BEAUTY BEHIND THE NORMS DESIGN WORKSHOP

For the first time in the Women’s Work Festival's history, we will be taking the mainstage of the LSPU Hall to showcase a work-in-progress of one of the plays previously developed at our Festival, Nicole Obiodiaka's “Beauty Behind the Norms”. 

This new program offered Nicole the opportunity to explore and develop the design elements of their play, while also serving as a training program for emerging designers by pairing them with mentors from January 2026 to March 2026. 

Beauty Behind the Norms is an evocative drama set in West Africa, vividly portraying the clash between traditional cultural norms and the burgeoning desire for change. The play centers on Ada, a young woman who becomes a symbol of resistance and transformation in a society bound by strict expectations for women. Thrust into a polygamous marriage, Ada's journey is marked by her struggle for self-determination against the backdrop of a community deeply rooted in customary practices. Her quest for education and personal freedom challenges the patriarchal norms, sparking a wider conversation about women's roles and rights in a traditional society. Through Ada's eyes, the audience witnesses the emotional and social complexities faced by women navigating these rigid societal structures. Her resilience and courage illuminate the path for others, underscoring the transformative power of education and the importance of individual agency. This play is a powerful exploration of identity, empowerment, and the relentless pursuit of one's aspirations amidst societal constraints, offering a poignant commentary on the universal themes of freedom, equality, and the enduring spirit of change.

Join us for one of the work-in-progress showcases of “Beauty Behind the Norms”  on Saturday, March 7th, at 7 pm and Sunday, March 8th, at 3pm, on the Main Stage at LSPU Hall (3 Victoria St.).

CREATIVE TEAM

Nicole Obiodiaka - Playwright and Director Mentee
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Nicole Obiodiaka is a dynamic business professional, playwright, and arts advocate dedicated to amplifying Black voices and stories. She works at Nasdaq Verafin as a Senior Sales Analyst and is the founder of Centra Cultural Collective, an organization committed to supporting Black creatives and entrepreneurs through film, theatre, and community engagement.

Her original plays Beauty Behind the Norms, Amapiano Meets Shakespeare, and Blank Page An African Love Story have been showcased at festivals including the Women’s Work Festival and St. John’s Shorts Festival. Beyond the stage, Nicole has produced and written projects for CBC, shedding light on the Black experience in Newfoundland and Labrador.

She also leads the St. John’s chapter of Nasdaq’s Global Link of Black Employees and serves on the boards of St. John’s Shorts Festival and Shakespeare by the Sea Festival. Nicole’s work has been recognized with numerous prestigious awards, including the Frank H. Sobey Award for Excellence in Business Studies, the Afropolitan Canada Youth Leadership Award, the Memorial University Centennial 100 Award, and the Humanitarianism Award. Whether in business or the arts, Nicole continues to champion storytelling, leadership, and community impact
Santiago Guzmán - Dramaturge and Directing Mentor

​Santiago Guzmán (he/they) is an award-winning playwright, dramaturge, performer, and director originally from Metepec, Mexico, now based in St. John’s, NL. He is the Artistic Director of TODOS Productions in St. John’s, NL, and the Artistic Associate for the pan-Atlantic organization Playwrights Atlantic Resource Centre. He is a proud member of The Quilted Collective and Playwrights Canada Press’s inaugural editorial committee. Santiago’s work as a writer aims to put local, under-represented narratives and characters on the frontlines, whilst inviting audiences to appreciate the vibrancy of Newfoundland and Labrador from a diverse perspective.
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Santiago’s play Urn received the Senior Dramatic Script Award of the Newfoundland and Labrador 2022 Arts and Letters Awards & was shortlisted for the NLCU Fresh Fish Award 2022. Most recently, Santiago has been short-listed for PGC’s inaugural John Palmer Award 2022. As a dramaturge, Santiago has focused on supporting equity-seeking, emerging writers to tell their stories, as there is a need in our community to see these stories on stage. Through his theatre company, TODOS Productions, he has supported several pieces in development alongside Robert Chafe in the 2020 and 2021 TODOS’ Writing Unit. They have participated as lead and assistant dramaturge at PARC’s 2021, 2022, and 2023 Playwrights’ Retreat (pan-Atlantic), and has offered dramaturgical support through PARC’s Home Delivery program. Santiago was the dramaturge for the Fundy Fringe Festival in NB in 2020 and Plain Site Festival (NB) in 2021 and has offered dramaturgical support to Theatre New Brunswick (NB). He co-dramaturged with Natércia Napoleão CAHOOTS Theatre’s Playwrights Unit (ON), Hot House Crossing in 2022, and recently was a dramaturge of the 2023 Women’s Work Festival (NL). Santiago worked with Halifax Theatre for Young People as a dramaturge on Newcomers: Stories of Refugee and Immigrant Children. As an immigrant, queer, and artist of colour, Santiago believes that representation matters.
Yusi Cai - Lighting Design Mentee

