Wrangell dancers lead the way at Celebration

Wrangell's 10-year-old Quinn Davies was "super nervous" to dance for the first time at Celebration - a biennial dance-and-culture festival of Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian cultures, held in Juneau last week.

"I'm using my dad's regalia that he used when he was in Celebration, and I'm using his hat that he also used," Davies said June 8, opening day of the four-day event.

His sister Madelyn Davies, 12, said being at Celebration is "kind of mind-blowing."

"It's a lot of people. We're all together. And it's like, everyone's showing their regalia and their culture, and it's really cool to see," she said.

Both siblings are part of the Kaasitlaan Dancers of Wrangell, one of the lead dance groups at this year's Celebration. The other lead dance group was Shx'at Kwáan, also of Wrangell.

Celebration didn't take place in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, so this is the first time since 2018 that communities from around the region and state gathered in Juneau. About 1,200 dancers from 28 groups were expected to participate this year, according to Sealaska Heritage Institute, which organizes Celebration.

"It's so wonderful to be together again," said Rosita Ḵaaháni Worl, Sealaska Heritage Institute president. She spoke to a large crowd gathered at the grand opening ceremony of the Sealaska Heritage Arts Campus, which kicked off the main schedule of events.

Central Council of the Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska President Chalyee Éesh Richard Peterson was one of several speakers at the grand opening of the arts campus in the middle of downtown Juneau.

"People have tried to marginalize us for generations to the point where our languages became near-extinct, our art had to be hidden, we had to gather and celebrate in hiding. This isn't in hiding. This is out front, in front of everybody," he said.

"We, our history, our culture is front and center. We're hearing our languages come back. Our people are having pride. People are taking that energy and putting it toward our arts. Our weavers are thriving again," Peterson said. "I want to recognize those that have brought that back, who are fighting every day for our languages, for our art, for our very way of life."

Hundreds of dancers performed on the main stage in Centennial Hall during Celebration, showcasing not only the songs trusted to them over generations but the hours spent practicing them, too. The furs, feathers and artistry featured in the Toddler Regalia Review are a testament to a grandmother's sewing skills, a mother's beadwork and an uncle's hunting abilities.

This year was Celebration's 40th anniversary and the theme was, "Celebrating 10,000 Years of Cultural Survival." Worl said that span of time is actually longer. An underwater archaeology research project has been going on for about a year, she said, "and the findings that the scientists found in this last week is that our presence goes back even further." Fish weirs found in caves indicate a presence 17,000 years ago, she said.

Dixie Hutchinson is co-dance group leader of Wrangell's Shx'at Kwáan dance group. Wrangell was supposed to be the lead group for Celebration 2020. But even with the extra years to prepare, Hutchinson said things still felt down to the wire.

"It feels like, how come I didn't have all my buttons sewed on before the four years were up," she said June 8, with just hours left to prepare for the opening dance.

The lead dance group brought forward a song which everyone sang during Grand Entrance the evening of June 8 and during Grand Exit last Saturday night.

"For Wrangell, we're singing the Loon Song that was gifted to us 125 years ago from Kake," Hutchinson said. "That part of Celebration is an honor, that they're going to be singing songs that represent our community."

Being lead dance group, Hutchinson said, has inspired people in Wrangell to resume dancing.

"To be the lead dance group and be on stage and singing everybody across, it gets people excited and dancing again who may have not danced in a while. We have an elder who's joining us on stage who hasn't danced - I don't know if she danced even growing up," she said.

About 120 people were in the Wrangell groups, including elders, adults and kids from various communities around the state and Washington, California, Phoenix and even the East Coast.

"Even though they may have grown up there but then moved away, they still remember singing and dancing," Hutchinson said. "Because people grew up understanding their history, their identity, and that presence of our culture is there, people understand that when Wrangell's dancing, that's them."

The names of different clans of Wrangell are printed on paddles that the dancers carried on stage, "so we're representing the entire kwan of Wrangell," Hutchinson said.

Along with dance performances, Celebration featured a juried art show and competition, a juried youth art exhibit, a Northwest Coast art market, Native food contests, a toddler regalia review, and a parade through downtown Juneau.

"Didn't you see the strength of our people?" Worl asked with pride after a 90-minute Grand Exit dance by this year's participants at Centennial Hall last Saturday. "Didn't you see the power of our drummers? Didn't you see the beauty of our women? Didn't you see the smiles of pride on our children? Haven't we come a long way from 40 years ago when we had our first Celebration?"

Around 120 people attended the first Celebration in 1982.

The AlaskaBeacon.com is a donor-funded independent news organization in Alaska.

The Anchorage Daily News and Juneau Empire contributed to this report.