Children's Cultural Presentation

Yesterday we went to the Big House, what the ceremonial building for the Namgis is called, to see a presentation by students from 1st to 7th grade from the local school. Kids in the higher grades go across to Port McNiell for school. It was to celebrate the end of school and show what the students had learned from the traditional culture integrated into the curriculum. I'm pretty sure these are from the 1st grade.

The teachers were great, getting them prepared and giving them last minute instructions and retying aprons when they  fell off. She was reminding them that was no smiling in the dance. They had to look serious.

The Big House is the size of a basketball stadium and has cedar bleachers all the way around except for the front. The big log drum is at the front and the elders sit in front of it. There's a fire pit in the middle and an opening in the roof for the smoke to go out. There's some additional lighting but it's generally dim and smokey which adds to the mystery of the ceremonial dances. I can't explain all the dances. Most of them are invoking various spirits and telling stories. The kids did a good job. There must have been about 10 kids drumming.

Here's a link to a little film clip showing a scan of the Big House, part of the Wolf dance and a bit of the  dancers and people from the audience circling the fire at the end.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oPUEkmQ828k


                                                                                            These are the totems that flank
                                                                                              the front door.
The elders sit in the front in front of the drum/log.

There were two dancers with these birdlike masks that

are associated with an evil spirit that makes the 

people crave human flesh. 

(To be avoided, I imagine.)

There were four little boys doing this dance representing bears.









The blankets are traditionally blue felt with red appliques adorned with white buttons. Before they had these trade items, they wove cedar strips into capes and coverings.

This was a dance for women and involved a lot of whirling and and back and forth movement. The speed and rhythm of the dances are all controlled by the drum beat and singing.








There were several boys dressed in white with bulging eyed masks rattling clam shells and it had to do with the Coast Salish bands and being connected by marriage.

Ian's blog probably has more reliable information. He actually researches the things he writes instead of spreading misinformation like I do. summerinalertbay.blogspot.com (Ian's blog) It was a really fun evening and ended with people from the bleachers going down to join the dancers circling the fire with black and white feathers.

At the very end the hosts of the event, the school and the kids, put a blanket in front of the elders and filled it with home-canned salmon and vegetables and euchalun oil and fruit. After it had all been displayed, the kids distributed it to the the people in the audience. This is a version of the traditional Namgis Potlach, where all the wealth of a group is given away. It's a generous society and there were no war dances.