d'bi.young artistic director
born in jamaica, raised in whitfield town kingston and in downtown toronto canada, d'bi.young is a meeting place of afrikan-caribbean-canadian diasporic culture and experience. a dubpoet, monodramatist, and teacher, she identifies primarily as a storyteller, believing that storytelling encompasses everything she does. young is one of canada's most celebrated artists, winning the 2007 toronto arts council foundation emerging artist award and featuring at heritage toronto's the great toronto roast 2009, celebrating the city's 175th birthday celebration, alongside toronto mayor david miller, world renowned poet dennis lee, and soulpepper theatre artistic director albert schultz. d'bi.young has performed, published, and lectured locally, nationally and internationally.
d'bi.young studied theatre at the jamaica school of drama during the 80s and early 90s, while learning the art of dubbing poetry from her mother anilia soyinka (aka anita stewart - one of jamaica's pioneer dubpoets and an original member of poets in unity). in canada she trained with the rAiz'n ensemble of b current theatre under the mentorship of artistic visionary ahdri zhina mandiela, and with soulpepper theatre; where she worked with the celebrated hungarian director lazlo marton, in three sisters as olga.
blood.claat (the first play in d'bi.young's biomyth-monodrama trilogy entitled sankofa) was nominated for five dora mavor moore awards in 2006, and won in the categories of outstanding new play and outstanding female performance. it toured canada extensively and was published as a bilingual 1st edition (english/spanish) by playwrights canada press. d'bi.young is presently completing benu (part 2), originally commissioned by montreal's la chapelle theatre and supported by factory theatre and word! sound! powah! (part 3), originally commissioned by soulpepper theatre and supported by canstage theatre. young's first play, a two-hander co-written by naila belvett, entitled yagayah was published in testifyin': contemporary african canadian drama in 2003. her second two-hander androgyne was produced by buddies in bad times theatre in 2007. young is the 2009-2010 playwright-in-residence at canstage theatre and is a member of the tarragon playwrights unit 2010.
as an emerging monodramatist, young is developing a practice of theatre based on what she terms the orplusi principles of storytelling, which explore monodrama creation and performance using orality, rhythm, personal-is-political and vice versa, language, urgency, sacredness, and integrity, as tools of creative social transformation. she has taught her methodology across north america and the caribbean in master classes, universities, festivals, and in various theatre companies.
a dynamic artist, d'bi.young is also the author of two dubpoetry collections: art on black and rivers and other blackness between us - women's press (2006, 2007). her other writings have appeared in publications such as: theorizing empowerment: canadian perspectives on black feminist thought - inanna publications (2007), notes from canada's young activists - greystone books (2007), and wasafiri: queer postcolonial - a london based quarterly (2007). her first anthology (as editor) on africanadian plays, is forthcoming by playwrights canada press in 2011.
her stage work as an actor include: staceyann in da kink in my hair (which toured north america and europe in 2006 and found a home at the hackney empire theatre in london). her performance garnered her a dora nomination in toronto and a best ensemble award from the naacp in california. she also played zandile alongside celebrated nigerian actor joke silva, in gcina mhlophe's south african play have you seen zandile in 2008.
as a dubpoet, d'bi.young stands firm as the hybrid-oasis where dubpoetry meets roots-reggae, infused by dangerous dancehall riddims and funked out punk-rock. she is the future of dubpoetry today. she has headlined numerous festivals including the canwest cabaret festival in the historic distillery district, the calgary international folk and spoken word festivals, vancouver folk festival, havana international reggae festival, and toronto's international dubpoetry festival. she has self-produced five dub albums including the critically acclaimed blood demo. her latest record is rivers and other blackness between us which accompanies a collection of said title. young's dub also appears on several spoken word and hip-hop compilations. presently she is working with two dancehall producers on her next project due out in summer 2010.
television appearances include hbo's def poetry jam, lead role crystal in lord have mercy (canada's first multi-ethnic sitcom), guest starring role in global tv's da kink in my hair, cuba's cuerda viva, and bravo's playwrights and screenwriters. d'bi.young has also been featured in the documentaries blood, dub and the matriarch by leda serene films alongside her mother, sunday afternoon by kaveh nebatian, and blood a cuban-canadian wombanist doc with political exile nehanda abiodun, which she co-produced. the films borderless about non-status new immigrants and kicking aids out on aids education both feature her narration.
it is the art of teaching that allows d'bi.young to combine her skills as a performer and writer in the mentorship of younger storytellers. she regularly creates and facilitates workshops in high schools, universities and community settings across north america and the caribbean, on topics ranging from self esteem empowerment, negotiating identity, and unlearning violence to responsible storytelling, anti-oppression training and theatre for community development. her urgent analyses on critical-decolonialist-oppression-awareness theories and art for social change, make d'bi.young anitafrika one of the most sought after artist-educators in north america.
in summer 2007 while under the mentorship of her long-time teacher ahdri zhina mandiela, d'bi.young designed and directed her first dubtheatre program for toronto youth. this action impacted the community so profoundly that it led her to launching a radical arts centre - anitafrika! dub theatre - founded on the orplusi principles and aimed at storytelling that fosters and promotes accountability and responsibility between storyteller and community. as artistic director of the theatre, young mentors 10-15 artists each year in the theatre's free residency program; guiding them through a rigorous process of biomyth-solo-creation. resident works are featured in three festivals: mikey smith raw works fest, audre lorde workshop, and word! sound! powah! fest, culminating in a year-end anthology and documentary film of both the process and the plays created, entitled s is for storytelling.
d'bi.young's work is a testament to the old afrikan proverb it takes a village to raise a child. her village has awarded her with such accolades as: outstanding performer 2009 (now magazine); numerous writing and theatre creation grants 2007-2009 (ontario arts council); the professional theatre artist grant 2008 (canada arts council); the professional mentorship grant 2007 (ontario arts council); best solo artist 2006 (national post / eye weekly); best play blood.claat 2006 (eye weekly / gayguide toronto); spoken word grant 2006, 2003 & 2001 (canada arts council); harold theatre award 05; spotlight award 2004 blood.claat (summerworks); best storytelling actor & dubpoet 2004 (now magazine) and artist-educator grant 2004 (ontario arts council).
presently, d'bi.young is completing an m.a at the university of guelph; conducting research for her first theoretical publication, on dubpoetry's process, performance and pedagogy.
for d'bi.young resume click here
