This is an archived event from Culture Days 2025.
Images
Walking Through the Fire: Featuring Indigenous Artists with Sultans of String
In-person
Indigenous Intercultural Library Performance Singing Storytelling Theatre Truth and ReconciliationDate and time
Location
Queen Elizabeth Park Community and Cultural Centre, Rehearsal Centre (QEPCCC - Rehearsal Centre)
2302 Bridge Road
Oakville, ON
Directions: To ensure we have enough seats, registration for the concert is required. Doors open at 7pm – various displays will be available to explore before the concert, including The Debwewin: The Oakville Truth Project’s Indigenous History Exhibit. The concert will take place in the Rehearsal Hall at the Queen Elizabeth Park Community and Cultural Centre (QEPCCC). Parking is free at QEPCCC and public transit to the site is available. This is a family-friendly concert, and everyone from Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities are welcome to attend and enjoy.
Access
Free.
Offered in English.
Wheelchair accessible and has gender-neutral washrooms.
About
Experience a powerful evening of music and storytelling!
Oakville Public Library brings “Walking Through the Fire” to the stage, a musical multimedia experience featuring award-winning First Nations, Métis and Inuit artists from across Turtle Island, alongside Billboard-charting, six-time Canadian Folk Music Award winners Sultans of String.
From Métis fiddling to an East Coast kitchen party, rumba to rock, and the powerful drumming traditions of the Pacific Northwest, this event showcases the rich and diverse music of Turtle Island. Featured artists include:
• Elder and Coast Tsm’syen Singer-Songwriter Shannon Thunderbird,
• Ojibwe/Finnish Singer-Songwriter Marc Meriläinen (Nadjiwan)
• Alyssa Delbaere-Sawchuk of the Métis Fiddler Quartet
• Plus virtual guests on the big screen, including Elder/Poet Dr. Duke Redbird, the Northern Cree Pow Wow group, and more!
Chris McKhool, lead and member shares: “A central theme running through “Walking Through the Fire” is the need for the truth of Indigenous experience to be told before reconciliation can begin in earnest. Embedded in the title of the show is the energy of rebirth: fire destroys, but it also nourishes the soil to create new growth, beauty, and resiliency. “Walking Through the Fire” ensures that we emerge on the other side together, stronger and more unified.”
Links
- Register for the event here: attend.opl.on.ca
Organizer
Oakville Public Library
Oakville Public Library is committed to an ongoing journey of learning and allyship to support Indigenous voices and lived experiences, promoting reconciliation within Oakville.
Under the commitment to Truth and Reconciliation, the library has implemented several ReconciliACTIONs, such as the 4 Seasons of Reconciliation training for all OPL staff (developed by the First Nations University of Canada and Reconciliation Canada), as well as additional Indigenous education initiatives. We have also built purposeful relationships with the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation, the treaty holders of this area, along with other Indigenous community members. With support from the Government of Canada's Community Service Recovery Fund, and in consultation with local Indigenous community members, OPL has included an Indigenous Knowledge Guide as a key part of our community engagement and outreach initiatives. https://opl.ca/About-OPL/Indigenous-Knowledge-Guide