Dance, text, and voice are brought together in this new production, a kinetic interpretation of Oderin. This collection, by poet and playwright Agnes Walsh “chronicles her mother’s experience growing up in pre-Confederation Newfoundland, and her relationship with the mother that sent her away at age five following her father’s death. The work spans her mother’s diagnosis with dementia and delves into Walsh’s own emotional journey into the past following her mother’s death.
“Walsh writes achingly of her own experience caring for her mother, weaving together the lives of daughter, mother, and grandmother. It’s an experience that many can relate to and one that left a lasting impression upon directors Charlie Tomlinson and Amber Borotsik.

“Oderin is a book of poetry that takes up residence inside your body,” explains Tomlinson. “The words cradle you as you make supper for an aging loved one. They stick into you and kick you outside when after supper you think you’d rather smash the dishes than wash them. They float into your mind and crack open possibilities as you lie in bed, lost.”

The cast includes Anne Troake, Berni Stapleton, Jennifer Dick, and Sarah Joy Stoker. Oderin plays Saturday and Sunday, February 1st and 2nd, at the St John’s Arts and Culture Centre. You can purchase tickets here.

Photos: Marie Dionne