‘Frontier’ asks: Where were the women of Alberta’s wild west?

We know the names of Patrick Burns, John Ware, A.E. Cross, and Sam Livingston — men who shaped Calgary’s history.

But how many women can you name from those early days?

Ghost River Theatre’s new production Frontier hopes to explore the often-erased female experience of life on the Alberta frontier in the 1800s.

“When you think of stories about the Old Wild West, how often do you wonder about the female perspective?” asks co-creator Jamie Konchak.

The show follows a woman alone in the foothills of Alberta, working to break the land while carrying profound grief..

Frontier is ‘devised theatre’ which is a collaborative way to create.

“Everybody has a part in building the actual fabric of the show — what you say, how the story goes, how the lighting is helping the storytelling, how the costumes help the storytelling,” Konchak said.

While Frontier is inspired by historical texts and poems by pioneer women, movement becomes the primary language.

“We don’t have spoken text,” Konchak explains.

As a mother and caregiver herself, Konchak says she finds herself increasingly hungry for stories of her grandmother and great-grandmother, women who farmed the Prairies and carried enormous responsibility.

“I started to get particularly interested in the small details of what a life was,” she says. “These women had dreams. They had frustrations. They had passions. They were artistic. They were writers. They were dreamers.”

The central character in Frontier is isolated after the loss of a child. that loss drives her into the wilderness alone.

“She flees the oppressive life that she was living,” Konchak says. “We follow her and this animal need to survive and seek something big, something like a full life.”

Frontier has been developed over three years. It features Konchak as lead performer and co‑creator, alongside director, co‑creator, set designer, and co‑lighting designer Eric Rose. Movement direction is by Tania Alvarado, with sound design and composition by NUM Duo, and additional composition by Allison Lynch. Aaman Merali serves as technical director and co‑lighting designer, with costume design by Heather Moore. The cast includes Heather Pattengale and Daniela Vlaskalic, with Abby Weeks as associate technical director and Faith Conner as stage manager.

It runs at West Village Theatre through to May 2.

Tickets at ghostrivertheatre.com/frontier