The acclaimed stage and screen actress and musician Cheri Maracle discusses her starring role in the one-woman show on the life of Pauline Johnson Paddle Song at the Firehall Arts Centre starting tonight until 21 November 2021, with Joseph Planta.

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver, British Columbia, at TheCommentary.ca.

Starting tonight at the Firehall Arts Centre is a production of Paddle Song. It’s a show by Dinah Christie and Tom Hill, that stars Cheri Maracle as the Mohawk poet Pauline Johnson. It’s a one-woman musical the depicts the poet and performer of the late nineteenth century, who challenged the stereotypes of women and Native peoples within her work. She toured across Canada, the United States, and Great Britain during the late 1800s and early part of the twentieth century to great acclaim, emerging as a powerful female voice in a male-dominated literary world. I’ll ask Ms. Maracle who joined me this past weekend in the middle of rehearsals for the show, to talk about this new production, what Pauline Johnson’s legacy is, and why she should be known. Cheri Maracle is the acclaimed, award-winning actress and musician. She studied theatre at Capilano University, and the Spirit Song Native Indian Theatre School. She made her debut with at the Firehall Arts Centre. Since then her credits include Blackstone, Degrassi, Murdoch Mysteries, Dead Man’s Gun, Moccasin Flats, and Blackfly, among many others. She’s received awards and great acclaim for previous productions of Paddle Song, and has performed it throughout Canada and abroad. This production at the Firehall runs from tonight until 21 November 2021. Visit www.firehallartscentre.ca for tickets and information. A recording of this production will be available for viewing at a later date. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Cheri Maracle; Ms. Maracle, good morning.

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