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Description

Visit the studios of this summer’s Nomadisms residency participants and see how they pushed creative boundaries during their four weeks at Banff Centre. Engage with participating artists about their processes as you explore their ideas in development and works in progress.

Nomadisms is a project-based residency that provides mentorship and studio time to visual artists working in a wide range of possible mediums, including ceramics, digital media, painting, performance art, and sculpture.

The residency invites artists to engage with the theme of nomadism as both a critical and aesthetic framework. Across their collaborations and creations, participants approach nomadism as a site of inquiry and a form of attentiveness to the earth.  

This is an exciting opportunity for the participants to share their work, and for the public to ask them about their processes. Artists, art appreciators, and curious first-time viewers alike are encouraged to attend. 

Visual Arts is supported by Fondation DRG and the Gail and Stephen A. Jarislowsky Outstanding Artist Program.

 

Meriem Bennani, Party on the CAPS, 2018. Video Installation. Photo by Mathilda Olmi.
Page Summary
Visit the studios of this summer’s Nomadisms residency participants and see how they pushed creative boundaries during their four weeks at Banff Centre.
Exhibition
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Free
Yes
Banff Centre Artist/Practicum/Staff Only
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Licensed
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4-7 PM
Cash Bar in Glyde Hall

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1782338400
Description

This faculty- and participant-led event brings together films, performances, and DJ sets to explore nightlife as a space of community building.

Through nightclubbing, boundaries dissolve and the club emerges as an open site of freedom, encounter, and collective expression: bodies gather, rhythms connect, and community is forged in the dark.

The event stems from Nomadisms, a project-based residency that provides mentorship and studio time to visual artists working in a wide range of possible mediums, including ceramics, digital media, painting, performance art, and sculpture.

The residency invites artists to engage with the theme of nomadism as both a critical and aesthetic framework. Across their collaborations and creations, participants approach nomadism as a site of inquiry and a form of attentiveness to the earth.  

Visual Arts is supported by Fondation DRG and the Gail and Stephen A. Jarislowsky Outstanding Artist Program.

Meriem Bennani, Party on the CAPS, 2018. Video Installation. Photo by Mathilda Olmi.
Page Summary
This evening melds films, performances, and DJ sets to celebrate nightlife as a space of community-building.
Exhibition
No
Free
Yes
Banff Centre Artist/Practicum/Staff Only
Off
Licensed
Off
Event Tags
Performance Date
Date
Location
Computed Sort Date
1781406000
Description

Join us for an afternoon Visual Arts talk with artist Meriem Bennani, whose debut film Bouchra played at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival.

The creator of ground-breaking video installations and sculptures, Bennani combines elements of reality TV, documentary films, telenovelas, and animated cartoons. Bennani exaggerates media tropes to describe what she calls a “hyperactivity of genre,” with her work frequently being rooted in Moroccan life, online and off. In her talk, Bennani will discuss her practice as it relates to the theme of the Nomadisms residency, for which she’s on faculty.

Nomadisms provides mentorship and studio time to visual artists working with a wide range of possible mediums, including ceramics, digital media, painting, performance art, and sculpture.

The residency invites artists to engage with the theme of nomadism as both a critical and aesthetic framework. Across their collaborations and creations, participants approach nomadism as a site of inquiry and a form of attentiveness to the earth. 

This event is part of the Visual Arts Open Lecture Series, which presents talks by leading Canadian and international artists, curators, and academics.

Visual Arts is supported by Fondation DRG and the Gail and Stephen A. Jarislowsky Outstanding Artist Program.

Meriem Bennani
Page Summary
Join us for an afternoon Visual Arts talk with artist Meriem Bennani, whose debut film Bouchra played at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival.
Exhibition
No
Free
Yes
Banff Centre Artist/Practicum/Staff Only
Off
Licensed
Off
Performance Date
Date
Computed Sort Date
1780956000
Description

Join us for an afternoon Visual Arts talk with Paris-based artist-scholar Maïa Tellit Hawad.

What does it mean to inhabit the Sahara nomadically today?

How are futures dreamed and invented from territories marked by environmental catastrophe and territorial dispossession?

Drawing on Tuareg nomadic imaginaries of land and relation, this talk focuses on counter-fields, expressed through gestures of ambush, camouflage, and the mending of a wounded desert. Through decolonial literary and artistic works that reclaim confiscated horizons, it examines Indigenous gestures of resistance, resilience, and fugitivity as ways of resignifying the desert as a space of possibility, creativity, and transnational solidarity.

