Indigenous-led play explores how people are healing from effects of Treaty 7, Indian Act

Dustin 'Dusty' Frank is learning a lot about himself and his identity through the character he's playing in O'kosi, a theatrical production being staged this month at the Grand in downtown Calgary.

"There's so much that I, myself, I'm discovering and going through this journey of trying to find out who I am and what it means to be a part of the treaties," he said.

"There's a lot of people that I think it could really connect to, especially our youth that really need this kind of voice."

Frank plays a character named Jordan Dabrowski — a young Blackfoot man who lives in Mohkinstsis (Calgary) who was adopted and raised in a Polish family — something Frank says makes Dabrowski disconnected from his culture.

"He struggles with connecting to the land, his people, the culture, the language," Frank said. "He's had some issues where he felt like he didn't fit in and that cemented the idea in his head."

Set in Calgary from 1877 to an imagined world-ruined future in 2077, O'kosi — meaning autumn in Blackfoot language — is a production by Making Treaty 7 Cultural Society.

The production explores the repercussions of the signing of Treaty 7 in 1877 and the advent in 1906 of the Indian Act — which outlined everything from the current reserve structure to the creation of residential schools — while examining what healing can look like.

There are several performances of the production, including on Sept. 22, which marks exactly 146 years since the day the treaty was signed.

It's something co-writer and artistic director Michelle Thrush says gives it a purposeful connection to Treaty Day. 

"Truly that's what the show is about," she said.

"It really hit the families hard, when you think of not only the signing of the treaty but then the residential schools that came through and all the things that separated us from our children."

The play has themes of joy, sadness and humour, but it also brings an element of education through storytelling, according to those involved. 

It runs between Sept. 22 and Sept. 24 and again between Sept. 28 and Sept. 30. Tickets are being sold on a pay-what-you-can-afford basis.