SPHERE Festival 2024: An Artistic Odyssey Celebrating Nature’s Wonders

By David Johnson

From September 10-20, the National Arts Centre will host SPHERE, a multidisciplinary festival celebrating the inspirations that lie in nature, as an opening to its 2024-25 season. Produced by the National Arts Centre Orchestra and curated by Alexander Shelley, the festival includes participation from the NAC Orchestra, NAC Dance, NAC English Theatre, NAC Indigenous Theatre, NAC French Theatre, Popular Music and Variety, and 1 Elgin Culinary Arts.

The festival begins with the world premiere of UAQUE at the NAC’s Southam Hall on September 10 and 11 at 8 pm. The multidisciplinary performance, whose title means “kin, relative, neighbour, friend” in the Indigenous Muisca language in the choreographer’s native Colombia, will feature music by the NAC Orchestra led by Alexander Shelley and electronic music producer Eƨƨe Ran. On stage, 10 dancers choreographed by Andrea Peña are set against an installation of photographs by Edward Burtynsky.

“I can’t think of a better way to begin my inaugural season at the NAC than with the world premiere of UAQUE,” says Caroline Orht, who embarks on her inaugural full season as Executive Producer of NAC Dance.

“The NAC is honoured to partner with Andrea Peña & Artists to premiere such a meaningful and important work, bringing together dance and music with Edward Burtynsky’s striking photographs that speak volumes about our planet’s vulnerable state. We invite audiences to pause and reflect on our connection to the earth.”

After the opening nights, a week of events follows, with Juno Award and Polaris Prize-winning tenor Jeremy Dutcher performing in concert with the NAC Orchestra on September 13. A member of the Tobique First Nation, the inspiration for his upcoming performance is from an ancestral quote that translates to, “As long as there is a child among our people, we will protect the land.”

On September 14 and 15, playwrights David Yee and Berni Stapleton will present Walking on Water, a double bill of live radio dramas that imagine the future of Canadian neighbourhoods in a world affected by climate change.

Also on the 14, the NAC will host a day of free activities in its public spaces, including music, dance, workshops crafts and interactive activities.

On September 15, the NAC will partner with the Canadian Museum of History for a day of free family activities that blend natural science and art, including a live demonstration by visual artist and microbiologist Chloé Savard, also known as @tardibabe to her one million Instagram followers.

On September 17 at Southam Hall, Quebecoise playwright Christine Beaulieu presents a night of symphonic poetry and vocals that takes the audience on a journey through the lives of wild salmon in The Salmon of the Mitis River.

On September 19, 1 Elgin restaurant’s Resident Chef Chris Commandant will prepare a special dinner preceding the first of two nights of performances of Homelands. Choreographed by Tekaronhiáhkhwa Santee Smith, this multimedia piece will celebrate the connection between First Nations women and nature.

The festival will close on September 20 with Voice of Nature, presented by Grammy Award-winning soprano Renée Fleming and the NAC Orchestra led by Alexander Shelley. This promises to be an evening filled with music contemplating the state of the natural world, accompanied by an original film from the National Geographic Society.

In addition to the evening performances, there will be multiple free live talks at the NAC throughout the festival. “I am thrilled to begin my tenth season at the NAC with the second installment of such a timely and ambitious festival. At the heart of SPHERE is an invitation to celebrate the intellectual and artistic inspiration that Mother Earth gives us and to explore our fragile relationship with her,” says Alexander Shelley, curator of the festival and Music Director of the NAC Orchestra.

“As a hub for performing arts in Canada’s National Capital, we will honour the region’s three major rivers and its numerous waterways through adventurous, vibrant, and thoughtful programming presented by some of the country’s most celebrated and emerging artists. We invite our audiences to journey with us as we consider the future of the natural world and its most abundant resource through song, dance, theatre, and visual art.”

Events will take place at the NAC on 1 Elgin Street, with a day of free activities at the Canadian Museum of History. To get tickets or learn more about SPHERE, click here.