KasheDance Presents: Trilogy of BEing

Citadel + Compagnie is thrilled to be hosting the presentation of Kevin A. Ormsby’s Trilogy of BEing, in association with KasheDance. This triple bill runs April 13th – 15th at The Citadel: Ross Centre for Dance.

Trilogy of BEing is a creative collaboration between Canadian and American choreographers — all of whom have worked or danced with Ormsby throughout his career. The production is grounded in Black existence and experiences: environmental, social, and cultural, and thematically follows three distinct varying stages of Ormsby’s life’s work.

Trilogy of BEing is a series of three solos performed by Ormsby:

Unmasked: Seaweed King – choreographed by Christopher Walker
Unmasked: Seaweed King depicts a sort of phoenix rising from the refuse / ashes; addressing human impact on the environment told through a character of ancient wisdom linking Afro-Caribbean mas performance traditions.

Somebody – choreographed by Denise Fujiwara
Somebody was inspired by Ormsby’s call to action in the wake of George Floyd’s murder. “I suggested a collaborative creative process that resulted in the solo for him.” Poetry by Giller Prize-winning Canadian author Ian Williams, Poet Laureate of Jamaica 2021-2024, Olive Senior, and Lambda Literary Award winner, American Rosamund S. King shapes this solo, rich in contemporary butoh technique.


Dear Brother – choreographed by Joel Valentin-Martinez*
Through visual research of images and music of significant Black historical periods, emerges Dear Brother, commenting on how we see contemporary Black and Brown lives, by shaping music, fashion and popular culture.

*Dear Brother will be performed as a solo on April 13 and 15, and as a quartet (performed by Will Brown, Benjamin Russel, and Kevin Shawn along with Ormsby) on April 14.