Urban Bush Women Launches “When Black Women+ Speak” Series as an Extension of their Choreographic Center Initiative Producing Program for Women+ of Color (CCI 2.0) in Celebration of it’s 40th Anniversary
When Black Women+ Speak is a new landmark conversation series featuring BIPOC women+ producers taking place at major Black-led cultural institutions throughout New York City.
April 2024 — Brooklyn-based dance company Urban Bush Women (UBW), in celebration of their 40th Anniversary season and as an extension of their Choreographic Center Initiative Producing Program for Women+ of Color (CCI 2.0), presents a new landmark conversation series, “When Black Women+ Speak,” that will convene women+ of color leaders from partner organizations to explore the nuances of identity, community, values, support, and success among BIPOC women+ producers. The series is curated by CCI 2.0 Project Producer, Lai-Lin Robinson, and produced by 40th Anniversary Associate Producer/CCI 2.0 Producing Fellow, Pia Monique Murray, in collaboration with UBW Producer Jonathan D. Secor.
The inaugural season of “When Black Women+ Speak” will include four conversations, each taking place at an arts organization in New York City that has BIPOC woman and femme-identified leadership: BAM (Brooklyn Academy of Music), led by Gina Duncan; Lincoln Center, led by Shanta Thake; the Louis Armstrong Center, led by Regina Bain in partnership with Queens College School of the Arts Drama, Theater Dance Department Associate Chair, Edisa Weeks; and Harlem Stage led by Pat Cruz. Each organization’s leader will participate in the discussion, moderated by Robinson, with a collaboratively curated panel of guests, some of which include Maurine Knighton (Doris Duke Charitable Foundation), Sonja Kostich (Baryshnikov Arts Center), Toya Lilliard (651 ARTS), Erica Harper (Weeksville Heritage Center) and other BIPOC women+ producers in the city.
Robinson, reflected on the creation of the series. “It was through conversations with CCI 2.0 producing fellows, mentors, advisors and partners that we began to re-examine what equitable support for women+ of color producers looks and feels like. Together we started re-naming and reclaiming our work and positions in the field; reflecting on how far we have come and how far we can go. When CCI 2.0 culminated in 2022, we knew it was not the end of the conversation. There is a strong desire to keep nurturing the space we developed. ‘When Black Women+ Speak’ is a response to that desire and an opportunity to continue sharing the values and stories of women+ of color producers past, present and future.”
This 40th Anniversary season cements UBW’s legacy as a groundbreaking modern dance company that has become known for its community engagement methodology, as well as for its concert dance works that celebrate the African diaspora and center women’s experiences and perspectives.
Acting Executive Director, Tahnia Belle, comments: “As UBW celebrates 40 years of its innovative field building legacy while looking to the future, this series represents so much of UBW’s thinking and strategy as a pathway forward: a continued commitment and intentional investment in Black women+, community collaboration and field-wide organizational partnership. UBW has long existed as an incubator for many of the most brilliant artistic bodies and minds in dance, and “When Black Women+ Speak” is an extension of that legacy.”
“Both Lai-Lin and I began our journeys in arts administration with UBW over a decade ago, long before the launch of the CCI 2.0 program,” says Murray. “The inauguration of this series is a full circle moment for us personally as it visibly marks growth in our respective careers, but it also demonstrates the company’s cultivation and nourishment of the dance field as a whole, and of women+ of color in the dance field in particular.”
WHEN BLACK WOMEN+ SPEAK DATES:
Wednesday, May 8th | 7:00 PM
Fishman Space – Brooklyn Academy of Music, Brooklyn, NY | FREE RSVP
Wednesday, Jul 31st | 7:00 PM
David Rubenstein Atrium — Lincoln Center, New York, NY | LEARN MORE
Wednesday, Oct 16th | 6:00 PM
Louis Armstrong House Museum, Queens, NY | More information to come!
Wednesday, Nov 13th | 7:00 PM
Harlem Stage Gatehouse, Harlem, NY | More information to come!
Visit urbanbushwomen.org for event and program updates.
