Featured Artists & Presenters

Headshot of Mx Bukuru, a Black nonbinary performer wearing a platinum blonde wig and silver makeup and crystals that cover their skin, except for a star shape in the middle of their face
Mx Bukuru, a Black nonbinary performer, wears a platinum wig, silver makeup and crystals, with a star shape on their face.

Mx Bukuru – emcee

they/them

The name is Mx Bukuru, a melanated, nonbinary, draglesque, fantasy being from your dreams. With a tight lip sync and dancing feet, their performance will leave you wanting more. They are the inaugural winner of Mx. Burlesk Vancouver (2025). A member of Enby 6, Vancouver’s best drag show 2023, and Diasporic Dynasty, Mx can be found twirling stages far and wide. A cofounder of Juicy Gems, after choreographing their group’s debut at Vancouver International Burlesque Festival (2023) the group made their way to Fatlesque Seattle (2024) and won… Remember it’s: B-U-K-U-R-U and if you don’t know what it means honey, look it up.

Travis, a dark-haired man with warm-toned skin, plays a ukulele while wearing glasses, a colourful FloMask and a dark suit

Travis Bernhardt – performer

he/him

Travis has been a full-time magician since 2008, producing several critically acclaimed, award-winning theatre shows. He also performs at private events, on the street, and online. When not performing he consults and creates magic for other magicians. Some of his work has appeared on America’s Got Talent, he was a magic producer on YTV’s Tricked, and he recently co-wrote a book, Abracadumbass, on the life and magic of Wes Barker.  

Closeup of a queer nonbinary white person with green hair, wearing a green shirt and red suit jacket and hat, and holding a guitar, They are dramatically lit, half in shadow.
Zeo, a queer nonbinary white person with green hair, wears a green shirt, red suit and hat, holding a guitar while half in shadow.

Zeo Boekbinder – performer

they/them

Zeo Boekbinder (they/them) was raised by two scientists who only owned a handful of tapes and CDs, yet Zeo grew up singing to themself. Boekbinder’s career started in 2005 when they formed a band with their sibling, Max. The two toured and recorded together under the name Vermillion Lies until 2009, when Boekbinder released their first solo album, Artichoke Perfume. That was also the year that Boekbinder started volunteering, teaching music workshops inside a maximum security prison. Boekbinder has released four solo albums and many singles and collaborations in the past 20 years. Their song topics are often informed by the state of the world, our social responsibility to each other, and the human condition.

A group of four fair-skinned trans and queer people sit on a log at the beach, wearing sunglasses, casual clothes, and big smiles.
A group of four fair-skinned trans and queer people sit on a log at the beach, wearing sunglasses, casual clothes, and big smiles.

houseguest – performer

houseguest is a trans & queer post-emo band based on unceded Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh territories. Formed in early 2023 when vocalists/guitarists MJ Laing (he/they) and Elizabeth Black (she/her) met on Lex, their brand of off-kilter indie rock stitches together moody guitar hooks and an intimate rhythm section, compliments of drummer Caitlyn Kavanagh (she/her) and bassist/vocalist Blue Chu (they/them). Bringing together a range of influences from 90’s can-rock to 5th wave emo, they’re here to make you cry, or dance, or both.

A group of dancers in colourful folk costumes dance outdoors, pictured mid-leap suspended in the air. All but one are wearing masks, and they hold umbrellas and batons.
Dancers in colourful folk costumes perform outdoors, mid-leap. All but one wear masks, and they hold umbrellas and batons.

Tiddley Cove Morris – performer

Tiddley Cove Morris is a Vancouver-based dance troupe bringing their own Canadian flair to the ancient English tradition of Morris Dancing: an energetic ceremonial dance that celebrates the passing of the seasons. As a community-based group of dancers, singers, and musicians, they have been performing at public and private events across the Lower Mainland, such as UBC Apple Festival, since 1988. Always open to new members, Tiddley Cove Morris offers outdoor practices year round and an all-gender, mask-friendly environment.

Kelly, a Squamish elder, is wearing regalia and holding a ceremonial drum
Kelly, an Indigenous Elder with long grey braids and glasses, wears colourful regalia and holds a ceremonial drum.

