About Esie

Born in Hamilton, ON, Esie Mensah took her first dance lessons at the Ewe-Canadian Cultural Organization of Ontario — a community group that celebrated traditional Ghanaian culture with weekly dance lessons. Her love of dance expanded as she taught herself choreography from music videos at an early age and would grow up performing at highschool and university assemblies. Although her love of dance was present, it never occurred to her that her hobby would become a calling. After spending 3 years at McMaster University studying Women’s Studies and Cultural Studies, Mensah took a leap of faith by leaving university and enrolling in the Commercial Dance Program at George Brown College to pursue dance full time.

From there her career began to blossom but quickly met with the reality and limitations of working as a dark-skinned Black woman in the business. Esie began developing her own style of Afrofusion which fuses traditional and contemporary African movements with Urban, Latin, Caribbean and Modern genres of dance. Soon she began to forge a path as a storyteller desperately wanting to bring the stories of her identity forward and unbeknownst to her creating a new pathway for many to follow. Esie started Black Stars Collective , a contemporary African dance performance company, in 2012 and Esie Mensah Creations a dance/theatre company in 2015 as a way to solidify the identities for dancers of African descent to explore our stories through movement.

Esie began working in theatre which unlocked her ability to go deeper into her art. Quickly she began to test, challenge and search for through lines and intention in her work which enabled her to create 4 original works and two films; Akoma, ZAYO, The Journey, and the Dora-nominated production Shades, films A Revolution of Love and TESSEL. Esie has a unique ability to transform movement into a physical language and has been doing so as a movement director for the past few years. Her artistry can be seen in productions such as the Shaw Festivals’ Russian Play, Victory and 1837: The Farmers’ Revolt as well as a teacher for the Shaw academy. Soulpepper’s MaRainey’s Black Bottom, Obsidian Theatre’s Venus’ Daughter and the Dora-nominated Musical Stage Company’s production Caroline, or Change. Most recently choreographing Volcano Theatre’s Treemonisha: A Musical Reimagining and directing Marcia Johnson’s Serving Elizabeth at Theatre Aquarius.

Her ability to straddle multiple worlds has given her the knowledge to bring compassion, care, intention and storytelling into her world. Named one of 15 Stage artists to watch in 2018, Mensah’s creative footprint continues to have an impact in and out of the dance sector.

Continuing to elevate her practice, Esie stepped out of her comfort zone to dive into public speaking. Out of over a thousand submissions, she was selected as a featured speaker at the TedXToronto conference in 2019. Speaking about her experience with shadeism as a dark-skinned dancer and the wisdom gained from creating her Dora nominated production ​Shades​. This production and many others continue to enrich Esie’s mission of healing from shadeism/colorism in the Black community. She has been using her voice to bring more inclusive practices to the Canadian dance industry and since has been featured as a speaker for multiple events and engagements including: University of Calgary; Staples; Healthy Dancer Canada and Royal Academy of Dance Canada, just to name a few

Esie’s dreams are becoming larger than life as she wants to create a legacy that benefits her and the community that surrounds her. Deepening the relationships that developed over the years she plans to continue to step into her power as a changemaker in the city and make her mark to shift the industry for the better. Whether its creating new musicals, writing her own plays, developing space for artists that understand the power of storytelling, her name in the lights on Broadway, the possibilities are endless. However, she can’t do it alone. Will you support her on the journey?