Barbea Williams

Barbea Williams, Adjunct Faculty, is an award-winning performer dedicated to sharing ethnic dance, theatre and visual cultural traditions that derive from Africa and the African Diaspora, as an Arts Educator, Performing and Visual Artist. She has worked as Adjunct Faculty for the School of Dance at the University of Arizona for seven years. During this time she founded the UA Afrikana Dance Ensemble specializing in African and African Latino cultural expressions offering classes, workshops and performances for the School of Dance and University of Arizona community. In addition, she is on the Folk Teaching Artist Roster with the Arizona Commission on the Arts and Tucson Pima Arts Council, Teaching Artist for Tucson Unified School District’s OMA (Opening Minds through the Arts) Arts in Education Program, Fine Arts Department. In the community she serves as Artistic Director of Barbea Williams Performing Company and Dunbar Dance and Art Academy. Ms. Williams has performed with, choreographed/costumed for Arizona’s top theatre companies: Arizona Theatre Company, Black Theatre Troupe, Borderlands Theatre/Teatro Fronterizo, Invisible Theatre, Ododo Theatre and others. Barbea has received numerous awards from various organizations: John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, YWCA, Tucson/Pima Arts Council, Buffalo Soldiers of Southern Arizona, COPE, LULAC, N.A.A.C.P. and Jewish Community Relations Council, Pima Community College, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Tucson Metropolitan Ministries, Arizoni Award and Young Audiences of Southern Arizona. Her passion is “Keeping the Culture Alive!”