Kelly White – Host Nation Elder

Kelly White is of the White Owl Clan of the Snuneymuxw First Nation, with xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) parents, and is a visual and performing artist, an executive producer for indie film, and so much more. Kelly has worked with everyone from the City of Vancouver to Vancouver Coastal Health, and has been a Lead Facilitator, Elder, and Knowledge Keeper at Moon Tide Reconciliation; a founding board member and co-captain at Indigiknow; an Elder and trainer at KAIROS: Canadian Ecumenical Justice Initiatives; a producer and hostess as SHAW TV; and an Elder Facilitator at Western Aboriginal Harm Reduction Society (WAHRS).

Sacha Ouellet and Gem Hall are outside in front of a hedge, wearing jewelry, colourful eye makeup, and flowers in their hair.
Sacha Ouellet and Gem Hall are outside in front of a hedge, wearing jewelry, colourful makeup, and flowers in their hair.

Gem Hall and Sacha Ouellet – artists

Gem Hall is a multidisciplinary artist with a focus on illustration, animation, textiles, writing, harp, ritual & plants as a means of survival & language for existing between many worlds & ways of being.

Sacha Ouellet is a multidisciplinary artist who works with beading, hide tanning, writing, sound and in installation among other media to share their inner worlds.

Gem Hall & Sacha Ouellet’s Invisible Dream Caravan is a transient gathering space & immersive art installation which invites visitors to make themselves at home & entertain the idea that all possibilities may be within reach.

    Bryan crouches next to a flat-style DIY air cleaner, holding it for display. He wearing a Vitacore CAN99 respirator, casual clothes, a nametag and an errant post-it note, and you can see the smile in his eyes.
    Bryan crouches next to a DIY air cleaner, wearing a CAN99 respirator, casual clothes, a nametag and an errant post-it note.

    Bryan Louis, Dr.sc., CAFS – webinar speaker

    he/him

    Bryan Louis is an independent air filter consultant in the metro-Vancouver area and is a National Air Filter Association Certified Air Filter Specialist, with a doctorate in mechanical engineering. He is a former academic researcher (materials and mechanical engineering), in work closely aligned in the relevant fundamental topics of fluid and air flows, and nanoparticle filtration in fibre materials. Bryan has spent the last few years assisting local community organizations in improving their indoor air quality – particularly, where he can assist by pulling from his relevant professional background to develop pragmatic clean air strategies.

    Closeup of Ian’s profile. He is a white man with grey eyes, wearing a patterned black and white Zimi mask.

    Ian Robertson, M.Arch – webinar speaker

    he/him

    Having lived, worked or studied in six countries, on three continents, Ian believes that the ability to radically re-see and re-think normal is fundamentally important to innovative, interesting and essential architecture. Planning spaces for a wide variety of users and uses and places requires the ability to see the world with a flexible perspective. Ian has worked on both the creative and the concrete, flexibly shifting skills and scales, believing in [an] architecture of existential integrity, using technology as an efficient tool to make the design free, seeking architecture which simply is and must be.

      Headshot of Rae Spoon, a white non-binary person with purple cropped hair and blue eyes wearing a dark shirt.
      Headshot of Rae Spoon, a white non-binary person with purple cropped hair and blue eyes wearing a dark shirt.

      Rae Spoon – performer

      they/them

      Rae Spoon is a non-binary performer, composer, music producer, visual content producer/director and author. They have been producing recordings since 2001 ranging from folk to indie rock and electronic, and have been producing music for other artists since 2008. Rae has toured internationally over the past twenty years and they have been nominated for two Polaris Prizes and a Western Canada Music award. They have co-directed and/or produced four music videos. They currently run a collaborative recording mobile recording studio called Biome Arts.

      Rae Spoon is the subject and composer in the NFB documentary-musical My Prairie Home.  In 2015, Rae founded Coax Records, which has released thirty-nine albums by twenty-eight artists, including Juno Award-winners and Polaris Prize nominees. Rae is the author of First Spring Grass Fire, Gender Failure (co- written with Ivan E. Coyote), How To (Hide) Be(hind) Your Songs, and Green Glass Ghosts. They have been a finalist for a Lambda Award, shortlisted for an Expozine Alternative Press Award, and finalist for the Dayne Ogilvie Prize from the Writer’s Trust of Canada.

