Indigenous Artist

Originally from Kahnawake and now living in Montreal, Barbara is the choreographer and director of A’nó:wara Dance Theatre. She has been on her toes since the tender age of 4 when she started studying classical ballet. She landed her first professional dance role at age 17 and then went on to graduate with a BFA in theatre from Concordia University and from the Native Theatre School. She has studied in many forms of dance, including ballet, contemporary, jazz, hip-hop, powwow, etc. As a choreographer and dancer, she specializes in creating works that highlight Indigenous themes/stories/perspectives by often combining powwow, Haudenosaunee dance, and mainstream contemporary styles to create a fusion of dance that speaks to many different populations and tastes.
She regularly performs in theatres, festivals, films, schools, conferences, and other special events. Some of her most recent work was performed at the Banff Centre, the Montreal Olympic Stadium, the National Arts Centre, the Confederation Centre for the Arts PEI, the First People’s Festival in Montreal, Place-des-Arts, Prismatic Festival Halifax, Festival Quartiers Danses, and other places across Canada and the USA. She was one of the only 8 dancers in North America invited to perform at Gathering of Nations (New Mexico), the world’s largest powwow, in their first-ever hoop dance competition 2015.
She also works with La Danse sur les Routes du Quebec as an Indigenous Project Development Officer.
She continues to teach dance and often is a consultant for Indigenous arts for various organizations.
In 2019 her dance piece MY URBAN NATURE was awarded best choreography for outdoor show by Festival Quartiers Danse, her piece SKY DANCERS was a recipient of the National Creation Fund, in 2008 she was awarded the Mila Voynova Outstanding Instructor Award, she has been invited as an artist and a speaker nationally and internationally (Banff Centre, Enartes Mexico, CanDance Ottawa, etc), and her first film for children was awarded one of the Top 10 Best Active Products of the Year (Dr.Toy).
Her goal is to inspire others, encourage cultural pride, uplift the spirit, and increase education and communication.

INDIGENOUS ANCESTRY

First Nations

SELF-IDENTIFICATION

Kanien'keha:ka (Mohawk) from Kahnawake