Cheri Maracle is a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

actress and musician of Mohawk- Irish descent.

Early life

Maracle graduated in 1989 from Prince Rupert Secondary School. At seventeen, she moved to

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

to study theatre at

Capilano University Capilano University (CapU) is a teaching-focused public university based in North Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, located on the slopes of the North Shore Mountains, with programming that also serves the Sea-to-Sky Corridor and the Sunshi ...

and the Spirit Song Native Indian Theatre School. She is a member of the

Six Nations of the Grand River Six Nations (or Six Nations of the Grand River) is demographically the largest First Nations reserve in Canada. As of the end of 2017, it has a total of 27,276 members, 12,848 of whom live on the reserve. The six nations of the Iroquois Confederacy ...

First Nation.

Career

Maracle is best known for her roles in the television series '' Blackfly'' and '' Moccasin Flats'', the 2007 film '' Tkaronto'' and stage productions of

Tomson Highway Tomson Highway (born 6 December 1951) is an Indigenous peoples in Canada, Indigenous Canadian playwright, novelist, children's author and musician. He is best known for his plays ''The Rez Sisters'' and ''Dry Lips Oughta Move to Kapuskasing'', ...

's '' Ernestine Shuswap Gets Her Trout''. She had a recurring role on '' Degrassi: Next Class'' as Ms. Cardinal, the mother of Grace Cardinal. She appeared in

Marie Clements Marie Clements (born January 10, 1962) is a Canadian Métis playwright, performer, director, producer and screenwriter. She was the founding artistic director of Urban Ink Productions, and is currently co-artistic director of Red Diva Projects, ...

' 2017 musical documentary on Indigenous history, '' The Road Forward''. In 2019, she played Verna in the

National Arts Centre The National Arts Centre (NAC) () is a Arts centre, performing arts organization in Ottawa, Ontario, along the Rideau Canal. It is based in the eponymous National Arts Centre (building), National Arts Centre building. History The NAC was one ...

's production of Clements' '' The Unnatural and Accidental Women''. She has been nominated twice for the K.M. Hunter Theatre award for her theatrical work. She was also nominated for the

Canadian Screen Awards The Canadian Screen Awards () are awards given for artistic and technical merit in the film industry recognizing excellence in Canadian film, English-language television, and digital media ( web series) productions. Given annually by the Academy ...

in 2014 for her performance as Sarah Bull on the TV series Blackstone. From 2006 to 2008 she was an artistic associate of the

Dora Mavor Moore Award The Dora Mavor Moore Awards (also known as the Dora Awards or the Doras) are awards presented annually by the Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts (TAPA), honouring theatre, dance and opera productions in Toronto. Named after Dora Mavor Moor ...

-winning Aboriginal women's theatre company, Turtle Gals. As a musician, she has performed as a backing vocalist for Jerry Alfred and the Medicine Beat,

Tamara Podemski Tamara Podemski (born October 16, 1977) is a Canadian film and television actress and writer.Rick Garrick"Indigenous multidisciplinary artist to host 13th Annual Outside Looking In Gala in Toronto this Spring" ''Anishinabek News'', March 9, 2020. ...

and Sandy Scofield, and as both a lead and supporting vocalist for Tiyoweh and The Showbiz Indians. She performs with her quartet at various jazz and blues festivals across Canada. She also frequently performs original compositions and contemporary and classic jazz standards with her piano partner, Brendan Peltier. She has also performed in a one-woman musical, ''Paddle Song'', about the life of Mohawk poet

Pauline Johnson Emily Pauline Johnson (10 March 1861 – 7 March 1913), also known by her Mohawk language, Mohawk stage name Tekahionwake (pronounced ''dageh-eeon-wageh'', ), was a Canadian poet, author, and performer who was popular in the late 19th and earl ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Maracle, Cheri 1970 births 21st-century Canadian actresses 21st-century Canadian women singers 21st-century First Nations musicians 21st-century First Nations women Actresses from Ontario Canadian film actresses Canadian Mohawk actresses Canadian people of Irish descent Canadian stage actresses Canadian television actresses Canadian women rock singers Capilano University alumni Living people Six Nations of the Grand River people Canadian Mohawk women singers