Hawad is on faculty for Nomadisms, a project-based residency that provides mentorship and studio time to visual artists working in a wide range of possible mediums, including ceramics, digital media, painting, performance art, and sculpture.

The residency invites artists to engage with the theme of nomadism as both a critical and aesthetic framework. Across their collaborations and creations, participants approach nomadism as a site of inquiry and a form of attentiveness to the earth. 

This event is part of the Visual Arts Open Lecture Series, which presents talks by leading Canadian and international artists, curators, and academics.

Visual Arts is supported by Fondation DRG and the Gail and Stephen A. Jarislowsky Outstanding Artist Program.

MaÏa Tellit Hawad
Page Summary
Join us for an afternoon Visual Arts lecture with Maïa Tellit Hawad, an artist-scholar who practices decolonial thinking from a Euro-African perspective.
Exhibition
No
Free
Yes
Banff Centre Artist/Practicum/Staff Only
Off
Licensed
Off
Performance Date
Date
Computed Sort Date
1780351200
Description

Join us for an afternoon Visual Arts lecture with Martha Kirszenbaum, a Paris-based independent curator who has worked across several continents.

Kirszenbaum has developed a diverse and eclectic curatorial practice that moves fluidly between traditional art institutions and more experimental contexts, and across countries and cultures.  

Her work centres contemporary culture at the intersection of visual arts, music, performance, and popular culture. As co-lead faculty for the Nomadisms residency, she’ll discuss practices related to Middle Eastern and North African popular culture and the intersections with visual arts, music, and performance.

Nomadisms is a project-based residency that provides mentorship and studio time to visual artists working in a wide range of possible mediums, including ceramics, digital media, painting, performance art, and sculpture.

The residency invites artists to engage with the theme of nomadism as both a critical and aesthetic framework. Across their collaborations and creations, participants approach nomadism as a site of inquiry and a form of attentiveness to the earth.  

This event is part of the Visual Arts Open Lecture Series, which presents talks by leading Canadian and international artists, curators, and academics.

Visual Arts is supported by Fondation DRG and the Gail and Stephen A. Jarislowsky Outstanding Artist Program.

Martha Kirszenbaum
Page Summary
Join us for an afternoon Visual Arts Open Lecture with Martha Kirszenbaum, an independent curator who has worked across several continents. 
Exhibition
No
Free
Yes
Banff Centre Artist/Practicum/Staff Only
Off
Licensed
Off
Performance Date
Date
Computed Sort Date
1780005600

Submitted by Dolson Rhona on
English
Headshot of Hazel Burns

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Hazel Burns is a recording engineer and producer specializing in acoustic music, with more than fifteen years of teaching experience. She has spent the last decade as an Associate Professor of Music Production at the Universidad San Francisco de Quito in Ecuador, a Berklee International Network institution, and continues to record and mix actively, with an extensive and diverse discography.

Her career spans a wide range of contexts, including roles as staff Recording Engineer at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto, Production Coordinator and Senior Recording Engineer at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, and Post Sound Operator at CTV, where she mixed Discovery Channel Canada’s Mighty Ships, Mighty Planes, Nerve Centre, and Alien Mysteries, earning a Canadian Screen Award nomination.

An active member of the Audio Engineering Society, she founded Ecuador’s first AES chapter, has judged student recording competitions at AES New York, and regularly presents clinics and talks. She holds a master’s degree in Sound Recording from McGill University and is currently completing a PhD at the University of Edinburgh, where her research focuses on collaboration and communication between classical musicians and sound engineers. 

Dolson Rhona

Submitted by Dolson Rhona on
English
Headshot of Lisa Stevens

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There's a spark that runs through Lisa Stevens' work—an unmistakable blend of imagination, generosity, and craft. With a career that’s taken her from childhood TV sets to Broadway stages, West End premieres, and film sets around the world, Lisa has become known for the kind of creative leadership that turns rehearsal rooms into places where big ideas take flight.

As a director and choreographer, her credits stretch from brand-new musicals to beloved classics. She helmed the world premiere of Get Down Tonight: The KC & The Sunshine Band Musical in London's West End, brought The Little Prince to life at Theatre Calgary, choreographed Dolly Parton's 9 to 5 (West End), and is currently developing the new musical Ride. Her choreographic reach extends on camera, too—across Blumhouse thrillers and the Emmy-nominated musical documentary Dreaming of a Jewish Christmas. Winner of Jessie Award, Betty Award, and numerous Broadway World Awards.

