Experience theatre as ceremony, as pedagogy, as power.
The Sankofa Trilogy
by d’bi.young anitafrika, a Watah Theatre Production Presented by The Theatre Centre
Welcome to d’bi.young anitafrika’s virtuosic three-week repertory production celebrating the 20th anniversary of the critically acclaimed Sankofa Trilogy featuring the plays blood.claat, benu, and word! sound! powah!
Starring d’bi.young anitafrika, this production presents a new vision on the classic works, with each play running for one week and all three plays running in rep for a marathon culminating weekend featuring a dancehall session at the end of Saturday night (Oct 11, 2025).
Celebrate 20 years of groundbreaking theatre with d’bi.young anitafrika’s Sankofa Trilogy—blood.claat, benu, and word! sound! powah!
The three biomyth monodramas follow the lives of three generations of Sankofa womyn—Mudgu, Sekesu, and Benu, whose stories traverse the intersections of gender, race, class, cultural legacy, hxrstory and the presence and power of the Yoruba Orishas Yemoja, Osun and Oya.
In blood.claat, Mudgu Sankofa, the 15-year-old protagonist, navigates their relationship with their menstruation, the blood of the violence they witness, and the cycles of love, life and death in their family.
September 24 — Please join us for a launch of dubbin theatre vol 1: the sankofa trilogy before the show!
Refreshments will be provided and copies of the book will be on sale.
In the second play, benu, Sekesu Sankofa, Mudgu’s offspring, battles postpartum depression while navigating the alienation, invisibility and abuse Black womyn experience in the healthcare system.
And in the final play, word! sound! powah!, set amidst the socio-political upheaval based on Jamaica’s 1980 election, Benu Sankofa (Mudgu’s grandchild) joins a collective of radical poets, and together they use dub poetry to challenge systemic injustice, wielding words as weapons against the political corruption that they witness every day.
October 11-12: Marathon Weekend features all three shows back-to-back: blood.claat at 2pm, benu at 5pm, and word! sound! Powah! at 8pm! Select three tickets from the October 11-12 weekend, and use the code MARATHONWEEKEND at checkout for discounts.
+ We’re throwing a FREE Dancehall Session with music by The Vibes Curator for the community on October 11 at 10pm. Please join us!
This 20th anniversary reimagining unveils d’bi.young’s post-PhD evolution as a biomythicist who has crafted a unique vision of decolonial Black queer feminist theatre that is liberatory for all.
Experience theatre as ceremony, as pedagogy, as power. Join us for this once-in-a-generation celebration.
biomyth monodramas
d’b.young refers to these works as biomyth monodramas which emerge from a narrative creation practice rooted in their Anitafrika Method. Biomyth making according to d’bi.young:
“integrates personal biography, myth-making, and critical re-framing through the three r process of re/membering, re/storying, and re/futuring. The process begins with autobiographical memory as a generative space-place for story (re/membering), then transitions into a creative mythologizing (re/storying) that blends lived experience with reimagined ancestorial and cultural mythologies. Finally, the process culminates in re/futuring, where Africanfuturist aesthetics are mobilised to envision liberatory futures that engage themes such as systemic oppression, freedom, justice, and collective care through the philosophy of Ubuntu.”
The creative team & Black Theatre School
The Sankofa Trilogy team consists of seasoned and new-generation designers and production/stage weavers, some of whom are currently studying at the Black Theatre School (BTS).
Biomythicist (Playwright/ Performer/ Director): d’bi.young anitafrika
The Griot Posse: KayGeni (Lead Musician) (BTS), Kabrena Robinson (Understudy), Keira Forde (BTS), and Josemar (BTS)
Assistant Director/Marketing Weaver: Sashoya Simpson
Producer: Brett Haynes
Associate Producer/Production Weaver: Sue-Tanya Lee (BTS)
Technical Director: Byron “Mojo” Noble
Assistant Technical Director: Alex Sproule
Choreographer: Ern in Motion
Set Design: Rachel Forbes
Assistant Set Designer: Madelaine Gagnon
Costume Design: Candice Dixon (BTS)
Sound Design: Stephon Smith
Lighting Design: Christopher-Elizabeth
Stage Weaver: Sofia Di Cicco
Videographer: Paul Ohonsi
Creative Engagement Director: elle de Lyon
Photographer: Selina McCallum
Over the past twenty years, the Sankofa Trilogy has had a profound impact on the theatre industry. The plays have collectively accrued numerous accolades such as two Dora awards and five nominations, three Summerworks awards, multiple Critics’ Pick awards as well as a plethora of four and five-star reviews. The plays have toured nationally and internationally to sold-out audiences in small and large theatres.
