2026 Musical Award Recipient
The 7 Fires: A New Musical by Dillan Meighan Chiblow & Landon Doak
Laws within the Indian Act are being reinstated. 7 Ancestors conduct a ceremony to put the 7 Fires prophecy to sleep in hopes that, in the future, the Fires will reawaken and light the final fire, the fire of peace. Generations later… Deep in the woods; 7 strangers are on the run. They were at a Rebel gathering that was raided by Indian Agents. It is illegal for them to be off their reservations. It will be dark in a few hours. They decide it’d be safer to stay the night than wander the woods in the dark. As they set up for the night, they share what little knowledge of their Ancestors has survived over the years since the Outlawing. As they sleep, their Ancestors appear to them in dreams. Something in them is starting to awaken. A prophecy of reclamation, resistance, reconnection, and the power of Indigenous peoples.
The peer assessment panel said: “The 7 Fires: A New Musical is an exciting and ambitious work that explores Indigeneity, seamlessly blending Hip-hop and adventurous storytelling making for a thrilling new work.”
Dillan Meighan Chiblow (he/they) is an Ojibwe storyteller from Garden River First Nation. He first trained at Sheridan’s Musical Theatre program and holds a Masters degree in Musical Theatre Performance from The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. Dillan was the Syd & Shirley Banks prize recipient (2020) and a of the recipients of the Musical Stage Company’s Aubry Dan Fund for new musicals for The 7 Fires: A New Musical, where Dillan is the book writer. The 7 Fires was also selected for further development at the National Center For New Musicals. He was nominated for a Dora award for Outstanding performance by an Individual for his portrait of Hummingbird in the world premiere of Bentboy at YPT in Toronto. Dillan has a passion for telling his peoples/Indigenous stories from Turtle Island, whether that be in film/tv or Indigenizing the Musical Theatre industry!
Landon Doak (they/them) is a Dora award-winning actor and composer. Throughout their career, they have been fortunate enough to work with the Stratford Festival, The Blyth Festival, The Shaw Festival, Canadian Stage, Soulpepper, Factory Theatre, Musical Stage, and featured in the DC Superhero film, Shazam! and in Murdoch Mysteries. They are the Artistic Associate of Bad Hats Theatre, and their composition work for Peter Pan, Alice in Wonderland, and Life in a Box have all received Dora awards and nominations. They would like to thank their parents, the Bad Hats, and the Talent House for their ongoing support.
Special thanks to Musical Award Peer Assessment Panelists: Leah Simone Bowen, Allen Cole, Lisa Rubin.