Matriarchs Uprising 2026: Talking Truths Circle Conversations: International Interconnections
Host Olivia C. Davies
Date/Time: Feb 20 2026, 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm
Vancouver, The Dance Centre | Event calendar677 Davie St
Tickets
Cost: Free
As a special pre-show offering to our Friday evening program, join Raven Spirit Dance co-artistic directors, Michelle Olson and Starr Muranko in conversation with choreographers, Amelia O’Leary and Olivia Adams in this Talking Truths Circle Conversation: International Interconnections.
Host bios
Michelle Olson is a member of the Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in First Nation and the Co-Artistic Director of Raven Spirit Dance. She studied dance and performance at the University of New Mexico, the Aboriginal Arts Program at the Banff Centre and was an Ensemble Member of Full Circle First Nations Performance. Michelle works in areas of dance, theatre and opera as a choreographer, performer and movement coach and her work has been seen on stages across Canada and most recently, overseas at the Kia Mau Festival in Aotearoa. She has a MFA in Directing from the UBC Theatre and Film Department and is currently teaching at Langara’s Studio 58.
Starr Muranko is a dancer, choreographer, Mother, and Co-Artistic Director with Raven Spirit Dance. Her work explores the stories carried within our bodies and the deep connections between land, ancestry, and memory and emphasizes the importance of creative collaboration. Featured works over the past 20 years include Tracing Bones, Chapter 21, Spine of the Mother, before7after, dance films and collaborative work Confluence which have collectively been shared across Canada and internationally.
Since 2005, Starr has been honoured to dance with the Dancers of Damelahamid where she was mentored by the late Elder Margaret Harris and is currently Artist-in-Residence with Ballet BC alongside longtime collaborator Margaret Grenier. An experienced facilitator, Starr offers powerful workshops that invite community into personal story and movement as pathways of connection and remembering. She honours her Omushkegowuk Cree (Moose Cree First Nation – Treaty 9), French, and German ancestry in all that she creates.
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