Marrie Mumford

Marrie Mumford, appointed the Canada Research Chair in Aboriginal Arts and Literature at Trent, will be the first artistic director of Trent’s First Peoples Performance Space.

Marrie (Metis/Chippewa-Cree) has spent over 25 years in professional theatre in Canada and the U.S. as an actor, director, producer and instructor. She has taught at acting studios and at the University of Toronto after earning a M.A. from Brandesis and a B.A. from the University of Alberta.

She has worked with the Native Earth Performing Arts Inc., Tarragon Theatre, Theatre Passe Muraille, Factory Theatre and Toronto Free Theatre (Toronto) and nationally with De-Ba-Jeh-Mu-Jig Theatre Group, Theatre Calgary, Citadel Theatre, Manitoba Theatre Centre and the National Arts Centre in Ottawa.

From 1992 to 1995, Marrie worked with the Ontario Ministry of Culture to implement a cultural industries strategy for Aboriginal Arts organizations. From 1995 to 2003, as Artistic Director of the Aboriginal Arts Program at the Banff Centre, she founded and established innovative programs such as, the Aboriginal Dance program, the Creation of New Works program, the Aboriginal Women’s Voices music project, the Aboriginal New Media program, the Aboriginal Screenwriters’ Program and the Aboriginal Curators series at the Walter Phillips Gallery.

Marrie has also participated on the First Peoples Advisory Committee for the Canada Council, juried the Dreamspeaker Festival in Edmonton and the Sundance Festival in Utah and been a member of the Canadian Aboriginal Music Awards Committee. In 1996, Marrie was honoured with the first James Buller Award for the Advancement of Aboriginal Theatre by the Centre for Indigenous Theatre.

Susan Aglukark

Singer / songwriter Susan Aglukark is one of Canada's most unique artists and a leading voice in Canadian music. She blends the Inuktitut and English languages with contemporary pop music arrangements to tell the stories of her people, the Inuit of Arctic Canada.

The emotional depth and honesty of her lyrics; her pure, clear voice and themes of hope, spirit and encouragement have captivated and inspired listeners from all walks of life.

Susan's genuine concern for others combined with her political & social awareness lead many to view her as a role model. She is also rapidly becoming known as an uplifting motivational speaker, able to reach both youth and adult audiences alike.

Susan had held command performances for HRH Queen Elizabeth (twice), Canadian Prime Ministers Jean Chretien and Brian Mulroney and the President of France, Jacques Chirac. She has performed for Nelson Mandela and Governor General of Canada Adrienne Clarkson as well as several other dignitaries. Equally important to her are the many, many villages across Canada and the Arctic.

Most recently, Susan was invited into the Order of Canada and was presented her Officer of the Order of Canada award in September of 2005 for her contribution both musically and as a workshop facilitator and mentor in the aboriginal community.

Awards include: Juno Awards (3) and several Juno nominations presented by C.A.R.A.S. (Canadian Association of Recording Arts & Sciences); the first-ever Aboriginal Achievement Award in Arts & Entertainment, and the Canadian Country Music Association's (CCMA) Vista Rising Star Award, along with several other CCMA nominations.

Susan's albums Arctic Rose, Christmas, This Child, Unsung Heroes and Big Feeling have sold over 400,000 copies in Canada to date. Susan has her sights set on touring her new album ( released in 2006 ) and the continuation of her activist work. Susan says she never strays far from her roots or the people of Arctic Canada where she grew up; her ultimate message, "to learn to be yourself and believe in that person" reaches much further and touches all people everywhere.

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