By Desirée Zagbai
Exploring the intersection of minority identities and immigration, “Those Roots Within” is a contemporary dance duet that creates a unique dialogue between Deaf and Hearing experiences. Co-created by Alida Esmail, Hodan Youssouf, and Sophia Wright, the performance featured Youssouf, a Deaf theatre artist, and Esmail, a hearing dance and theatre artist, as they navigate the complexities of shared stage and divergent truths.
Youssouf explained that they wanted the show to be as visually accessible as possible without needing subtitles, captioning, or interpreters on stage. She added that they ensured the performance would be fully simultaneously accessible to the deaf and hearing community as audience members and for them as performers.
“We wanted to make sure that we were equally perceived. Of course, we have our cultural differences. I’m deaf, Alida is hearing, but we wanted people not to identify us by those identities as much on stage, but to see our mutual understanding and the equality we show on stage by being together as performers,” Youssouf said to the CONTACT.
Youssouf said that as a Black woman who grew up in mainly white communities, there were very few deaf Black models for her to look up to as a child. She explained that when she moved to Toronto as a 21-year-old, she began seeing more Black representation, which inspired her to see her cultural identity and value it.
“I really want to focus on here in Montreal; I am trying to coordinate workshops for members of the Black deaf community to bring us together and grow us as a community. We also need to recognize that there are also people from many different cultures within the Black deaf community,” Youssouf said.” However, people miss those opportunities in terms of education from their parents because language barriers often exist within the community and the family. Parents must also take on that experience to teach their deaf children to value their cultural heritage.”
Esmail said that in contemporary dance, she has not seen a fair representation of Brown performers on stage, especially having a Black and Brown person duetting.
“I think it’s really important to show that we exist in this society. We live in Montreal, are integrated into the community here, and deserve to be on stage as well,” Esmail said.
The show ran from Feb. 26, 2025, to March 01. More information can be found athttps://mailchi.mp/c88da72a9e9d/mai-thoserootswithin-en?e=[UNIQID
1 Comment
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