Media WriterRe:Imaginings: Celebration of Time An’ Movement, an innovative new interactive “docu-formance” celebrating KasheDance’s 13th anniversary, takes place from Thursday, March 3 to Saturday, March 5th, 2022 at Citadel + Compagnie. Each night, a pre-show event commences at 7:15 pm and is followed by the performance start time at 8:00 pm. Citadel + Compagnie is located at 304 Parliament Street. To enjoy a virtual experience of this event, Re:Imaginings will also be streamed online at the Citadel + Compagnie event page, under “Livestream tickets”. Tickets for the in-person performance are $25.00, while admission to the live stream is $4.99.
With Re: Imaginings, in-person audience members and viewers of the virtual edition of the performances are invited to celebrate the rich cultural expression of the Caribbean. The show is a creative collaboration between artists which has been five years in the making and boasts two prior sold-out showcases in 2018. KasheDance’s Artistic Director and show choreographer, Kevin A. Ormsby, aims for Re:Imaginings to serve as a testament to the resilience of Caribbean culture in Canada, which is particularly powerful in these unprecedented times.
“So what if you hoot, holla, buss laugh, clap yuh han / stamp yuh foot an’ have a good time? Re:Imaginings will enlighten audiences about the deep historical impact of the Caribbean experience in Canada. As an interactive show, our in-person and virtual participants can read about, and feel the interconnections between our people and our lands as informed by the heavy influence which the Caribbean has had on the Canadian cultural landscape”, Kevin Ormsby, Artistic Director, KasheDance.
Inspired by the fullness of Caribbean impact on Canada, which dates back to 1796, Re:Imaginings questions the connections of time, place and movement to BPM (beats per minute) used to recognize sounds, resonance and syncopation in music. Instigated by Canada’s 150th celebration, Re:Imaginings is a deep inquiry into the nuanced histories of Caribbean Canadians through Caribbean rhythms, celebrations and cultural practices. As part of the pre-show exhibition, attendees are invited to peruse a selection of research materials, along with a series of cultural artifacts and physical objects.
Each nightly performance begins with a physical land acknowledgement, which highlights Indigeneity to the lands of the Western Hemisphere, of which the Caribbean archipelago is part of. Re:Imaginings is formed by abstracts from the French, Spanish, and English influences of the Caribbean, and uses this history to shape experiences through music. The show is approximately 1 hour 30 minutes in length.
To enhance audience engagement, Re: Imaginings is highlighted by research footage from the Caribbean, along with photographs depicting Caribbean life and demonstrations of various Caribbean cultural rituals and ceremonial practices. This will be performed by 8 members of KasheDance, along with 5 musicians. They include Cheryl Chan, Jillia Cato, Elina Valtonen, Benjamin Russell, Orin T. McRey, Nataliya Zlotnikov, Kevin A. Ormsby. Dramaturge is Allison Cummings. The concept for Re:Imaginings was developed by Ronald A. Taylor, Arsenio Andrade and the artists.
Tickets for Re:Imaginings are available at:
https://www.citadelcie.com/event/kashe-dance/
About KasheDance
Led by Artistic Director Kevin A. Ormsby, KasheDance is an Afro-Caribbean dance company echoing in a new genealogy of Afro-contemporary dance steeped in modern dance, ballet, and rooted in dance of the Diaspora. KasheDance has performed to critical acclaim in Canada and internationally at Canada Dance Festival, Dancing On The Edge Festival, Fleck Dance Theatre, and more.
