With Open Studio, Union and Fall for Dance North invite you into the daily life of a dancer. If you’re passing through Union Station’s West Wing, pause for a moment or stay for an hour and experience the artists at work.

From 4–7 PM, experience Toronto-based dancer and choreographer Esie Mensah in process as she rehearses ZAYO with her company of dancers.

ZAYO is an Afrofusion dance-theatre production shaped by Esie Mensah’s lived experiences. Conceived over eight years, the work explores the courage needed to follow one’s calling and ancestral purpose. The piece follows a young woman discovering her power as she exists between worlds, guided by her Ancestors toward her chosen destiny.

Esie Mensah is an award-winning choreographer, director, dancer, educator, and TEDx speaker whose work spans dance, theatre, opera, and film/TV. She has worked with Rihanna, Drake, Nelly Furtado, Kenny Ortega, and clients including Canada’s Got Talent, Holt Renfrew, Deloitte, and the Toronto Raptors.

Her work has toured nationally and internationally. Theatre credits include choreography for Soulpepper, Obsidian, Shaw Festival, and Stratford Festival, as well as directing Serving Elizabeth at Theatre Aquarius. She choreographed Scott Joplin’s opera Treemonisha: A Musical Reimagining and was an Artist in Residence at Fall for Dance North in October 2025.

Co-presented by Union and Fall for Dance North.