations and the other in the city of Waterloo.
PROLOGUE #1
WHERE: Chiefswood Park – 1037 Brand County Hwy. 54, Osweken, Ontario
WHEN: November 12, and 13th, 2022
The presentation began just before sunset on both days – with a Thanksgiving under the trees followed by a walk of the Park with stops along the way for stories/poems/songs. The journey concluded at the Six Nations Tourism Office with an interactive art experience with the Dragonfly installation. A discussion followed to explore next steps for the Grand River Community Play being built for the summer of 2024.
PROLOGUE #2
WHERE: Abraham Erb’s Grist Mill – Caroline St N, Waterloo, Ontario
WHEN: November 19, and 20th, 2022
The presentation began in the afternoon with a water ceremony on Laurel Creek and was followed by stories/poems/songs. Attendees were led by music while entering the Grist Mill to experience the interactive Dragonfly installation. A discussion followed on next steps for the Grand River Community Play.
(Dragonfly image by – https://www.exarstudios.com/)
