Stage Door News
Toronto: Obsidian Theatre Company announces its 24/25 Young, Gifted and Black cohort
Tuesday, December 10, 2024
Obsidian Theatre Company is thrilled to announce our 2024/2025 Young, Gifted and Black Cohort!
Lilian Adom, Germaine Konji, Arianna Lilith Moodie, Riel Reddick-Stevens and Sharine Taylor.
Under the guidance of program director d’bi.young anitafrika, this cohort will explore Black diaspora theatre and performance aesthetics through a decolonial and intersectional lens. Participants will also benefit from masterclasses and apprenticeships, culminating in an ensemble creation devised, directed, and designed by the YGB cohort.
• Initially pursuing acting, Lilian Adom discovered her passion for lighting design during her studies. With experience in programming, and working on a variety of events, she aspires to expand her expertise from theatre productions to concerts, while telling culturally rich stories through her work.
• Kenyan by birth and canadian by paper, Germaine Konji's early love of storytelling was shaped by a vibrant community where art was a tool for survival and connection. Germaine holds a Bachelor’s degree in Music Theatre Performance from Sheridan College, where they pushed institutional boundaries to explore the decolonial potential of the art form.
• Arianna Lilith Moodie is a Costume and Fashion Designer based in Toronto after finishing her degree in Fashion Design at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York. Outside of Costume Design Arianna enjoys creating art that marry her interest in storytelling, poetry and political activism with her textile background.
• Riel Reddick-Stevens (she/her) is a multidisciplinary artist, from Cole Harbour, Nova Scotia; now based in Toronto with strong ties to Montreal. She works mostly as an actor, sound designer/ composer, playwright, educator and producer. She is interested in creating and being part of work that uses multi mediums to portray one cohesive vision or story.
• Sharine Taylor is an award-winning interdisciplinary artist working using language and design across various mediums as vessels for storytelling. As a production designer, her interdisciplinary approach to designing is informed by her desire to create a culturally-sensitive and relevant universe that creates intimacy between characters, their environment and audience.
Visit www.obsidiantheatre.com.