Artistic director :
Elle Barbara

Starring:
Chris M. Barbara, Syana O. Barbara

Special guests:
Kim N. Sankofa, Rony F. Campbell

Lighting:
Jon Cleveland

Music:
Markus Lake

Costumes:
Marilène Bastien

Set design:
Sabrina Miller

Set design support:
Stina Baudin

Staging assistant:
Jordan Brown 

Coproduction:
Danse-Cité & House of Barbara

Presentation:
Danse-Cité

Financial supports:
Conseil des arts du Canada

Partners:
MAI - Montréal, arts interculturels
La Chapelle Scènes Contemporaines

Images:
Photo Jeffrey Torgerson · Stylism Manuela Bartolomeo · Make up Imani Khalifa & Micaela Alleyne · Hair Fallon Renner

This work will be the third and most ambitious chapter of the Ayibobo project. The two previous chapters were presented by Montréal’s Lux Magna Festival (2019 and 2020). 

Haitian Voodoo spirituality was forged by the descendants of enslaved Africans from a plethora of ethnic origins who were Christianized by colonial force. Focusing on a global message moving towards the decolonization of thought, Ayibobo™ III: Little Dollhouse on the Prairie exposes how sexual and gender diversity were once held a central in ancestral cultures. Ayibobo (a word related to Voodoo spirituality which is similar in usage to the Christian “amen”) presents a group of emerging queer, gay, trans Afro-descendant artists who work in dance, performance, theatre and music.  

Each performer selected one of a panoply of spirits from Voodoo culture and created a solo embodying said spirit. Elle Barbara worked with each of the artists, on both an  intellectually and structurally level, inviting them to pair their choreography with improvised moments or movements. The performances are interspersed with audio and visual segments: excerpts from popular culture and television that relate to Black and queer intersectionality. These provide a critical context for the artists to react. 

September 2021
11 12 15 16 17 18
19h
La Chapelle Scènes Contemporaines