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Dancing Chiax, Dancing Sovereignty: Performing Protocol in Unceded Territories

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 April 2016

Mique'l Dangeli
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Abstract

This article focuses on the work of Squamish dance artist S7aplek (Bob Baker) and the ways in which the assertion, negotiation, and enactment of Chiax (Squamish protocol) is vital to his artistic process and performance. Unceded Squamish territory includes the lower mainland of Vancouver, Howe Sound, and the Whistler corridor in British Columbia. Through an analysis of two of S7aplek's collaborations, I argue that his practice affirms Squamish land rights, epistemology, and hereditary privileges among diverse audiences and collaborators. Grounded in Chiax, these assertions of sovereignty are an embodiment of politics and self-determination that I refer to as dancing sovereignty.

Keywords

Collaborative processdancing sovereigntyland rightsprotocolrelationscapessovereigntytransmotionunceded
Type
Articles
Information
Dance Research Journal , Volume 48 , Issue 1: Indigenous Dance Today , April 2016 , pp. 75 - 90
Copyright
Copyright © Congress on Research in Dance 2016 

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