Sankofa (SAHN-koh-fah) – A Twi word from the Akan Tribe of Ghana that loosely translates to, “go back and get it.” Its literal translation comes from the Akan proverb, “Se wo were fi na wosan kofa a yenkyiri,” meaning, “It is not taboo to go back for what you forgot (or left behind).”

d’bi.young anitafrika’s Sankofa Trilogy truly embodies its namesake; part biography, part myth, these stories reach to the past to help us better understand our present. The first instalment in this 20^th anniversary production, blood.claat, is created, directed, and performed by the inimitable d’bi.young anitafrika. blood.claat feels less like a play and more like an other-worldly journey as time and place, reality and fiction become fluid in service of exploring the story of the Sankofa family. Truly an experience from the moment you walk in the door of the theatre, blood.claat left me moved to tears and eagerly awaiting its sequel.

Rachel Forbes’ set design has a beautiful timelessness about it; the beige and Earth toned cloth which makes up the majority of the set creates boundaries for the performers and the playing space without cementing a time and place for the story. I enjoyed the use of the large platform which sits centre stage; it allows for different levels for the performers to inhabit while also providing a divider to help us understand when we’ve moved from one locale to the next. Candace Dixon’s costume design is likewise without time or place, but embodies the spirit of the stories being told. My favourite element, however, is the cage-like masks which the performers wear throughout the play. The intricate artistry of these masks allow for us to see the faces of the actors while unifying them as a collective and something more ethereal.

blood.claat tells the story of Mudgu, a fifteen year old girl living with her grandmother in Jamaica. We learn that she has a not-so-secret boyfriend, Johnny, who lives next door, and who granny quite vocally doesn’t approve of. After a misadventure on her morning bus ride to school, Mudgu goes to Johnny’s house, underestimating the trouble she’ll be in for doing so. Mudgu is in one of the most formative periods of her life, and yet she’s already also been through so much: her mother moving away to Canada, or “foreign”, inappropriate (to say the least) interactions with her uncle, and the classist prejudices which she faces at school. Amongst all of this, we’re regaled with the stories of Mudgu’s ancestors; the fearsome warriors who have fought for freedom from their oppressors. Mudgu’s mother had her at fifteen, and granny had her mother at fifteen as well, now that Mudgu is fifteen herself, will her life shift as profoundly as the women before her?

d’bi.young anitafrika takes on the part of head storyteller, playing Mudgu, her family members, and many of her ancestors throughout the piece. anitafrika is mesmerizing, changing from one character to another with a simple turn of the head or rounding a corner in the space. The mannerisms and physicality they bring to each of their characters lets the audience easily know who’s telling this part of the story. They’re joined on stage by The Griot Posse, a group of young professionals sharpening their skills on stage with their mentor. KayGeni, Kabrena Robinson, Keira Forde, and Josemar create everything from music to movement and more to enhance the world anitafrika has envisioned. Together in harmony, these performers are the basis for that magical feeling which permeates the room; they understand the gravity of the stories they’re telling, yet they do so with radiant joy and utter sadness when it’s called for.

As the audience, we’re also not passive in our listening to this tale. We’re frequently addressed by the characters on stage, and at times the story even comes out to us! It lets us dance in our seats to the music (plenty of which was clearly recognized by the audience), to answer when spoken to, and to feel a part of this incredible mythology being laid before us. I am thankful to be invited into a space where that is happening, where I’m asked to be a part of a world I know so little about and experience it through someone else’s eyes. It’s the beauty of theatre, of storytelling, to be able to open our hearts and our minds to the lives of others.

When blood.claat was over, my first thought was “I have to wait a whole week to see the next part?” I was so enthralled with the story that I was clamouring to see benu right away. blood.claat is a beautiful, moving, and immersive introduction to the world d’bi.young anitafrika has brought to life. I am intently awaiting the next play, benu, and to hear how this amazing matriarchal family continues.

blood.claat, as well as the rest of the Sankofa Trilogy, is running in the Franco Boni Theatre at The Theatre Centre until October 12. For more information and tickets, visit: https://theatrecentre.org/event/sankofatrilogy/

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Definition of Sankofa from: https://www.stockton.edu/sankofa/about.html

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Cover Photo: The cast of blood.claat. Photo by Selina McCallum.

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