Dolson Rhona

Submitted by Dolson Rhona on
English
Headshot of Julio Fuentes

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Julio is a performer, educator, and creative with over 20 years of experience in his craft. His work ranges from dance companies across North America and Asia to Canadian musical theatre and syndicated tv series and feature films.

Select performance: Prison Dancer (Citadel, NAC), Mamma Mia (Citadel, Arts Club, Stage West), In The Heights (Arts Club), Matilda (MTC, Citadel, Arts Club), The Little Prince (Theatre Calgary, world premiere), Into The Woods (Talk Is Free Theatre), The Little Mermaid (Align Entertainment). Select choreography: Tao Of The World (Stratford, world premiere), Footloose (Mayfield), Wizard Of Oz (Citadel), Bring It On (Globe Theatre, Canadian Premiere), Heathers (Theatre Sheridan), Grease (Mayfield), Prison Dancer (Citadel, NAC), Smoky Mountain Christmas Carol (Arts Club), 2021 guest movement director (Shaw Festival). TV / Film: Riverdale (dancer - CW), Schmigadoon! season 1 & 2 (ensemble - AppleTV+), Sonic The Hedgehog 2 (assistant choreographer - Paramount+).

 

juliofuentes
Dolson Rhona
Subtitle
Join us for a series of brilliant performances from the participants in the Art of Piano program, and be inspired by the next generation of pianists.
About the Program

There will be a 20 minute intermission

Please turn off all cellphones, photo/video cameras.

Art of Piano is generously supported by lead donor Heather Edwards. 

Additional support provided by the Alice and Betty Schultz Scholarships Endowment Fund for Dance and Music, Helen Graham, and the Yolanda Freeze Master Artists Music Fund.

English
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BISQC 2025 Awards Presentation. Photo by Rita Taylor.

Photo by Rita Taylor.

Plan your BISQFest experience.

Select from Full and Lite festival packages, with options to add accommodation and dining for a complete and convenient stay at Banff Centre.

Packages on sale now! Individual tickets on sale April 21.

Request a Ticket Package

packages

Package Options & Pricing

Ticket Packages

New for 2026: Tickets are purchased separately from hotel accommodation and meal packages. 

What your ticket package includes:
•    Reserved seating for concerts included in your package
•    Access to special package-holder events

What your ticket package does not include:
•    Hotel accommodation
•    Meals (Tickets only – all fees and GST included)

FULL Weekend Ticket Package
(For guests attending September 3–6)

Package includes tickets in same reserved seating for 8 concerts in Rolston Recital Hall (RRH) and Jenny Belzberg Theatre (JBT), plus access to special package buyer events. 

  • FULL ticket package with JBT Tier A seating $576.45
  • FULL ticket package with JBT Tier B seating $525.00
     

LITE Weekend Ticket Package 
(For guests attending September 4–5)

Package includes tickets in same reserved seating for 4 concerts in Rolston Recital Hall and Jenny Belzberg Theatre, plus access to special package buyer events. 

  • LITE ticket package with JBT Tier A seating $311.85
  • LITE ticket package with JBT Tier B seating $260.40
     

Tickets include festival performances and special package-holder events only. 

Request a Ticket Package

Hotel & Meal Packages

New for 2026: Hotel and meal packages are purchased separately from festival tickets. 

What hotel & meal packages include:
•    On-site accommodation in the comfort of Banff Centre's hotels with full amenities
•    Meals in Vistas Dining Room during your stay, including dinner on arrival day, with breakfast and lunch on day of departure

What hotel & meal packages do not include:
•    Festival tickets(Accommodation + meals only – tickets not included)

 

Hotel and meal packages for BISQFest are booked to align with the full length of your selected festival package (FULL: September 3–7 | LITE: September 4–6). 

While nightly rates are provided below for reference, BISQFest accommodation is reserved as a complete stay based on your package dates.

Nightly Room + Meal Rates
(Includes all taxes and fees)

  • Solo Occupancy: $474.92 (room and meals for one, includes arrival day dinner and departure day breakfast and lunch)
  • Duo Occupancy: $617.40 (shared room and meals for two, with arrival day dinner and departure day breakfast and lunch)

 

FULL Festival Hotel & Meals
(September 3–7 | 4 nights)

  • Solo: $1,899.68
  • Duo: $2,469.60

LITE Festival Hotel & Meals
(September 4–6 | 2 nights)

  • Solo: $949.84
  • Duo: $1,234.80


Additional pre- or post-festival nights may be booked through Reservations, subject to availability. 

schedule

BISQFest Schedule

Your festival schedule depends on the package you hold. 