This 20th anniversary production serves as the medium through which d’bi.young anitafrika will share their growth and development as a biomythicist. Having recently completed their PhD in Black womyn’s theatre, d’bi.young has spent the past seven years developing their Anitafrika Dub Praxis and Critical Dub Pedagogy as frameworks for decolonising their theatre practice.
September 23, 2025
to October 12, 2025
Limited time special! Use the code FLASHBOGO for Buy-One-Get-One Free Tickets to The Sankofa Trilogy!
Individual tickets are $45 / Experience the entire Trilogy for $105. See below for details, discounts, specials and more!
Add a ticket to all 3 shows to your cart and enter code TRILOGYPACKAGE to apply the discount!
Special: October 11-12 offers a marathon of The Sankofa Trilogy for $90! Select three tickets for shows on October 11-12, and use the code MARATHONWEEKEND at checkout.
For questions please email or call us at [email protected] / (416) 538-0988
Money should not be a barrier to see art.
Discounts are available for anyone who may be looking for financial accessibility, including students, seniors, and arts workers.
Please email or call us at [email protected] / (416) 538-0988 and we’ll offer some options, no questions asked!
October 11-12 offers a marathon of The Sankofa Trilogy for $90, plus a FREE dancehall session for the community on October 11 at 10pm!
Select three tickets for shows from the October 11-12 weekend, and use the code MARATHONWEEKEND at checkout.
The Theatre Centre
blood.claat: September 23-28
This performance is 90 minutes.
- Tues Sept 23 – 8pm (preview + mask mandatory night)
- Wed Sept 24 – 8pm (opening + talkback + book launch)
- Thurs Sept 25 – 8pm
- Fri Sept 26 – 8pm (Black Out Night + talkback)
- Sat Sept 27 – 8pm
- Sun Sept 28 – 2pm (talkback)
benu: September 30-October 5
This performance is 60 minutes.
- Tues Sept 30 – 8pm (preview + mask mandatory night)
- Wed Oct 1 – 8pm (opening night + talkback + book launch)
- Thurs Oct 2 – 8pm
- Fri Oct 3 – 8pm (Black Out Night + talkback)
- Sat Oct 4 – 8pm
- Sun Oct 5 – 2pm (talkback)
word! sound! powah! October 7-10
This performance is 90 minutes.
- Tues Oct 7 – 8pm (preview + mask mandatory night)
- Wed Oct 8 – 8pm (opening night + talkback + book launch)
- Thurs Oct 9 – 2pm (talkback)
- Thurs Oct 9 – 8pm
- Fri Oct 10 – 8pm (Black Out Night + talkback)
Marathon Weekend
- Oct 11 – 2pm – blood.claat (ASL performance)
- Oct 11 – 5pm – benu
- Oct 11 – 8pm – word! sound! powah!
- Oct 11 – 10pm – dancehall session
- Oct 12 – 2pm – blood.claat
- Oct 12 – 5pm – benu
- Oct 12 – 8pm – word! sound! powah!
Relaxed Environment: All shows in The Sankofa Trilogy will offer a relaxed environment that a traditional theatre environment does not accommodate. For example, audiences will be able to go in and out of the theatre during the show, use their phone, or make sounds.
Mask Mandatory Performance: Audiences and Theatre Centre staff are required to wear masks in the gallery and inside the theatre. Please note that other areas of the building, such as the café and the patio will not be mask mandatory.
Babes-in-arms day: Babes-in-arms days are designated for caregivers to attend shows with babies in arm or on laps. Only appropriate for infants (12 months or younger), and they must be with parents at all times.
A detailed accessibility guide and more information will be updated in the future. Meanwhile, please contact us with your questions at [email protected] / (416) 538-0988
Black Out Nights are evenings dedicated to Black audiences for shows created by and for Black audiences. The concept was birthed by playwright Jeremy O. Harris, whose Slave Play made history on September 18, 2019, when all 804 seats of Broadway’s Golden Theatre were filled by Black audience members in a moment of communal celebration and recognition. Black Out events have grown into a powerful movement, creating space for Black visibility, on and off stage.
Environmental warning: Use of Sage and Haze.
word! sound! powah! also includes the use of Palo Santo (burning), Flashing Lights, and Loud Music.
Opening nights of The Sankofa Trilogy are supported by Rubicon Sparkling!
Plus, find special cocktails featuring Rubicon Juice during the run of The Sankofa Trilogy at The Theatre Centre Café/Bar!
