7 women. 7 pairs of shoes. 7 incredible stories.
Immerse yourself in an unforgettable evening of storytelling. The Shoe Project is a free writing and performance program for women in the Bow Valley who tell their story of coming to Canada through the lens of a pair of shoes. After weeks of mentorship from acclaimed writing and performance professionals, Helen Rolfe and Nan Hughes, these incredible women bring their stories to life on stage.
Live Performance Tickets
Opera House (Canmore)
- November 4 – 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM
- November 6 – 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM
Whyte Museum (Banff)
- November 28 – 6:00 PM – 9:00 PM
Meet the Writers
Adele Carlos
Adele Carlos is from the Philippines. In 2008, she moved to Malaysia for work to provide for her family. Sixteen years later, she arrived in Canada as a post-graduate student in Sarnia, Ontario. After a summer job at Johnston Canyon in 2024, she returned to the Bow Valley a year later, fulfilling the dream of someday calling Banff home. Her family still resides in the Philippines.
Elia Lopez
Elia Lopez lives in the Bow Valley, where she works at the intersection of storytelling, community building and advocacy. Originally from Mexico, she is drawn to stories of courage, transformation and belonging. She is the Shoe Project coordinator and believes stories can change both people and places.
Mireia Martinez
Mireia Martinez is from Andorra, a small country in the middle of the Pyrenees. In 2023, she came to Canmore on sabbatical with her husband and their two sons. They fell in love with the Bow Valley and decided to call it home. Mireia loves to spend time with her family, surrounded by nature and filled with hiking, skiing and mountain biking.
Monette Esmeria
Monette Esmeria was born in Laguna, Philippines, and moved to Canada in 2012 to join her husband in Banff. She works at Settlement Services in the Bow Valley. A busy mother of three, Monette finds moments of reflection in journal writing, a pastime she’s had since high school, and she loves reading books. She enjoys time outdoors with her family, camping, hiking or walking along the river.
Monica Peniche
Monica Peniche was born and raised in Mexico City and joined her husband in Canada in 2014. She works as an administrative assistant for a hotel chain and teaches English at the Bow Valley Adult Learning Centre. To relax, Monica enjoys resin and quilling art. Family and friends are a highlight in her life.
Nikol Faltysova
Nikol Faltysova immigrated from Czechia to Canada 13 years ago on a working holiday visa. She quickly realized the Bow Valley was the best place for her to be. Nikol, a proud mother of two, works for her husband’s electrical company while managing the homefront and caring for their son, who has a rare medical diagnosis. Nikol has discovered her voice and become a strong advocate for her son’s needs.
Rose Prakash
Rose Prakash is from India and immigrated to Canada in 2019. She is a busy mother of three, and a successful business owner and dancer in the Bow Valley.
Meet the Mentors
Helen Rolfe
Helen Rolfe is an award-winning author and a technical writer and editor. She loves the artistry of the written word and teaches unique writing exercises and lessons that unleash the story within. This is Helen’s third Shoe Project as the writing mentor.
Bow Valley writer
Interprets world through haiku
Landscape is heartbeat
Nan Hughes Poole
Mezzo-soprano Nan Hughes has a career that spans the globe, touring and recording throughout Europe, the United States, Canada, Ukraine and Brazil. She founded the close harmony vocal trio, Times Three (www.timesthree.org), which performs the American songbook across North America. A well-known interpreter of contemporary music, she premiered both the roles of Katherine Anne Porter in Anton Coppola’s riveting opera Sacco and Vanzetti, in Tampa, Florida, and the title role in Sebastian Hutchings’ The Agony of Mrs. Stone, in Banff, Canada.
As winner of the Artists International competition in New York city, she was presented in recital at Weill Hall at Carnegie Hall. Other New York recitals include at Merkin Hall, at the Museum of Modern Art’s Sculpture Garden and, as a soloist with Continuum, at Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center. She has also appeared with the famed Boston Pops.
Her recording of Berg and Zemlinsky songs, recorded at the Banff Centre with Gruppo Montebello and released throughout Europe in 2017, received rave reviews. In Germany, they called her a “successor to Lotte Lenya,” adding, “she radiates an existential power and a heartfelt naturalness in the interpretation of these melancholic laments.”
Nan enjoys teaching voice and public speaking, at the Banff Centre, for The Shoe Project in the Bow Valley, and in her private studio. For many summers, she has been the vocal soloist at Music by the Sea on Vancouver Island, singing both classical pieces and jazz selections.
Nan earned a BA in English & American Literature from Harvard University (cum laude), a MM in Vocal Performance from Boston University (a Dean’s Scholar) and studied at the Juilliard Opera Center in New York (on full scholarship). In 2023 she was honoured with the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Medal for her work as a champion of the arts.
Meet the Shoe Project Coordinator
Elia Lopez is a storyteller, community builder and advocate whose work centers on migration, belonging and the power of women’s voices.
Born and raised in Guadalajara, Mexico, Elia studied Literature and Creative Writing with the General Society of Writers of Mexico and Hospitality Management before continuing her hospitality education at SAIT in Calgary. Since making the Bow Valley her home, she has contributed to initiatives advancing inclusion and meaningful participation for newcomers.
As former Chair of the Bow Valley Immigration Partnership and as a member of its Immigrant Advisory Group, her community leadership had recognized her with nominations for the Canmore Mayor’s Volunteer Awards and the 2025 YWCA Banff Change Makers Awards.
As Local Coordinator of The Shoe Project–Bow Valley, Elia brings together artists, mentors, cultural institutions and community partners to support immigrant and refugee women in writing and performing their stories. Under her leadership, the program has produced sold-out performances and created intimate public spaces where stories of migration, identity and resilience become part of Bow Valley’s cultural memory.
Meet the Sponsors and Supporters
Shaping a safe and inclusive Bow Valley that empowers women and their community for a better future.
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