Cathy Elliott
| Cathy Elliott | |
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| Born | June 5, 1957  Quebec
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| Died | October 15, 2017 (aged 60) Essa
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| Alma mater | |
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Cathy Elliott (1957–2017) was a Mi’kmaq artist, musician, composer and playwright and member of the Sipekne'katik Mi'kmaq First Nation in Nova Scotia, Canada. She was known for working with Indigenous youth across Canada to express their culture through theatre and documentary film. She worked for several years with the DAREarts program and also wrote the first all-Indigenous musical to be offered at the Charlottetown Festival. The musical, "The Talking Stick", was premiered in Prince Edward Island for the visit of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge in 2011. Elliott was struck by a car and killed while walking alongside a road in Essa, Ontario on October 15, 2017.
Elliott was born in Quebec on June 5, 1957 to Roger Cormier, an Acadian, and Frances Bernard Cormier, who was Irish and Mi’kmaq. Her maternal grandfather ran away from residential school. Roger Cormier worked in the financial sector and as a result the family lived in a number of locations in Canada, as well as Majorca, Spain and Trinidad. The family's connection to their Indigenous heritage was suppressed, and Elliott reconnected to her Mi’kmaq roots later in life.
Elliott studied graphic arts at Humber College and theatre at Ryerson University in Toronto. Her early work was in set design, costumes and it was later she began to work more as a musician, director and actor.
Elliott was married to Peter Elliott and the marriage ended in 1991. Elliott moved in with her best friend and partner Leslie Arden in 1992. Arden and Elliott made their home in Alliston, Ontario. The two worked closely together and collaborated on a number of projects, with Arden frequently composing the music for Elliott's stories.
Elliott's professional career spanned more than thirty-five years where she was active in a variety of genres where she was featured as a writer, actor, playwright, composer and musician, making appearances across Canada. Her work frequently made reference to her Indigenous heritage and issues related to indigenity in Canada.
Known also as an educator and for her commitment to future generations of Indigenous people, Elliott worked extensively with Indigenous youth, particularly in Northern Ontario. She was also known for her work with theatre students and as compassionate and generous teacher and person.
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