WARNING: This article contains details about abuse.
Judite Vold fought back overflowing emotions as she recalled her childhood story.
She was born in Haiti and was placed in an orphanage when she was just one year old.
“I was physically, sexually and psychologically abused,” she said. “Until the age of eight.”
Seven years later, she was adopted by a family from rural Alberta and brought them back to Canada, where the rest of her story began.
“When I was adopted, it was a good home full of loving family members,” Vold said. “It turned out to be a good story, even if it didn’t start that way.”
She is now 23 and has been removed from the orphanage for 15 years. But the memories, she says, still trigger her today.
“It’s hard sometimes in the middle of the day to stop everything I’m doing to have a huge meltdown,” she said.
Often, Vold says, she covers up the emotions left by that trauma. These days, she’s fighting her way through them instead.
Her story of struggle and hope inspired a performance told through music, poetry and dance at the Rosebud School of the Arts in southern Alberta.
Vold plays her own early life in Say hello, wave goodbyewith her friends and classmates by her side.
Most of the cast appear behind a mask, a metaphor used to show how Vold sometimes harbors her emotions to protect herself and loved ones from the reality she faces.
“Seeing the beauty in it was really exciting,” Vold said, highlighting the original choreography her castmates contributed to the show.
“That they support me in this case and share through my story, although it is my story that we share.”
life on stage
Sharing the stage with Vold was a touching experience for Shelly-Ann Morgan.
“Imagine holding your child and then having to let go, it’s a very painful thing,” she said. “And also the shock and the anger and the pain of seeing some of the things that Judite went through.”
Morgan plays Vold’s biological mother during the performance, but their connection goes beyond the stage. She and Vold were roommates when current graduate Morgan was also studying at the school.
“We’re finding ways to tell that story and thinking about how difficult it must be for that person to tell that story,” Morgan said.
“So [I’m] I’m definitely doing my best to support that person on this journey.”
According to Morgan, during the making of the show, it was easy to see that this experience was difficult for Vold, who narrated her own journey through poetry.
During the performance, an emotional dance shows Vold struggling against the abuse she has faced and endured.
But the show ends with her feeling at peace with herself and a lot happier.
A message of hope and understanding
Besides the story itself, the timing of the production matters.
Morgan says there is great value in telling this story during Black History Month.
For them, repeating the same stories every February can do their purpose a disservice.
“With Black History Month, we keep looking back at the same stories – it’s the history of slavery in America that’s most prevalent,” Morgan said.
“But finding opportunities to tell stories like this, you know, a bicultural person and their experience, I think it’s very important,” Morgan said.
Vold knows her story may not be easy for people to see.
But she eventually found her own happy ending and hopes audiences will understand her message of hope, which was woven into the performance’s plot.
“It’s a story that I hope will bring people together and I hope will show them that love exists.”
There is support for anyone who has been sexually abused. Here you can access hotlines and local support services Government of Canada website or the Ending Violence Association of Canada database. If you are in imminent danger or fear for your safety or that of others around you, please call 911.
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