The 2019 Awards Ceremony (credit: Justin Tang/AIP)
Watch with us on February 19, 2021
The countdown is on! In just a few days the 2020 AIP Laureates will be announced. Over the course of 90 minutes their dreams will come true and their projects, so carefully planned with so much dedication and collaboration, will come into focus. And then their real work will begin.
But first, it’s time to celebrate! This year’s AIP Awards Ceremony will be broadcast and webcast across the country on APTN and APTN lumi on February 19, 2021. This is an amazing opportunity to bring the prize and its Finalists and winning Laureates to the attention of Canadians from coast to coast to coast.
Under the masterful artistic direction of Leela Gilday, the ceremony promises to be both spectacular and ambitious, with performances from Northern artists stretching from west to east. “From dance to song, and from tradition to new ways of expression, this year’s performances will be as wide-ranging and diverse as the North itself, and will embody the theme of ‘their blood runs through our blood’. This year we celebrate the AIP Laureates and their incredible projects by recognizing how a traditional Indigenous Arctic worldview inspires and informs innovation and creation in our world today.” said Leela Gilday.
Audiences will be dazzled by the performances of The Dakhká Khwáan Dancers, fiddling sensation Wesley Hardisty and Juno nominees Silla + Rise. Closing the show is will be a stunning virtual performance by the Pan Lab Alumni Choir, which will see 12 young people join in harmony from all five communities in Nunatsiavut!
The AIP is also thrilled to welcome Yukoner Chantal Rondeau and Nunavik’s Andrea Brazeau as hosts. And, while the big cheques won’t be making an appearance at this year’s ceremony (if you’ve been at past AIP awards ceremonies, you’ll know what we mean!), there will be some incredible and emotional surprises as we reveal the winners of each of the prize categories: Youth, AIP and of course the one million dollar winner!
It’s true that we wish we could all gather in person to celebrate this round of AIP Finalists and Laureates, but this virtual ceremony is certainly an exciting new way to extend the reach and visibility of the AIP and its community.
So stay tuned for more updates and we’ll “see” you on the small screen on February 19, 2021!
