DONTRELL, WHO KISSED THE SEA Opens June 3 At Sisters Freehold

Sisters Freehold has announced its first in-person production: Nathan Alan Davis' Dontrell, Who Kissed the Sea, directed and choreographed by K. Shaka Opare.

Set in Baltimore, Dontrell, Who Kissed the Sea is a dramatic comedy that follows 18-year-old Dontrell Jones III on his quest for ancestral connection. The journey-told through movement, rhythm and poetry-leads him from his parents' rowhouse to the shores of the Atlantic Ocean, with stops at Johns Hopkins University and the National Aquarium along the way. Performed by an ensemble of eight, Dontrell, Who Kissed the Sea invites audiences to consider family, identity and a shared legacy that extends beyond bondage.

"It's hip. It's cool. It's contemporary...it's Baltimore," says K. Shaka Opare, whose vision for the show blends dance, theater, and video projection. "This is more than a play. I think of it as a 'moving rhythmical.'" A veteran choreographer, the production marks Opare's directing debut. "We spent a lot of time in listening sessions with local artists and audience members during the pandemic, and there is a deep desire to explore Baltimore stories," adds Sisters Freehold Co-Artistic Director Ann Turiano. "In both form and content, Dontrell feels like Baltimore. We hope that audiences see themselves in this family, and feel the spirit of the city in the story and staging."

Performances run Thursday-Sunday June 3-19, 2022 at The Voxel: 9 W 25th Street, 21218. Tickets are available now at https://www.sistersfreehold.org/dontrell.

The cast of Dontrell, Who Kissed the Sea includes Bryanda Minix (Mom), Avery Pearsall (Dad), Ebie Prideaux (Erika), Courtney Simpson (Shea), Jared Michael Swain (Robby), Jaiya Smith (Danielle), with Keion Hocker as Dontrell Jones III. Technical direction by Bruce Kapplin. Costumes by Kenn Hall. Lighting by Sarah Tundermann.

Dontrell, Who Kissed the Sea by Nathan Alan Davis

The Voxel: 9 W 25th Street, Baltimore, MD 21218

June 3-19, 2022

Thursday-Saturday at 8pm; Sundays at 2pm

Tickets: $15-35

https://www.sistersfreehold.org/dontrell

Dontrell, Who Kissed the Sea is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals on behalf of Samuel French, Inc. www.concordtheatricals.com

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