Debbie Mclavey, Haida Dancer
Debbie Mclavey is the president of the Haida Descendant Dancers.
This community of men, women, and children gathers together regularly in Ketchikan, Alaska to sing and dance the traditional and modern tribal songs. We met Mrs. Mclavey while filming Spirit Song, and were touched by her commitment to maintaining intergenerational connection within the local community of Haida, Tlingit, and Tsimshian members by gathering everyone together to share song and dance. We were especially touched to be granted permission to film and share the experience. The Haida dance is unique in that women can dance, while the Tlingit dance is in a line of men, and the Tsimshian is “all over the place” and very beautiful, with men and women both dancing and drumming.
The songs and dances evolve over time, and can be performed with a different tone or through a different dance or skit to convey a new meaning.
Mrs. Mclavey explained to us that the songs are the only property owned by the families, so guests of the dance ceremonies are asked not to share them. Before each dance, the group makes a point to introduce the name and background of each song, the name of the family or person who created it, and who gave permission for the group to use it.
Mrs. Mclavey, her husband, and their grandsons.
We joined the group for one of their rehearsals in a local community center. The youngest of the group was still in a baby sling, and the joy and energy among the dancers was contagious.
Later, we rejoined the dancers at the longhouse at Totem Bite State Park, where they shared their songs, stories, and dances with travelers from around the world, while dressed in their ceremonial regalia.
The regalia itself is extraordinary, telling the stories of the clans and their sub-clans, and even connecting the community members to their home in the Pacific Northwest. The cedar bark hats create a contrast with the red, black, and white felted robes, accented with pearled buttons and the required “Haida bling bling,” which Mrs. Mclavey explained is their bracelets, jewelry, and moccasins. It’s all so beautiful and cohesive.
The thing that really struck us was the moccasins of the chief dancer. His boots were surrounded by fringes, each anchored by a dried deer toe. When he walks, stomps, or dances, the toes collide in a unique rhythmic trickling sound. We were told this sound echoes that of the waves lapping across the oyster shells and stones that cover the local shores - a sound that would bring comfort to a hunter or warrior traveling far from home.
We’ve seen the regalia honored in museums from Washington DC to Edinburgh, but to see the individual dancers gathered together in prayer before a dance, to see them twirl together as they sing, and drum, and stomp, and to see the little ones running along the Alaskan shores, giggling with their robes billowed behind them, among the totem poles of their ancestors - it’s a powerful experience and one we’ll cherish forever.
Photography by Daniel Volland.