STAFF
FOUNDING ARTISTIC DIRECTOR
Growing up in Kansas City, Missouri, Jawole Willa Jo Zollar earned her B.A. in dance from the University of Missouri at Kansas City and 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 (UBW) as a performance ensemble dedicated to exploring the use of cultural expression as a catalyst for social change.
jAWOLE wILLA jO zOLLAR
INTERIM EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Michelle Dorant is an arts leader, performer, and administrator whose career bridges performance, management, and community engagement. As Interim Executive Director and long-standing member of Urban Bush Women (UBW), she has performed in seminal works like Batty Moves and has served as both artist and board member. Her leadership focuses on cultivating inclusive artistic ecosystems and equitable organizational growth.
MichelLE DORANT
ASSOCIATE ARTISTIC DIRECTOR
Cheri L. Stokes, a Brooklyn native, is a choreographer, performer, educator, and arts administrator whose work intersects Hip-Hop culture, African diaspora movement styles, and community-centered storytelling. She holds an M.F.A. in Choreography and Performance from Florida State University and a B.A. in Dance Studies with K-12 Dance Teaching Licensure from UNC Greensboro. Her choreography centers on social vernacular dance forms including Hip-Hop and Dancehall.
Cheri L. STokes
REHEARSAL & WELLNESS DIRECTOR
Bennalldra Williams is a performer, facilitator, and passionate advocate for movement. Her belief in the body's wisdom and its storytelling power has led her to perform with renowned companies including Alabama Ballet, Cleo Parker Robinson Dance, and the New York-based Urban Bush Women, where she began as a company member in 2006 and spent six seasons as part of the touring ensemble.
Bennalldra Williams
DIRECTOR OF PRODUCTION, BOOKING & TOURING
Michelle has worked in the worlds of performing arts and independent film for more than two decades. Prior to joining UBW in 2017, she was Director of Booking at MAPP International Productions for 6+ years, overseeing booking and touring of all of MAPP’s multi-disciplinary projects. Artists included: Nora Chipaumire; Marc Bamuthi Joseph; Okwui Okpokwasili; Ralph Lemon; Samita Sinha; Dan Hurlin; Lars Jan; and more.
MICHELLE COE
DIRECTOR OF MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS
Makeda Smith, born in Los Angeles, CA, is a versatile marketing professional with a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Temple University (2013). Her journey from performer to digital marketing specialist began with a deep-rooted passion for the arts, which has evolved into a thriving career in marketing for the performance arts and nonprofit sectors. She has been honored to be part of the Urban Bush Women organization since 2018.
MAKEDA SMITH
OPERATIONS & PROJECT MANAGER
Ameeya Singh is a choreographer, dancer, and arts administrator based in New York City. She has presented several choreographic works and performed throughout the boroughs, at venues such as Laguardia Performing Arts Center, Tishman Auditorium, and Arts on Site, and Nublu, with a focus on contemporary dance and dance theatre.
Ameeya Singh
COMPANY MANAGER
MiKayla Young (Baltimore, MD), took her first dance class at the YMCA. She soon began training under the tutelage of Stephanie Powell. MiKayla obtained her Bachelor’s of Fine Arts from Virginia Commonwealth University with a minor in Social Welfare, studying under artists like; Trebien Pollard, and Sinclair Emoghene. Throughout her time at VCU she performed work with artists such as Dr. E. Gaynell Sherrod, MK Abadoo and Christine Wyatt.
MIKAYLA YOUNG
INSTITUTIONAL ADVANCEMENT MANAGER
Brooke Ashley Rucker is a Brooklyn-based dancer with a BFA in Dance from Florida State University. She has worked for choreographers Camille A. Brown, Annie-B Parson, Nia Love, Johnnie Cruise Mercer, Donna Uchizono, and Sydnie L. Mosley, among others. She currently performs as a dancer at The Metropolitan Opera House.
BROOKE ASHLEY RUCKER
LEARNING & COMMUNITY MANAGER
Jaimé Yawa Dzandu is a choreographer, movement artist, community organizer, and facilitator with roots in Hampton, Virginia, and Wusuta-Anyigbe, Ghana. She creates movement-based art experiences that nurture restoration, social connection, and transformation. Currently, Jaimé is the Learning & Community Manager and facilitator for Urban Bush Women's BOLD Network (Builders, Organizers, and Leaders through Dance), supporting the growth of dancers and community leaders.
JAIMÉ YAWA DZANDU
MANAGER OF ARCHIVES & ORGANIZATIONAL SYSTEMS
Camille Lawrence is an archivist and curator deeply committed to preserving Black history through both physical preservation and web archiving. Camille’s work bridges the gap between traditional archival practices and the ever-evolving digital landscape, ensuring that history is not only remembered but also accessible for future generations. She has shared her expertise at national symposia, on academic panels, and in grassroots community conversations, where she explores the intersections of archiving ephemeral art forms and Black identity formation practices.
cAMILLE LAWRENCE
MARKETING ASSISTANT
Yasmine Johnson (she/her) is a recent cum laude graduate from CUNY Hunter College, receiving a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology with minors in African Studies and Business. She was first introduced to Urban Bush Women in September of 2023 when she joined the Bush as a Communications and Social Media Marketing intern through CUNY Cultural Corps.
YASMINE JOHNSON
ASSISTANT TO FOUNDING ARTISTIC DIRECTOR
Veronica Rae Jiao is a Filipino-American dance creative, educator, and administrator born on the traditional land of the Edisto Natchez-Kusso, Etiwan, & Kiawah peoples (Charleston, SC). As the grandchild of immigrants, she is engaged in dismantling colonialist & imperialist structures as they exist in the arts. Her creative practice renders this work by archiving the embodied Asian-American experience through dance improvisation, facilitated critical conversation, writing, and collaborative community-building.
Veronica Jiao
EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT
Marielle Richardson is a highly versatile dancer trained in diverse styles spanning ballet, contemporary, hip hop, and Latin forms. She began her higher education at Riverside City College, where she earned a choreography scholarship, before transferring to CSU Long Beach to complete her BFA in 2014. With 20 years of studio teaching experience, Richardson later relocated to South Carolina, spending years as a resident instructor for the Beaufort Academy of Dance and collaborating with the local company Dance Matters.