Sandra Laronde is a highly accomplished visionary leader, multidisciplinary artist, and a force behind the Indigenous cultural resurgence of Canada. Sandra is recognized across Canada and internationally for her exceptional work in bringing Indigenous arts and culture to the forefront.

Sandra Laronde is from the Teme-Augama Anishinaabe and grew up in Temagami, Ontario. She attended the University of Toronto (Honours Bachelor of Arts). As a trailblazer, she founded Red Sky Performance, Native Women in the Arts, Temagami Artistic Collective, a REDTalks Series and created an Associate Artist program for next-generation Indigenous leaders.

As the founder of Red Sky Performance, Canada’s leading Indigenous contemporary performance company, Sandra has revolutionized the industry with bold new forms of storytelling and innovative collaborations in dance, theatre, music, and multimedia. The company performed close to 4,000 shows on stages in 22 countries on 4 continents,.

Her inexhaustible energy extends to cultural diplomacy, forging stronger ties by representing Canada on prestigious global stages and at influential international events  such as the Venice Biennale, Canadian Heritage’s inaugural Creative Industries Trade Mission to China, a Trade Mission to Europe, two Cultural Olympiads (Beijing and Vancouver), and the ASSITEJ World Congress in Soweto, South Africa, among others.

Her work with institutions such as the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Banff Centre, Jacob’s Pillow, Columbia University, University of Kansas, among others, have been instrumental in re-examining colonial models and constructing new strategies that foster stronger Indigenous and non-Indigenous relationships.

From 2007 to 2016, Ms. Laronde was Director of Indigenous Arts at Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, providing visionary leadership and artistic and strategic direction for a compelling future of Indigenous arts at the Centre.

Much in demand as a speaker and lecturer, she has spoken at arts summits, educational institutions, and special events across Canada, the United States, Africa, and Asia.

She recently added “author” to her list of accomplishments with her debut novel, She Holds Up the Stars (Annick Press, 2022). The novel received the Kirkus Star, which recognizes books of exceptional merit, was named one of CBC Books’ Best Canadian Books for Young Adults, and won the Horace Mann Upstander Award.

Sandra Laronde’s many awards and honours include the Governor General of Canada’s Meritorious Service Cross, the Order of Ontario, the Lieutenant Governor of Ontario Heritage Award for Excellence in Conservation, the Canada Council for the Arts Victor Martyn Lynch-Staunton Award for Outstanding Artist in Dance, the Indspire Award for the Arts, the Toronto Arts Foundation’s Indigenous Artist Award, the Johanna Metcalf Performing Arts Prize, and an honorary doctorate from Trent University, among other recognitions.