ABOUT URBAN BUSH WOMEN
URBAN BUSH WOMEN (UBW) is a groundbreaking Black women-led theatrical dance company and social activism ensemble founded in 1984 by visionary choreographer Jawole Willa Jo Zollar. Through its mission of engaging with artists, activists, audiences, and communities through performances, artist development, education, and community engagement, the award-winning nonprofit has performed throughout the United States, as well as Asia, Australia, Canada, Germany, South America, Europe and Senegal (in collaboration with Germaine Acogny and her all-male Compagnie JANT-BI). UBW has been an engine and amplifier for the stories of Black Women+ for forty years. UBW affects the overall ecology of the arts by promoting artistic legacies; projecting the voices of the under-heard and people of color; bringing attention to and addressing issues of equity in the dance field and throughout the United States; and by providing platforms and serving as a conduit for experimental art makers. Signature programs run by UBW include the Summer Leadership Institute (SLI), BOLD (Builders, Organizers & Leaders through Dance) and the Choreographic Center Initiative (CCI) and the CCI Producing Program (CCI 2.0). Now directed by artistic leaders Chanon Judson and Mame Diarra Speis, UBW combines radical performance, deep engagement, and ancestral knowledge from the African diaspora into a force that is urgent, forward-looking, and essential.
ABOUT THE PARTNER ORGANIZATIONS
A world-class home for adventurous artists, audiences, and ideas, BAM (Brooklyn Academy of Music) is North America’s oldest performing arts center, showcasing the work of emerging artists and modern icons. It is led by President, Gina Duncan.
For more than 160 years, BAM has been a thriving, urban multi-arts complex renowned for presenting an unparalleled roster of visionary and cutting-edge dance, theater, music, opera, visual arts, literature, and film engagements. Attracting more than 750,000 people annually to its home in Brooklyn, BAM provides a welcoming cultural stage and meeting place for global and local communities of all backgrounds. BAM’s distinctive multi-theater campus is alive year-round with inspired new engagements and signature programs alike including the renowned Next Wave (one of the world’s most influential festivals of contemporary performing arts, founded in 1983), the iconic DanceAfrica, an acclaimed repertory film program, and literary, archival, educational and humanities programs. For more information visit BAM.org.
Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (LCPA) is a cultural and civic cornerstone of New York City. The primary advocate for the entire Lincoln Center campus, our strategic priorities include: fostering collaboration and deepening impact across the Lincoln Center resident organizations; championing inclusion and increasing the accessibility and reach of Lincoln Center’s work; and nurturing innovation on stage and off to help ensure the arts are at the center of civic life for all. LCPA presents hundreds of programs each year, offered primarily for free and choose-what-you-pay, including many specially designed for young audiences, families, and those with disabilities. For more information visit www.lincolncenter.org.
The Louis Armstrong House Museum (LAHM) sustains and promotes the cultural, historical, and humanitarian legacy of Louis Armstrong by preserving and interpreting Armstrong’s house and grounds, collecting and sharing archival materials that document Armstrong’s life and legacy, developing programs for the public that educate and inspire, and engaging with contemporary artists to create performances and new works. For more information visit www.louisarmstronghouse.org.
Queens College, founded in 1937, has entered its eighth decade with a revitalized campus, rising enrollment, and a clear vision for the future: To offer a first-rate education to talented people of all backgrounds and financial means. QC students learn from the best, immersed in the nation's brightest city. For more information visit www.qc.cuny.edu.
Harlem Stage is the performing arts center that bridges Harlem’s cultural legacy to contemporary artists of color and dares to provide the artistic freedom that gives birth to new ideas. For 40 years, the organization’s singular mission has been to perpetuate and celebrate the unique and diverse artistic legacy of Harlem and the indelible impression it has made on American culture. Harlem Stage provides opportunity, commissioning, and support for visionary artists of color, makes performances easily accessible to all audiences, and introduces children to the rich diversity, excitement, and inspiration of the performing arts. For more information visit www.harlemstage.org.