Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, tomorrow is a very special day for our Territory as we celebrate Northwest Territories Day at the Vancouver Winter Olympics.
Throughout the day there will be events and activities at venues like Canada’s Northern House to promote the people and culture of our Territory. In the evening our northern performers will take centre stages at B.C. Place in the heart of downtown Vancouver. This will be the main event of the Northwest Territories Day Victory Celebration. During this event, the Northwest Territories Performing Collective will reveal, through traditional and contemporary music, stories and dance, why our Territory is such a great place to live, visit, play and work.
I can’t say enough good things about the performers and the show. Each member of the group has an incredible amount of talent and skill. Although they come from different cultural backgrounds they’ve all done a fantastic job of blending their influences and creating a distinctly northern performance. They’ve worked for months in rehearsals, making sure everything is perfect for when they take the stage at B.C. Place.
The show is powerful and full of energy. With the theme, The Drum – The Heartbeat of the North, reflects the many aspects of life in the Northwest Territories, from the importance of our cultural heritage to how we keep ourselves entertained during the long, harsh winters. I’m sure anybody who saw the preview of the Northwest Territories Day performance at the Northern Arts and Cultural Centre on February 7th shares my excitement about tomorrow night’s show.
I want to thank the members of the Northwest Territories Performing Collective, the Inuvialuit Drummers and Dancers, youth ambassadors and the Dene and Inuit Games athletes for the great job they’ve done promoting our Territory in Vancouver. I also want to thank our partners at the departments of Municipal and Community Affairs and Industry, Tourism and Investment and everybody else behind the scenes who have invested so much time and energy in preparing for the Olympics. I want to specifically thank staff at the Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre for their support of the NWT Performing Collective.
I invite my fellow Members and all residents of the Northwest Territories to join me in sending best wishes to our performers as they make final preparations for tomorrow’s show. On Northwest Territories Day, the world will be watching. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. The honourable Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs, Mr. McLeod.
