René Highway (November 6, 1954 – October 19, 1990) was an

Indigenous Canadian Indigenous peoples in Canada (also known as Aboriginals) are the Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous peoples within the boundaries of Canada. They comprise the First Nations in Canada, First Nations, Inuit, and Métis#Métis people in ...

dancer and actor of

Cree The Cree, or nehinaw (, ), are a Indigenous peoples of the Americas, North American Indigenous people, numbering more than 350,000 in Canada, where they form one of the country's largest First Nations in Canada, First Nations. They live prim ...

descent from

Brochet, Manitoba Brochet () is an unincorporated community located in Northern Manitoba on the northern shore of Reindeer Lake near the Saskatchewan border; it is designated as a northern community. There is no year-round road service to the mostly Cree popu ...

. He was the brother of playwright

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'', ...

, with whom he frequently collaborated during their time at

Native Earth Performing Arts Native Earth Performing Arts is a Canadian theatre company located in Toronto, Ontario. Founded in 1982, Native Earth is Canada's oldest professional Indigenous theatre company. Native Earth is dedicated to developing, producing and presenting pro ...

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

, and the partner of actor and singer

Micah Barnes Micah Barnes is a Canadian singer and songwriter. He has performed both as a solo artist and with the band the Nylons. Born in Vienna, Barnes is the son of composer, conductor and jazz drummer Milton Barnes, and author, TV and CBC Radio writer ...

. Highway studied dance at the

Toronto Dance Theatre The Toronto Dance Theatre is a Canadian modern dance company based in Toronto, Ontario. Described by ''The Canadian Encyclopedia'' as "one of the foremost modern-dance companies in Canada", the company tours nationally and internationally and regu ...

, at the in Denmark, and at the

Native Canadian Centre of Toronto The Native Canadian Centre of Toronto, founded in 1962, is a membership based charity organization that provides social, recreational, cultural, and spiritual services to Indigenous people in Toronto. History In the post-World War II era, Verna Pa ...

. Highway helped to create the role of

Nanabush Nanabozho (in syllabics: , ), also known as Nanabush, is a spirit in Anishinaabe ''aadizookaan'' (traditional storytelling), particularly among the Ojibwe. Nanabozho figures prominently in their storytelling, including the story of the world's ...

in his brother's play '' The Rez Sisters'' (1986), and was the choreographer for '' Dry Lips Oughta Move to Kapuskasing'' (1989). He died of

AIDS The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...

-related causes in Toronto in 1990. His partner was singer

started the René Highway Foundation in his memory.

References

External links

* 1954 births 1990 deaths 20th-century Canadian dancers 20th-century Canadian LGBTQ people 20th-century Canadian male actors AIDS-related deaths in Canada Canadian gay actors Canadian male stage actors Cree male actors First Nations dancers Gay dancers LGBTQ First Nations people Male actors from Manitoba Male actors from Saskatchewan People from Northern Region, Manitoba {{Canada-dance-bio-stub

Further reading

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External links