d'bi Young

d'bi Young
D'bi Young, July 2010
Born Debbie Young
Nationality Canadian
Other names Debbie Young, d'bi.young anitafrika
Occupation actor, dub poet, playwright
Known for Founder of the Watah Theatre Institute
Notable work The sankofa trilogy: bloodclaat: one oomaan story, benu,and word!sound!powah!

D'bi Young Anitafrika is a Jamaican-Canadian dub poet, monodramatist, and educator, as well as a 3 time Dora Award-winning actor and playwright. Raised Debbie Young in Jamaica, she moved to Canada in 1993.

As an actor, she has appeared in Trey Anthony's da kink in my hair, which garnered her a Dora nomination for best actress, and the television sitcom Lord Have Mercy!.[1] She won outstanding new play and outstanding performance by a female in a principal role in a play in the 2006 Dora Mavor Moore Awards for her play blood.claat: one womban story.[2]

In 2007 she facilitated a summer dub theatre program for youth in Toronto, which led her to founding and artistic directing The Watah Theatre (formerly anitafrika dub theatre).[3][4] Young is the originator of the dubpoetry inspired intersectional anti-oppressive framework the Anitafrika Method using the Sorplusi Principles based on the seminal work of her mother Anita Stewart, a pioneer dub poet and member of Poets in Unity.

She was the curator of the Badilisha Poetry X-Change project created by the Africa Centre in 2011 and is currently the editor of Sorplusi Publishing based in Toronto. Young identifies as queer.[5]

Discography

  • debbie young - when the love is not enough, 2000
  • debbie young - xperimentin dub with dub trinity reggae band, 2001
  • debbie young - xperimentin dub in havana Cuba, 2002
  • d'bi.young - dubbin.revolushun: blood demo, 2003
  • d'bi.young - animal farm single, 2005
  • d'bi.young - when sisters speak live, 2007
  • d'bi.young - wombanifesto, 2010
  • d'bi.young - 333, 2012
  • D'BI. & THE 333 - #CivilRightsMixtape", 2016

Compilations

  • wordlife: tales of the underground griots, 1998
  • la vache enragee, 1998
  • ribsauce: a CD anthology of words by women, 1999
  • lost tribes of the sun: renewal, 2003
  • cbc national poetry slam compilation, 2004

Plays

  • Selphine Loathing, 2001
  • yagayah: two.womben.black.griots, 2001
  • blood(claat): one oomaan story, 2005 (sankofa trilogy part 1)
  • androgyne, 2006
  • benu 2009 (sankofa trilogy part 3)
  • word! sound! powah, 2010 (sankofa trilogy part 3)
  • she, 2010
  • The Emancipation Of Ms. Lovely (director), 2015
  • Esu Crossing The Middle Passage, 2016 (Orisha Trilogy Part One)
  • She Mami Wata and The Pussy WitchHunt, 2016 (Orisha Trilogy Part Two)

Books

  • art on black (poetry), 2005
  • blood.claat (play), 2006
  • rivers and other blackness between us (poetry), 2007
  • Oya (Collection of Writings), 2015

Awards

  • 2002: Artstarts Emerging Artist Award
  • 2002: Nourbese Philip Award
  • 2005: Harold Theatre Award
  • 2006: 2 Dora Awards - Outstanding New Play, Outstanding Female Lead - Bloodclaat
  • 2007: NAACP Best Cast Ensemble Award - da kink in my hair
  • 2007: RBC Toronto Arts Council Emerging Artist Award
  • 2010: KM Hunter Theatre Award
  • 2011: Women's Health in Women's Hands Resiliency Award
  • 2011: Canadian Poet of Honor Award
  • 2013, 2015: NOW Magazine - Toronto Best Poet Award
  • 2015: YWCA Toronto Women of Distinction (Arts)[6]
  • 2016: Dora Award - Outstanding Female Lead - She Mami Wata & The Pussy WitchHunt
  • 2016: NOW Magazine - Summerworks Theatre Festival, Audience Choice Award - Bleeders

References

  1. ↑ Daley, True. "Debbie Young: Dub-poet, actor, and playwright". Phem Phat. Retrieved 16 January 2009.
  2. ↑ "Past Winners". Dora Awards. Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts. Archived from the original on 2 December 2008. Retrieved 16 January 2009.
  3. ↑ Siad, Simona (20 September 2007). "Stories from our 'hoods". Toronto Star.
  4. ↑ Lewis, Jules (20 January 2016). "d'bi.young anitafrika". Retrieved 5 March 2016.
  5. ↑ "Being d'bi young". Xtra!, 18 February 2010.
  6. ↑ "2015 YWCA Toronto Women of Distinction". CNW. 4 March 2015.
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