WORLD PREMIERE: The true story of a Niagara artist reclaiming his ancestral voice (OCT 4 - 12 at the FirstOntario Performing Arts )
Niagara born-and-raised theatre artist Joseph Recinos has always been from many places at once. A Guatemalan-Canadian theatre artist of Mayan descent, he has been involved with the issues of indigenous peoples in both Central America and Canada.
Blood Lightning addresses our region's unique role as a border community but at the same time, it tells a kind of story that is very rarely heard: the story of people whose lives do not conform to traditional notions of borders.
This uplifting autobiographical performance uses traditional storytelling, hip hop, movement and poetry, and guides us through the complex terrain that has taken Recinos from Canada to Guatemala to the Standing Rock protests. He emerges offering a deep, optimistic, and affirmative knowledge of the interconnections between diverse people.
We are proud to present this ambitious new local play created by local artists Joseph Recinos and Colin B. Anthes. Essential Collective Theatre is a not-for-profit registered charity located in the heart of downtown St. Catharines that exists to produce professional, contemporary Canadian theatre with a focus on new plays and Niagara work. Support for this project is also support for truly public theatre by and for Niaga