Canadian playwright and Dramatic Arts (DART) Assistant Professor Matthew MacKenzie (centre), citizen of the Métis Nation of Alberta, recently shared a reading of his new play “Strife” with the Brock community at the Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts followed by a discussion. This spring, MacKenzie will teach DART 2P95 Contemporary Canadian Indigenous Theatre for Non-majors, which is open to all students.
published Thursday, May 07, 2026 in the Brock News | by Gillian Minaker
Award-winning Canadian playwright and Dramatic Arts (DART) Assistant Professor Matthew MacKenzie, citizen of the Métis Nation of Alberta, is centring Indigenous storytelling through theatre education.
MacKenzie will teach DART 2P95 Contemporary Canadian Indigenous Theatre for Non-majors this Spring. No theatre experience is required for the virtual course, which is open to both Indigenous and non-Indigenous students.
Cast members of “Strife” — written by Canadian playwright and Assistant Professor of Dramatic Arts Matthew MacKenzie, citizen of the Métis Nation of Albert — visited Brock’s Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts on April 2. The cast performed a read through of the play ahead of its run at Tarragon Theatre in Toronto from April 7 to 26. Pictured from left are Tracey Nepinak, Teneil Whiskeyjack, Jesse Gervais and Micheala Washburn.
Students will gain a broad understanding of Indigenous plays written by Indigenous playwrights, knowledge MacKenzie believes is foundational to any Canadian dramatic arts education.
“Embedded in these plays is teaching and wisdom about the Indigenous experience in Canada,” he says.
Students will read works by accomplished writers such as Kevin Loring, a Governor General’s Award winner and the first Artistic Director of Indigenous Theatre at National Arts Centre; Frances Koncan, an Anishinaabe and Slovene playwright and theatre artist from Couchiching First Nation; and Kim Senklip Harvey, author of Kamloopa: An Indigenous Matriarch Story and the first female Indigenous author to be awarded a Governor General’s Literary Award for Drama.
Through a range of works that span comedy to deeply serious themes, students will explore topics such as cultural reclamation, identity and representation of historical events.
MacKenzie says the course will also help students understand why Indigenous theatre has only recently gained wider visibility.
“For a long time, the cultural sharing of Indigenous stories was criminalized in Canada, so Indigenous storytelling was suppressed or done in private. Only in relatively recent history have these stories been shared more widely and taken their place in Canadian theatre,” he says.
For MacKenzie, foregrounding the work of Indigenous artists, and students engaging with it, is a form of active reconciliation.
“Through this learning, we are not just talking about it, we are doing the work,” he says.
Issues explored in the plays — including the Sixties Scoop and the lasting impacting of the foster system and Residential Schools — reflect both distinct Canadian histories and broader patterns of colonialism.
The course invites students to engage with the material from their own perspective, whether they are Indigenous, non-Indigenous or international students.
The cast of “Strife” — written by award-winning Canadian playwright and Assistant Professor of Dramatic Arts Matthew MacKenzie, citizen of the Métis Nation of Albert — previewed the play in a read through open to the Brock community on April 2. Pictured from left are performers Jesse Gervais, Val Planche and Grace Lamarche.
“Seeing students develop this understanding through their own lens is incredibly meaningful,” he says.
MacKenzie brings a unique perspective to the classroom as an accomplished contributor to the Indigenous theatre canon in Canada and award-winning playwright. His works include First Métis Man of Odesa, Bears, After the Fire and The Particulars. His new play Strife recently ran at Tarragon Theatre in Toronto and was called a “a triumph” by the Toronto Star.
He is also Artistic Director of Punctuate! Theatre, an Indigenous-led theatre company in Edmonton which frequently tours nationally.
MacKenzie was honoured to recently be featured by the Métis Nation of Alberta, Otipemisiwak Métis Government, in its Citizen Spotlight for being a creative mentor for Métis and Indigenous people across Canada and the globe in theatre and arts spaces.
Building up other Indigenous artists is a key driver of MacKenzie’s work.
“Lifting up Indigenous theatre artists and helping to strengthen the Indigenous theatre ecosystem in Canada is a way to ensure a sustainable and thriving future for Indigenous artists moving forward,” he says.