Cultural Festival The National Artists Program Opening and Closing Ceremonies

Cultures of the North  

Experiencing and celebrating northern culture and friendship became the cornerstone for cultural and ceremonial aspects of the games.  

The opening and closing ceremonies presented games athletes and officials with official protocol elements in a celebration of modern and traditional northern culture. Traditional sports, music, dance, theatre, and multimedia all combined to welcome and bid farewell to athletes, officials and dignitaries in unique and compelling multidisciplinary productions for live and national broadcast audiences. 

The vision of the Cultural Festival included: a celebration of contemporary and traditional Northern culture, a snapshot of the North today, and a desire to create a dynamic and exciting crucible in which performing and visual artists could interact. It included seven days of artistic, athletic, community and culinary programming in a large tent on the waterfront, five nights of concerts at the Yukon Arts Centre, a massive snow carving installation and a special public art exhibition presenting the work of young Canadian visual artists from the North and South.  

The National Artist Program, a standing feature of the Canada Games, involved inviting 39 young artists from each province and territory to converge in Whitehorse for a two week residency to produce three concerts, animation and an art exhibition at the Yukon Arts Centre. The theme of the program was 'Defining Moments' which probed the yearnings, struggles and triumphs of artistic practice. NAP artists also performed at the Closing Ceremonies.  

Athletes were presented with medals specially designed to reflect the animals and icons of the north to remember their achievement in a northern setting.