UPCOMING PERFORMANCES 2024

HAINT BLU

urban bush women’s Haint Blu is an ensemble dance-theater work seeped in memory and magic. Known as the color that Southern families paint their front porches to ward off bad spirits, Haint Blu uses performance as a center and source of healing, taking us through movement into stillness and rest: remembering, reclaiming, releasing, and restoring. It is an embodied look into familial lines and the movements, histories and stories of our elders and ancestors. It reflects on what has been lost across generations and what can be recovered. Haint Blu takes us to the magical place where spirits share their legacies, journey onward, and leave the thick residue of their knowing behind. conceived and directed by chanon judson and mame diarra speis.

Upcoming shows:

• january 2024 @ harlem stage APAP NYC

Legacy + Lineage + Liberation

Urban Bush Women’s, Legacy + Lineage + Liberation tour celebrates the power of Women(+) in an evening of classic works that transcend genres and amplify the voices of Women(+) of color.

These iconic works give multiple dimensions of life that resonate in this time of reflection around equity and justice, and lift up Black lives in inspiring ways.

These works have been unearthed, given new vision and strength, and are being sent forward to a new generation!

upcoming tours

• februrary 2024 @ appalacian state NC & Suny purchase NY

• march 2024 @ university of buffalo NY

• april 2024 @ arizona arts live, fort collins co, denver co, ucla los angeles CA

SCAT!

"SCAT! is my story.  It is my family’s story. It is a personal and collective story of a family and a people, moving from the Jim Crow south during the Great Migration."  – Jawole Willa Jo Zollar, UBW Founder

Set in a fictional jazz club, SCAT! is a dance-driven musical that tells a love story of two people making their way during the Great Migration through song, dance and storytelling. It is a powerful tale of one family and what happens when dreams encounter the realities of American life in the 40s & 50s. SCAT! features an original jazz score performed by a live band.

Conceived, directed, and choreographed by Jawole Willa Jo Zollar; Original Music Composed and Performed by Craig Harris.

Upcoming Tours

• June 2024 @ fisher center at bard NY

• july 2024 american dance festival NC

• februrary 2025 perleman center NYC

RECENT PERFORMANCE

intelligence houston grand opera

premiered october - november 2024

The HGO-commissioned world-premiere opera  Intelligence, inspired by the little-known true story of these two unlikely spies, unfolds as Elizabeth sends Mary Jane to live in the Confederate White House. As Mary Jane uncovers the secrets of the Confederacy to share with Union military commanders, she also uncovers the secrets of her own history and identity. Shared through a fusion of music, words, and  dance, this new American epic is the creation of a powerhouse trio: composer Jake Heggie, librettist Gene Scheer, and director/ choreographer Jawole Willa Jo Zollar, founder of Urban Bush Women.

The production features eight dancers from UBW and a sensational cast led by mezzo-soprano Jamie Barton as Elizabeth, with soprano Janai Brugger making her anticipated company debut as the brilliant Mary Jane. Acclaimed conductor Kwamé Ryan takes the podium for his HGO debut.