Jawole Willa Jo Zollar,
Consulting Choreographer

Jawole Willa Jo Zollar is from Kansas City, Missouri. After earning her B.A. in dance from the University of Missouri at Kansas City, she received her M.F.A. in dance from Florida State University. In 1980, Jawole moved
to New York City to study with Dianne McIntyre at Sounds in Motion.

In 1984, Jawole founded Urban Bush Women as a performance ensemble dedicated to exploring the use of cultural expression as a catalyst for social change. In addition to 34 works for UBW, she has created works for
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Philadanco, University of Maryland, Virginia Commonwealth University, and others; and with collaborators including Compagnie Jant-Bi from Senegal and Nora Chipaumire. In 2006
Jawole received a New York Dance and Performance Award (Bessie) for her work as choreographer/creator of Walking With Pearl…Southern Diaries. Featured in the PBS documentary Free to Dance, which chronicles
the African-American influence on modern dance, Jawole was designated a master of choreography by the John F. Kennedy Performing Arts Center in 2005.