      DANI YOUR DARLING is pictured with cornrows during a performance, holding a mic and wearing a NIOSH N95 mask, a Pan-Africanist keffiyeh, a green tee shirt, and Japanese denim jeans while looking into the audience that is not pictured.DANI YOUR DARLING is pictured with cornrows during a performance, holding a mic and wearing a NIOSH N95 mask, a Pan-Africanist keffiyeh, a green tee shirt, and Japanese denim jeans while looking into the audience that is not pictured.
      DANI YOUR DARLING performs holding a mic and wearing cornrows, an N95 mask, a Pan-Africanist keffiyeh, and green tee shirt.

      DANI YOUR DARLING – performer

      they/them

      Dani Beyene is a Youth Activist, Organizer, and visionary of the “#BlackVoidUBC” campaign for the investment and expansion of UBC African Studies demanding a formal apology for the institution’s historical and present anti-Blackness. Their curatorial practice works to honour disability justice and uplifting QTBIPOC creatives in Vancouver’s DIY scene. With the better-known moniker DANI YOUR DARLING, they utilize mediums including writing, photography, painting, producing, poetry, illustration, digital art, singing, songwriting, and creative directing. Their intuitive artistic practice is informed by their background in community organizing, exploring narratives surrounding Afro-pessimism, Afro-futurism, abolition, Black queerness, the mundane, disability justice, diasporic return, Land Back situated in the African continent, and their relationship with the Downtown Eastside. DANI YOUR DARLING has performed and had their art exhibited at grassroot organizations such as the Vancouver Black Library, Unity Arts Collective, Art Ecosystems, Britannia Art Gallery, Hatch Art Gallery and many others.

      Headshot of Kayli Jamieson, a young biracial woman with long black hair, wearing a red coat and white white beret, surrounded by cherry blossoms
      Headshot of Kayli Jamieson, a biracial woman with long black hair, a red coat and white beret, amid cherry blossoms.

      Kayli Jamieson – performer

      she/her

      Kayli has been a longhauler since Dec. ’21 and is also a Communication Master’s student at SFU writing on biopolitics and Long COVID. She is also a Long COVID Research Assistant at the Pacific Institute on Pathogens, Pandemics & Society.  Aside from research and vintage fashion, she enjoys singing and songwriting as a creative outlet, and has been performing for over 15 years at talent shows and events at SFU and the City of Burnaby.

      Travis, a dark-haired man with warm-toned skin, plays a ukulele while wearing glasses, a colourful FloMask and a dark suit

      Travis Bernhardt – performer

      he/him

      Travis has been a full-time magician since 2008, producing several critically acclaimed, award-winning theatre shows. He also performs at private events, on the street, and online. When not performing he consults and creates magic for other magicians. Some of his work has appeared on America’s Got Talent, he was a magic producer on YTV’s Tricked, and he recently co-wrote a book, Abracadumbass, on the life and magic of Wes Barker.  

      Kelly, a Squamish elder, is wearing regalia and holding a ceremonial drum
      Kelly, an Indigenous Elder with long grey braids and glasses, wears colourful regalia and holds a ceremonial drum.

      Kelly White – Host Nation Elder

      Kelly White is of the White Owl Clan of the Snuneymuxw First Nation, with xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) parents, and is a visual and performing artist, an executive producer for indie film, and so much more. Kelly has worked with everyone from the City of Vancouver to Vancouver Coastal Health, and has been a Lead Facilitator, Elder, and Knowledge Keeper at Moon Tide Reconciliation; a founding board member and co-captain at Indigiknow; an Elder and trainer at KAIROS: Canadian Ecumenical Justice Initiatives; a producer and hostess as SHAW TV; and an Elder Facilitator at Western Aboriginal Harm Reduction Society (WAHRS).

      Roger, a white man with grey hair, wears a white duckbill mask, blue hoodie and armband, making a peace sign.
      Roger, a white man with grey hair, wears a white duckbill mask, blue hoodie and armband, making a peace sign.

