Kodiak Alutiiq Dancers honor late elder at Celebration 2026 performances

Kodiak Alutiiq Dancers opened Thursday evening's performances at Celebration 2026 with a dedication to late elder Margaret Roberts, whom the group credited as "a huge reason why we are here today."

The evening's performances followed the festival's opening day, which featured canoe arrivals and speeches on cultural resurgence. Groups representing Haines, Klukwan, Hawaii, Juneau, and Yakutat performed at Centennial Hall.

The Kodiak group performed a set of songs that included traditional pieces, newly written compositions, and songs gifted by other communities. Among them was Sakulak, written by Lauren Anderson.

This song was written by Lauren Anderson, and it speaks of how our ancestors, when they were missing our loved ones, we would send messages to them by talking to the birds that we would see. And the birds would fly far away to the ancestral world and share the messages with our loved ones.

Other songs included Traveling, gifted by Tuna McIntyre to revitalize the dance program in Kodiak. The group performed Kabutin, written by Stephen Blanchette about a spirit fought in the war against the Russians. They also performed a memorial song for elder Helen Simeonoff, written by Lauren Anderson. The group closed with their invitational unity song Asle Lu Ugot, inviting audience members to join them on stage or dance from their seats.

All Sukhpiq people, this is your song. All Sukhberg people can dance this song. We made this song, I don't know, a while ago, but we want all Sukhbayk people to know, Alutik people, that this is your song.

The Kodiak dancers explained that Margaret Roberts was instrumental in helping the group learn songs from the Kiksadi of Sitka, which they call the Ancestor series.

The Kamehameha Hawaiian Ensemble, a delegation of 14 graduating seniors, performed hula depicting the making of a traditional deep-sea sailing canoe. A speaker from the group told the audience that Alaska-gifted logs in 1990 helped revive deep-sea sailing in the Pacific after hundreds of years.

In 1990, when I was at the age of 15, Hawaii was gifted the treasure of two logs. Two trees, two spirits. I had the opportunity to come here to celebrate the gift. Today, 35 years later, I am here again with my students from Kamehameha Schools.

Mount St. Elias dancers from Yakutat closed the evening. The group has performed for 70 years, with some regalia dancing for more than seven generations. They performed a paddle song honoring those who paddled to Celebration, paid tribute to former dance leader Ramona Anderstrom, and dedicated a performance to Kathy Wassily.