Since 1984, the Urban Bush Women, a collective of Black
female dance artists led by visionary founder Jawole Willa Jo Zollar have
been creating and performing dances which capture the spirit of African
Diaspora dance. Black street and social dances have long galvanized
African American communities as sites of both protest and community building. From
plantation shouts and buckboard dancing to choreographed spectacles like
Dancing Across 125^th Street, public spaces have been gathering
points for emotive expressions of community solidarity. Gonzalez, a founding
member of the Urban Bush Women, charts how black embodiment of dance forms
persist as social commentary on the dance floor and beyond. Early,
interdisciplinary work with the Urban Bush Women company laid the foundation
for a now-legendary dance aesthetic which utilizes sound, gesture, and symbol
as communicative modes on the concert dance stage.  Gonzalez discusses the early evolution of the
dance company and how its processes have led to community empowerment across
the globe.

Anita
Gonzalez is a Professor of Performing Arts and African American Studies at
Georgetown University and a Co-Founding leader of their Racial Justice
Institute. Her academic books include Performance, Dance and Political
Economy (2021), Black Performance Theory (2014), Afro-Mexico
(2010), and Jarocho’s Soul (2004). She directs, devises, and writes
theatrical works and her creative writings focus on
telling women’s stories and histories. Dr. Gonzalez believes the art of
storytelling connects people to their cultures.