      Roger Haskett – emcee

      he/him

      Roger Haskett is an award-winning award-winning keynote speaker, facilitator, emcee and entertainer. As the President of Engagement Unlimited, he provides innovative keynotes and programs that ignite positive transformational change for groups and individuals across North America. With a background in teaching and acting, he has been  in over 175 TV shows, movies and commercials, including iRobot, X-Files, iZombie, Stargate SG-1 and Supernatural. Roger is also an author whose award-winning talk, Pressure Cooker Confidence, has been refashioned into a book and audiobook called The Me You Want to Be.

      Bryan crouches next to a flat-style DIY air cleaner, holding it for display. He wearing a Vitacore CAN99 respirator, casual clothes, a nametag and an errant post-it note, and you can see the smile in his eyes.
      Bryan crouches next to a DIY air cleaner, wearing a CAN99 respirator, casual clothes, a nametag and an errant post-it note.

      Bryan Louis, Dr.sc., CAFS – workshop lead

      he/him

      Bryan Louis is an independent air filter consultant in the metro-Vancouver area and is a National Air Filter Association Certified Air Filter Specialist, with a doctorate in mechanical engineering. He is a former academic researcher (materials and mechanical engineering), in work closely aligned in the relevant fundamental topics of fluid and air flows, and nanoparticle filtration in fibre materials. Bryan has spent the last few years assisting local community organizations in improving their indoor air quality – particularly, where he can assist by pulling from his relevant professional background to develop pragmatic clean air strategies.

      Robin, a white femme person with brown ahair and eyes, stands outdoors next to a lush wisteria vine. She wears a pink respirator and puff sleeved shirt, with silver ring splints on her hand, which rests on a sparkly pink cane.
      Robin, a white femme person with brown hair, stands next to a wisteria vine. She wears a pink shirt and pink respirator.

      Robin Hahn – online social facilitator

      she/they

      Robin Hahn (she/they) is a joyfully disabled operatic soprano, stage director, music educator and disability advocate. Recent performances include Ms Pinkerton in The Old Maid and the Thief; Nella in Gianni Schicchi; the soprano soloist for Pergolesi’s Stabat Mater; and a soprano soloist with the Music of the Night national concert tour.

      As a stage director, Robin’s productions are recognized for reinterpreting and updating heteronormative stories, as well as for providing accessible theatre experiences for disabled audiences and performers alike. Most recently, she has directed queer, disabled, and COVID-cautious productions of Pirates of Penzance; The Old Maid and the Thief; and Hansel and Gretel across the Lower Mainland.

      In 2011, Robin co-founded Opera Mariposa, Canada’s first 100% openly disability-led and -run opera company, and now works with arts organizations of all types to make their spaces, facilities, resources, and events more accessible and inclusive. She is a YouTuber and Instagram creator, making fun, educational content about the intersections between opera and disability. She is represented by Kello Inclusive. Connect on all socials: @robinhahnsopran

      A Jewish performer with a shaved head, black suit jacket, white shirt and white headstrap respirator covered in red roses is playing the accordion in front of a pink wall
      Geoff, a Jewish performer with a shaved head, black jacket and rose-decorated CAN99 respirator, plays the accordion in front of a pink wall.

      Geoff Berner – performer

      he/him

      Geoff Berner (he/him) is a Jewish accordion player, singer, songwriter and novelist based in Vancouver. He’s toured in 17 countries and played on national radio in seven. His most recent release is 2023’s  “7 Plague Songs”, an album of songs about the ongoing Covid pandemic.

      Travis, a dark-haired man with warm-toned skin, plays a ukulele while wearing glasses, a colourful FloMask and a dark suit

      Travis Bernhardt – performer

      he/him

      Travis has been a full-time magician since 2008, producing several critically acclaimed, award-winning theatre shows. He also performs at private events, on the street, and online. When not performing he consults and creates magic for other magicians. Some of his work has appeared on America’s Got Talent, he was a magic producer on YTV’s Tricked, and he recently co-wrote a book, Abracadumbass, on the life and magic of Wes Barker.