Montreal Is Hosting Free Concerts This Week To Celebrate Indigenous Peoples

The 32nd edition of the Festival international Présence autochtone de Montréal starts Tuesday, August 9, and will continue until Thursday, August 18. You can expect lots of free shows in the Quartier des Spectacles, including concerts, exhibitions and theatrical performances, as well as an Indigenous film festival at the Cinéma du Musée.

Présence autochtone "is the contemporary resurgence of the oldest cultures on our territory," festival Artistic Director André Dudemaine told MTL Blog. "It's an opportunity for Montrealers, Quebecers and tourists to connect with the spirit of this place, and further their knowledge about [...] the ancestral cultures that developed here."

More than 200 Indigenous artists will be participating in the event, including singer Leonard Summer, "Inuindie" artist Beatrice Deer, Pinaskin, Digging Roots, Mack MacKenzie, Matiu, and Omer St-Onge, who will present the autobiographical play Uteï, récit d'un survivant.

On Sunday, the show Amitié Nuestroamericana will "celebrate the brotherhood that unites the First Nations, the peoples of our America and those of other regions and continents of the world."

All these shows, as well as the opening evening at the Monument-National theatre, are free to attend. You can also buy tickets to enjoy the festival's cinema events or the concert Quelque part et autres lieux at the Grande Bibliothèque.