Some concerts are offered at different times depending on your package. Each package provides a complete festival experience. 

Please select your package below to view the concerts and events included in your BISQFest experience. 

Schedule is subject to change. 

FULL Weekend Package Schedule

For guests attending September 3–6

What you’ll attend

  • All festival concerts and events from Thursday evening to Sunday evening
  • Opening and finale concerts
  • 8 concerts and 2 special events total

 

Thursday, September 3 (FULL only)

Arrivals for FULL weekend package holders

7:30 p.m. | Rolston Recital Hall (RRH)
Opening Night: Afiara Quartet with Mahan Esfahani

 

Friday, September 4 (FULL only)

10:30 a.m. | Rolston Recital Hall (RRH)
Opus13 Quartet, Wigmore Hall Competition Prizewinners

8:00 p.m. | Jenny Belzberg Theatre (JBT) 
Jan Lisiecki with Banff Festival Orchestra

A Rare Post-Concert Experience - Optional Add-On
Following Friday evening’s concert, join Barry Shiffman, Jan Lisiecki, and fellow artists for a one-night-only intimate gathering in support of BISQFest, featuring a brief Q&A, drinks, and hors d’oeuvres. Available as an add-on during booking. Capacity is limited.


Saturday, September 5 (FULL only)

10:30 a.m. | Rolston Recital Hall (RRH)
Steven Isserlis & Connie Shih

1:30 p.m. | Margaret Greenham Theatre (MGT)
Film Screening: FOUR RATIONAL PEOPLE, a documentary following the Emerson String Quartet on their final tour

4:30 p.m. | Kinnear Centre for Creativity & Innovation, Cenovus Great Hall (KCCI)
Artist Talk with composer Mark Applebaum 

8:00 p.m. | Jenny Belzberg Theatre (JBT)
Copland’s Appalachian Spring & New Dance Works by Neshama Nashman


Sunday, September 6 (FULL only)

10:30 a.m. | Rolston Recital Hall (RRH) 
Dalí Quartet: Music by Latin American Composers

2:30 p.m. | Rolston Recital Hall (RRH) 
Jan Lisiecki & Jonathan Crow: Beethoven's Spring Sonata

7:30 p.m. | Rolston Recital Hall (RRH)
Festival Finale: Barry Shiffman, Steven Isserlis and Banff Festival Strings


Composer-in-residence artist talk and film screening generously supported by Ernie and Sandra Green

LITE Package Schedule

For guests attending September 4–5

What you’ll attend

  • Core festival concerts and events
  • Performances scheduled specifically for LITE package guests
  • A curated two-day festival experience
  • 4 concerts and 2 special events total

 

Friday, September 4 (LITE only)

Arrivals for LITE package holders

2:30 p.m. | Rolston Recital Hall (RRH)
Opus13 Quartet, Wigmore Hall Competition Prizewinners

8:00 p.m. | Jenny Belzberg Theatre (JBT)
Jan Lisiecki with Banff Festival Orchestra

A Rare Post-Concert Experience - Optional Add-On
Following Friday evening’s concert, join Barry Shiffman, Jan Lisiecki, and fellow artists for a one-night-only intimate gathering in support of BISQFest, featuring a brief Q&A, drinks, and hors d’oeuvres. Available as an add-on during booking. Capacity is limited.

Saturday, September 5 (LITE only)

10:00 a.m. | Margaret Greenham Theatre (MGT)
Film Screening: FOUR RATIONAL PEOPLE, a documentary following the Emerson String Quartet on their final tour

2:30 p.m. | Rolston Recital Hall (RRH)
Steven Isserlis & Connie Shih

4:30 p.m. | Kinnear Centre for Creativity & Innovation, Cenovus Great Hall (KCCI)
Artist Talk with composer Mark Applebaum 

8:00pm | Jenny Belzberg Theatre (JBT)
Copland’s Appalachian Spring & New Dance Works by Neshama Nashman

 

Composer-in-residence artist talk and film screening generously supported by Ernie and Sandra Green

Page Summary
Select from Full and Lite festival packages, with options to add accommodation and dining for a complete and convenient stay at Banff Centre.
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BISQC 2025 Audience 2
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