With Indigenous Community Engagement Manager Alysha Collie!

Saturday, June 8th | 1:00 PM – 4:30 PM PST

Green Thumb Theatre, Studio A
5522 McKinnon St.
Vancouver, BC
V5R 0B6

Presented by Zee Zee Theatre
Thank you to our Community Sponsors: Rise Consulting, Improv for Work and Wellness, Nerd Nite,

Come celebrate National Indigenous People’s Month and Pride Month in this hands-on ‘Big Beaded Bling’ beading workshop with Alysha Collie (Soowahlie First Nation). Whether you’re wanting to update your drag wardrobe, celebrate contemporary Indigenous beadwork, or build allyship and connections with Indigenous community members, this is the place to celebrate our intersectionalities through common appreciation for sparkly earrings.

In this workshop, you will be guided by Alysha Collie, Zee Zee Theatre’s new Indigenous Community Engagement Manager, as you create your own show stopping pair of beaded earrings. All supplies needed to complete the earrings will be provided in a beading kit. Light refreshments of bannock with jams and Indigenous teas will be offered to all participants.

Come out to kick off Indigenous People’s Month and Pride Month with your own new stunning pair of earrings.

ABOUT ALYSHA COLLIE

Alysha Collie is a Coast Salish artist, storyteller and filmmaker from the Soowahlie First Nation mixed with European settler and African ancestry. In 2019 Collie graduated from the University of the Fraser Valley with a Bachelor of Science degree, majoring in Biology and minoring in Fine Arts. Under the guidance from Indigenous Elders and knowledge-keepers at her university she studied traditional plant medicines and applied that knowledge to help create the first Reconciliation Shakespeare Garden at UFV. This unique garden brings Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities together through plants and storytelling.

While completing her degree, Collie began working with 3 Crows Productions filming documentaries, performing as “Qwalena” and storytelling. Her passion for change helped steer Collie in a direction of educating those directly responsible for change in Indigenous student’s lives.

Collie is a multi-disciplinary artist and owner of her own company called The Collie Collective (@Collie.Collective on Instagram) where she focuses on decolonization and reclaiming her ancestral roots through her beaded jewelry, Salish art and weavings. She is a professional storyteller performing on stage in live theatre productions and improv workshops at The Flame, Surrey Civic Theatres and Tightrope Theatre. She is a filmmaker and has produced over 20 documentaries uplifting Indigenous artists, families, and Residential School Survivors. She also uses her graphic design skills to vectorize other artist’s artwork for murals in museums and galleries, including the works of Coast Salish artists Les Wells, Joann Williams, and Roxanne Charles. “Having our ancestral art forms in visible spaces is important for our current and future generations of Coast Salish Peoples to feel a sense of pride and belonging in our own territories”, Collie says. 

She also works with Zee Zee Theatre, a Queer based theatre located in Vancouver, as a Curator, Storyteller and Indigenous Community Engagement Coordinator. Her exemplary activism within the 2SLGBTQ+ community was recognized when she won the 2021 Honourable Mention of the Marie Lapuz Youth Leadership Award from SHER Vancouver.

Since 2022, Collie in collaboration with Tightrope Theatre, have raised over $3500 for local Indigenous non-profits who support healing initiatives for the multi-generations that have been affected by the Residential School system in some of the most underserved parts of Vancouver. 

When Collie is not working, you can usually find her creating in one of her many disciplines of art beside her cat or nestled in the living room of her grandparent’s house.

IMPORTANT NOTES:

• Previous beading experience a benefit but not necessary.

• We will be learning the two needle beading method, however you are welcome to use your own method if you prefer the one needle method.

• Limited bead colours will be provided. You are welcome to bring your own beads if you have a personal preference.

• Ages recommended are 13+. There will be a use of strong adhesives, needles, scissors and other sharp metal tools. Caution is advised. 

• Unfortunately there will be no childcare available on site. Please plan accordingly

• Space limited to 15 participants. An additional 5 kits available for pick up for folks who would like to complete the earrings in their own space at their own time.

• Masks are not mandatory and will be a personal choice in this space (OR)

• Masks are not mandatory in this space, and your personal choice to wear.

• If this event is not something you feel comfortable attending in person, a limit of 5 beading kits are available for those who wish to take part in the beading at their own pace. 

• Green Thumb theatre and their bathroom is accessible for folks who use mobility devices.