Having established an accomplished career as a writer, poet, actress and filmmaker, Ohio native S. Pearl Sharp may very well be described as the quintessential Renaissance woman. One of Sharp’s most celebrated works is the 10-year labor of love, The Healing Passage: Voices from the Water. This 90-minute documentary explores how artists utilize their craft to heal the damages sustained from slavery. A particular emphasis is placed on the Middle Passage, one of the most dangerous legs of the trans-Atlantic slave trade. In this treacherous journey, hundreds of Africans were transported in the overcrowded hulls of ships for months across the Atlantic to the Americas. Those who survived would serve out the remainder of their lives as slaves. The consequences of 300 years of human trafficking can still be felt today, manifest in what Sharp describes as “psychological trauma, genetic memory, personal and community consciousness.” Sharp explores this connection and how artists begin the healing process through such media as visual arts, dolls, music, dance and ritual. Following a screening of The Healing Passage on Friday (7:15pm) at Canisius, Sharp will host a workshop at the college on Saturday (2pm) titled “Reclaiming Your Ancestral Power” and will appear as a speaker with the Paul Robeson Theatre Artists Workshop Series at the African American Cultural Center at 6:30pm.

(Film Screening) Friday, March 31 7:15pm. Free.

(Workshop) Saturday, April 1 2pm. Canisius College, Richard E. Winter ’42 Student Center, 2001 Main Street (883-7000). Free.

(Workshop) Saturday, April 1 6:30pm. African American Cultural Center, 350 Masten Ave. ( 884-2013). Free.