Executive/Artistic Director of Prismatic Arts Festival Raeesa Lalani Photo by James Arthur MacLean Photography
The Prismatic Arts Festival, a multidisciplinary arts festival that showcases and celebrates innovative work by Indigenous artists and artists of colour from across Canada (and beyond!) kicks off in venues across Kjipuktuk (Halifax) from September 26th, 2025 to October 5th. I sat down with Artistic Director Raeesa Lalani to chat about the festival via Zoom.
Lalani mentions to me that there are three different portions of the festival this year- their festival programming that is happening in venues throughout the city between the 26th and the 5th, their Industry Series, which is a collaboration with CanDance Network and Live Art Dance, which runs from the 26th to the 28th, and Beyond the Festival, which extends programming beyond the 5th of October.
She says that CanDance, the national network of dance presenters, reached out saying that they were holding their meetings in Halifax this year, and it coincided well with the timing of Prismatic. “I curated the festival very heavily to showcase marginalized Atlantic dance so that they had as many dance offerings [to see while they’re here] as possible.” She brought Pisuwin back, which premiered at Prismatic two years ago, “because we really wanted to make sure that we’re highlighting as much incredible Atlantic dance work as possible.” Pisuwin is the first ever Wolastoq contemporary-story ballet and feature music by Jeremy Dutcher. “Of course we always have our co-presentations with Live Art Dance, so they came on board as well.” Together all three have put together an Industry Series focused on dance, with Live Art doing two showcases, as well as networking opportunities for folks from different communities to meet one another.
“[Beyond the Festival] came about as a response from the pandemic,” says Lalani, “where we had made a lot of commitments to a lot of artists, but it was really hard to schedule them within our festival dates because they were all trying to rebuild their tours. So, we’ve created this framework that we can do programming and support artists outside of just our festival dates.” She notes that Prismatic is the Entertainment Producer for the Wije’winen Gala for the Mi’kmaw Native Friendship Centre at the Halifax Convention Centre on October 4th.
She also notes that Prismatic has been working with artists to bring their work beyond Halifax outside of the festival season. In the Spring they partnered with the Neptune Theatre TourCo to bring Lisa Nasson’s play Moose & Hawk and Daisy Rayne’s play Golden to Unama’ki/ Cape Breton. Similarly, before Cian Parker’s show Sorry For Your Loss from Aotearoa/ New Zealand opens in Halifax, she will perform in Wolfville and Annapolis Royal. “Since we are bringing [Cian] all the way here we have to make sure that we’re giving as much opportunity as possible [for folks to see her show],” says Lalani. They have also networked with some presenters in Toronto to bring the show there as well.
“Cian speaks NZSL, New Zealand Sign Language. She is a hearing artist, but one of her focuses for her creation of work has really been prioritizing access. She built her show with another artist, a New Zealand Sign Language Interpreter, and she does the show with interpretation integrated in the show. It’s not like having sign language on the side of the stage as an interpretation, it’s really like this person, for lack of a better term, is almost like a shadow, [she] is on stage with her and they actually do the show together, so it’s being spoken in two different languages at the same time. It was really important in her creative process to have this person integrated… what a revolutionary way of creation… we’re just starting to see these conversations happen here in our art sector [about how to make the arts more accessible to folks with disabilities].” When thinking about bringing this show to Halifax, they needed to be able to translate the NZSL into ASL, so they are bringing in a Deaf Artist from Toronto named Gaitrie Persaud-Killings, who has been working with Parker all summer rehearsing the show in ASL. “That’s definitely one of the biggest highlights for us, knowing that there are revolutionary ways of creating that artists are doing in other countries, and how we can bring that here and showcase it, and also give an opportunity to a Deaf artist that we can bring to Prismatic; that’s really exciting.”
Prismatic also has shows at both Neptune Theatre’s Fountain Hall and Scotiabank Studio Theatre. Bear Grease opens on the MainStage on September 30th, and Mischief opens in the Studio on September 26th. “We didn’t realize [when we programmed Bear Grease] that it has a [viral following] on TikTok.” Lalani says that when attending powwows and Mawi’omis over the summer she was surprised to learn that so many folks there were already very familiar with the show. “They were just Off-Broadway in New York all summer, so they’re coming in hot with this exciting version of their show.”
“We are also partnering with Neptune to premiere Lisa Nasson’s work Mischief: a Mi’kmaw story by a Mi’kmaw writer, performed by an Indigenous cast on the Neptune stage. What more could you ask for?!” she laughs. She also notes that Angelique Francis, a Juno Award winning musician, will be performing at the Carleton on September 27th as well.
Lalani says that being a multidisciplinary arts festival that supports Indigenous artists, Black artists, and artists of colour is very unique within Atlantic Canada, and even across the country. She notes that Prismatic has a reputation across the country within the arts sector, and that as “global shifts of conversations of wanting more diverse programming, or wanting to see more leaders of colour” folks look to Prismatic as both a pioneer and one example of how these things can be done. “It’s a high responsibility for us as an organization, but also something that we pride ourselves in so intensely.” She notes that Shahin Sayadi founded the festival here back in 2008, long before these conversations around diversifying the Canadian theatre, music, and dance communities were happening in the mainstream. “It’s really important to continue that legacy.”
Access for audience is also extremely important to Prismatic, which is why they offer barrier-free ticketing, and recently they have been more focused on bringing the arts to community rather than trying to find ways to bring the communities to established theatres in the city. “That’s why I’ve really been focusing on building these tours and building opportunities to take these shows to different places, so that we can meet people where they are.” Lalani shares an example of an actor who had the chance to perform in a show on their own reserve saying, “They were like a celebrity,” the whole community showed up and this actor was signing autographs for them. “It was one of the most beautiful moments I’ve ever witnessed because it was so authentic… It’s really special.”
Lalani notes that Prismatic was founded in 2008 out of “a really big need and understanding that there was no space being carved out for marginalized professionals, and by professionals I mean people who have decided that they are making art and being an artist their daily living and profession… Shahin, who had graduated from [Dalhousie University] as a mature student did not have opportunities after [he graduated]- no one was casting him in anything because he was a Brown man with an accent. So for him, he started a little theatre company (Onelight Theatre), so that he could start creating his own work, and in doing that he recognized that ‘if I am struggling and not receiving equal opportunity as my other colleagues and fellow graduates are, I’m going to create a platform for other folks who are going through what I am going through.’” Prismatic started as a small two hour program at Neptune Theatre where he programmed work from now well-established and beloved artists like Shauntay Grant, and Ursula Johnson. From there it grew into a three day festival, then a full week, and by the time Lalani came aboard she expanded it to two weeks. “It was really carving out that space that wasn’t intentionally there for marginalized artists to have main stage opportunities… to have the budget, have the funding, have the best venues, the best technicians, because you’re deserved of that, and no one is doing it for you… so let’s do it for ourselves and in turn for others.”
She notes that it’s very important to build reciprocity in relationships, both bringing in marginalized artists from other countries and telling them ‘there’s someone in Canada who wants to make space for you and who’s prioritizing you as an artist,’ and then, conversely, also Prismatic wants to make sure that artists from Atlantic Canada, and Nova Scotia specifically, have opportunities to go to bigger stages in other cities, provinces, and countries to have export opportunities as well. “Last year we did a Beyond the Festival project where we took a couple of Indigenous musicians down to Chile.. to perform and showcase. They were the two Canadians there… for us, everything we do is for the artists. We’re guided by the artists. We hear what the artists need and then we figure out a way to help support that.”
Prismatic continues in venues throughout the city until October 5th, 2025. For more information about their programming please visit this website.