Yusi Cai (she/her) is an emerging theatre artist based in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador. She holds a Master’s degree in Applied Literary Arts from Memorial University of Newfoundland. Originally from China, she has studied and worked across different cultural contexts and disciplines, including South Korea and Canada. These experiences continue to shape her artistic perspective.
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She believes in the power of theatre to connect and empower people. For her, theatre reflects life in all its beauty and ugliness, offering a space to explore the world, ourselves, and the kind of people we choose to be. Yusi is currently expanding her professional practice through observation, learning, and participation in community and professional theatre projects.
Alison Crosby - Lightning Design Mentor 

​Alison Crosby (she/her) is a theatre artist originally from Unama’ki / Cape Breton and currently based in Kjipuktuk / Halifax. She is a graduate from Mount Allison University’s Theatre Studies Program and has been working as a lighting designer for ten years. Recent lighting designs include Dayboil*, Still Dancing (Ship’s Company Theatre, *TNS Merritt Award for Lighting Design); Downed Hearts (Ship’s / EFT / Matchstick); Leaving Home, Footnotes, The Little Years, Joyride, The Woodcutter, Peter Fechter: 59 Minutes, Bone Cage (Matchstick Theatre); Misery, Gaslight, Same Time Next Year, Steel Magnolias (Watermark Theatre); Constellations, House, YAGA (Highland Arts Theatre); The Last Show on EarthTM! (Neptune Theatre); Urn, Newfoundlanded, Braiding Peonies (TODOS Productions); Come From Away (Rogue Productions / SJTC); Mary Poppins, Charlie & the Chocolate Factory (SJTC).
Raha Javanfar - Lightning Design Mentor
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Born in Iran, raised and living in Toronto, Raha is a multifaceted artist. As a lighting designer, she has worked on numerous productions in Toronto. As a projections designer, she has toured the world with Tafelmusik. A multi-instrumentalist, Raha performs regularly at various Toronto theatres and as the front-woman and singer/bassist of her blues/R&B band, Bad Luck Woman & Her Misfortunes, as well as in numerous other bands. She is a Slaight Family Music Associate at Soulpepper Theatre. Raha was a co-recipient of the Siminovitch Protege Award, is a two-time Dora Award winner and multiple-time nominee, has been an Arts Advocate and Ambassador for Music Canada, has taught at Toronto Metropolitan University, and taught as a guest at Sheridan College and the Soulpepper Academy.
Joy Abraham - Set Design Mentee

Joy Abraham is a Versatile Creative from Nigeria, whose work explores the intersection of spaces, identity, and power. With a foundation in poetry, social leadership and creative storytelling, her artistic practice is informed by themes of ethical leadership, underrepresented identities, and psycho-natural influences, bringing a psychologically grounded lens to stage design.
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Her creative works have appeared in African Writers, Youth4Nature, and other platforms across Western and East Africa. Her scenographic language often blends the organic and the symbolic, creating spaces that feel both lived-in and metaphorical. Outside the theatre, she finds inspiration in nature hikes, scribbling and the quiet resonance of the guitar.

