Review: Fall For Dance North - HOMEGROWN: Signature Programme 2

The Fall for Dance North festival continues with Homegrown: Signature Programme 2. While the first series highlighted international connections and Afro-diasporic movements, Homegrown, also curated by Esie Mensah, turns the focus to Canada’s own choreographers and artists. This was the series I was most excited for, as I love seeing our Canadian-grown artists on stage and truly believe we have some of the most talented artists in the world (biased, I know). It did not disappoint. If anything, the theme I would give it, beyond ‘homegrown,’ is a beautiful showcase of musicality and charisma.

First on the program is the incomparable Lady C. I was delighted to see her name on the bill before the show. If you don’t know Lady C, she’s an icon in the Canadian street-dance world, renowned internationally and trained in both street and classical dance forms. Dressed in true Lady C fashion, she wore all white and beige with a wide-brimmed hat that shadowed her face, with large hoop earrings appearing just beneath. In her 20-minute solo CYMATIX, she takes the audience on a journey that visualizes sound itself.

The work begins with a commanding section of popping (the hip-hop street style) to a drum solo, each movement articulating every nuance of the rhythm. The audience started clapping enthusiastically just minutes into the piece. The work then shifts into a more explorative mode as she sings and builds layered soundscapes with movement. At one point, she dances with the microphone cord, letting it wind and tangle around her body. I found myself wishing for more of that opening section with the precision and rhythm of her popping, as it was mesmerizing. But really, Lady C can do no wrong. This is an artist we need to see more of in Canada!

The National Ballet of Canada follows with Reverence, a work by Canadian choreographer Ethan Colangelo set to original music by Ben Waters. Inspired by Hieronymus Bosch’s The Garden of Earthly Delights, this piece explores how anxiety and euphoria can coexist within the body. I have seen this work before, but I enjoyed it even more in this setting. The smaller stage and closer seat allowed me to notice details that might have been lost in a larger venue.

The work opens with a series of anguished and sculptural gestures. The dancers seem caught between resistance and surrender, each movement weighted and precise. The tension feels deeply psychological, as if the body itself is trying to negotiate release. Up closer, I could see how vividly the dancers embody this pain, struggle, and relief.

A major feature of Reverence is its lighting design by Jeff Logue. The dancers begin beneath a suspended box of light hovering just above their heads, creating a feeling of confinement. The work then moves into a smoky, dimly lit partnering section that feels almost cinematic, before returning to the ensemble for a bold finale: a single bar of light slowly descends from the top of the stage. It’s a hauntingly beautiful work with some daring lifts and great gesture sequences.

After intermission, the program continues with two African dance works. First is Journey to the Motherland by Lua Shayenne Dance Company, featuring traditional songs, dances, and live percussion. Three female dancers and singers (Miranda Liverpool, Amelie Giusta, and Lua Shayenne) are joined onstage by four musicians (Fara Tolno, Yohance Francis Parsons, Cécé Haba, and Kemar Scarlett). This is where the charisma and musicality of the evening really come back into play.

The work begins playfully, with the dancers peeking out from behind the curtain, talking about going on a journey to the motherland. They then launch into joyful traditional dances that evoke planting, gathering, and celebration. The movement and singing are full of life and radiate warmth and community. My favourite detail was the lighting design, which created a clean horizontal divide of green, yellow, and red, the colours of the Pan-African flag, from the top of the stage down. It was a simple but striking touch.

Last on the program is a duet titled Echoes of the Same Tree, choreographed by Kwasi Obeng Adjei and Ambrose Tjark, and danced by Adjei alongside Percy Anane Dwumfour. Adjei is a Canadian multidisciplinary artist based in Brampton, Ontario, while Tjark, who co-choreographed the work, is a Nigerian-born dance and performance artist. The choreographers describe the piece as a reunion, a way of reconnecting through shared lineage and art after distance, opportunity, and circumstance have kept them apart.

The choreography is full of strength and precision, marked by quick footwork, grounded rhythm, and an ongoing sense of call and response. One dancer moves, and the other answers, often mirroring or countering in the same formation. At one moment, a dancer faces the back wall with an arm held firmly to the side while the other moves through weighted, full-bodied quick gestures that draw from it, before they switch.

On stage with the two dancers is musician Yohance Parsons, positioned at the front corner of the stage facing them. This simple staging choice strengthens the connection between the performers, creating a charged triangular relationship of sound, rhythm, and movement. The work’s intensity and physicality feel deeply masculine, and the audience responded with a standing ovation. It’s a fitting close to the program and a reminder of how lucky we are in Canada to have space for so many different kinds of artists to explore, thrive, and share their stories onstage.

If you want to catch this programme, you have until October 19th to do so. The festival continues until October 26th with a wide variety of programming, including the Intimate Pairings showcase from October 21st to 23rd, and Kathak & Ballet: Signature Programme 3 from October 23rd to 25th. Additional events run in partnership with OCAD University and the Citadel throughout the festival.

Homegrown: Signature Programme 2, presented by Fall for Dance North, runs until October 19th, 2025, at the Bluma Appel Theatre (27 Front St E, Toronto, ON). Single tickets are $25. Tickets can be purchased online here. The festival also offers a variety of free and ticketed dance events continuing through October 26th.

Content Warnings: heavy haze and loud percussion

For more information, check out: FFDnorth.com
Facebook: @fallfordancenorth and Instagram and Twitter: @ffdnorth

Written by Deanne Kearney
DeanneKearney.com @deannekearney