Indigenous playwright Justin Neal explores the tradition of canoeing in Keepers of the Salish Sea

The founder of Holy Crow Arts draws from his own life experiences in the story that also touches on addiction and sobriety

By Gail Johnson

Justin Neal.

Holy Crow Arts presents Keepers of the Salish Sea at The Cultch Historic Theatre from November 21 to December 1

LONG BEFORE COLONIZATION, Indigenous people navigated waterways in dug-out cedar canoes, connecting with other communities, establishing trade relations, and exchanging and sharing cultural knowledge all up and down the coast. Efforts to bring back the cultural practice locally began in the early 1990s, leading to the present day annual Tribal Canoe Journey. Thousands of people from throughout the Northwest Coast have taken part over the last three decades, rowing or taking turns hosting paddlers along the route and for the final landing, when participants join together to feast and share songs and ceremonial dances.

It's a tradition that local Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish Nation) playwright Justin Neal took part in in 2023 and one that makes up part of his new work, Keepers of the Salish Sea. Travelling from Tulalip to Suquamish in Washington State, the founder of Holy Crow Arts was one of about 5,000 folks from dozens of “canoe families” representing approximately 70 different First Nations from as far away as Alaska and California on the journey.

“I want to share a culture that has not really been understood or respected by the dominant culture; that’s part of my job as a writer,” says Neal, who is one of the resident Jack and Doris Shadbolt Fellows in the Humanities at SFU for 2024-25, hosted by the Indigenous Studies department. “People don’t really know about it, and it’s such a reconnection of culture, of our seagoing practices. I did one of the longest pulls. It was a 12-hour day and it was gruelling. It was much harder than I expected. It is not a casual thing. It’s tiring and it takes a lot of focus. Plus I’m awkward in the canoe; I’m too tall, and that was something I had to work through.”

Meegwun Fairbrother.

Neal—who premiered the play So Damn Proud in 2021 and whose latest work is directed by Reneltta Arluk—weaves in aspects of paddling into Keepers of the Salish Sea, which centres on a man named Samuel who’s living in New York City and finds himself facing alcohol abuse while questioning his life purpose. As he grapples with sobriety, the man feels compelled to move to the West Coast—which leads to a canoe journey he never considered before. The cast comprises Indigenous actors from across the country, led by TV veteran Meegwun Fairbrother (Burden of Truth, Seeds, Mohawk Girls) making his return to the stage. The ensemble cast also includes performers Marion Jacobs, Aaron M. Wells, Cheri Maracle, Cole Vandale, and Mitchell Saddleback.

Marion Jacobs.

While not an autobiographical work, Keepers of the Salish Sea draws from Neal’s personal experiences; he has held down corporate roles in New York City and San Francisco and for a time was a self-described heavy partier. He had to clean up his act with respect to addiction, he says, and eventually returned to the Pacific Northwest, having grown up on Bainbridge Island, Washington.

“About 10 percent is what I try to aim for in my stories in terms of what comes from incidents in my life,” Neal says. “Pre-Vancouver while I was in New York getting sober—those things became part of this story. It’s loosely based on my life but there’s plenty of fiction in it, and the details are different.

“In New York I was feeling disconnected to who I am and where I came from and what is my purpose. I could continue on in my corporate jobs and feeling unfulfilled and having money but is that really what I want? I felt called to come to Coast Salish territory and I think in sharing this story I’m trying to share how we have this opportunity on Earth to figure out what our life purpose is. All I can do is share one story about finding mine. The more intentional thing was to create a story about Indigenous pride, the complexity of being Indigenous, these issues that tear us apart—capitalism, gambling, alcoholism—and finding purpose in life.” 

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