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Brenda Duran - Set Design Mentor
Brenda Duran is a multidisciplinary artist whose work draws inspiration from her Salvadorean roots and her upbringing in Ontario. She discovered a passion for theatre early in life and has since dedicated herself to cultivating her creative voice through design and storytelling. After completing a BFA in Theatre Production and Design at York University, she began her professional career in Toronto before relocating to Nova Scotia in 2017.  Her recent theatre credits: Billy Goats Gruff (Mermaid Theatre) Chase the Ace (Ships Company) Fat Juliet (EFT /SBTS) 76 Centimeters ( Todos Productions/ RCAT) Newfoundlanded (Todos Productions) Goodnight Moon (Mermaid Theatre), Heathers: The Musical ( Neptune YPCo).
Julie Mwendanga - Costume Design Mentee
My name is Julie Mwendanga, and I am currently a fourth-year student studying anthropology and archaeology. I am a leisure creative who enjoys designing, crafting, and constructing clothes and costumes through mediums such as sewing, crocheting, and knitting. I am super excited to work on this project, designing African costumes, a particular passion of mine. I love creating and designing accessible African clothes for people far from home.
Arianna Moodie - Costume Design Mentor
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Arianna Lilith Moodie is a Costume Designer based in Toronto. Her theatre credits include: Costume Designer on a profoundly affectionate passionate devotion to someone (Tarragon & Obsidian), Ella & Louis (Shaw Festival), Associate Costume Designer on Table for Two (Soulpepper & Obsidian), as well as Assistant Costume Designer on One Man, Two Guvnors and The House that will not Stand (Shaw Festival).

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Marci Onsinyo - Sound Design Mentee

Marci Onsinyo is a multidisciplinary sound designer, audiovisual producer, curator, and
archivist working at the intersection of storytelling, heritage, and technology. With over 15
years of experience across film, radio, television, theatre, music, museum and gallery spaces,
her work explores how sound and image shape memory, emotion, and cultural identity. As a
singer-songwriter featured on BBC Newsday, she creates music that paints pictures, bringing
a deeply artistic sensibility to her sonic practice. She also brings a strong background in
documentation, archiving, and digital preservation, informed by her research in
ethnomusicology and her cultural experiences through collaborations across Eastern Africa
and beyond.
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In 2025 Marci was the sound design mentee for Nirvana under the mentorship of Ana Luisa
Ramos. The play by Lisah Nsazugwanko was her first theatre sound project. She has also
produced audio for documentaries and broadcast, and curated exhibitions within art gallery
contexts that foreground cultural narratives and contemporary creative practice. Her work
blends creative design with archival thinking, crafting immersive sonic environments while
preserving stories for future audiences.

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Elena Stoodley - Sound Design Mentor
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Elena Stoodley is a singer, author, songwriter and sound designer and a community organizer. Born in Tio'tia:ke, Montreal, she often blends her passion for social justice and black liberation with her art practices. She studied Creative Writing and Electroacoustic music and performed her music internationally, including in Cameroon and in the Republic of Congo. She sometimes gives workshops or consults on topics of anti oppressive work practices and intersectional inclusion. Her sound design work was shown in The Mountaintop, the Rootless tree, Manman LaMer, Black Out (nominated for oustanding sound design for the META’s - Montreal English Theatre Awards). Pipeline and Diggers, by Black Theatre Workshop, M'appelle Mohamed Ali by La Sentinelle, L’amoure looks something like you by Eric Noël and S’enjailler by Stephie Mazunya. She has produced the haitian annual recap Chécké for three consecutive years. And has created and directed Survival Technologies for the FTA 2024’s edition.

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cast

Angel Nene
Joseph Chinaka
Rachel Gilbert
Lisah Nsanzugwanko
Jephthah Anga
Rahma Mohamed Alli
Jamal Weekes
Laetisha Ekpiken
Jessica Quaw