Jumaane Taylor

Jumaane Taylor, a Chicago native, has been tap dancing since the age of 7 at the Sammy Dyer School of the Theatre. He has had the opportunity to train with Geraldine Williams, Idella Reed Davis, Runako Jahi, Bril Barrett, Jimmy Payne Jr., and George Patterson III.

Jumaane has been part of the ensemble in Imagine Tap! (directed and choreographed by Derick Grant); Tap Into Peace (directed and choreographed by Sarah Savelli and Ayodele Casel); and Rasta Thomas' Tap Stars, that performed in Hamburg, Germany.

​In 2015, Jumaane created Supreme Love. A tap dance production honoring John Coltrane’s 'A Love Supreme' and the art of tap, premiering at jazz music and dance festivals including Jacob's Pillow in 2017. In 2018 he established Heel and Toe Productions, presenting The Jazz Hoofing Quartet. A solo dance performance using improvisation, to continue the progressive exploration of live music with tap. 2020 delivered Ugly Flavors, covering Ornette Coleman's 'The Shape of Jazz To Come' then Igor Stravinsky's 'The Rite of Spring'. Choreographing a new layer of rhythmical composition for the two legendary works, as the tap dancers celebrate their relationship to the earth.

Jumaane has received the Chicago Dancemakers Forum 2017 Lab Artist Award, 3Arts 2019 Award, and has performed his work for the Museum of Contemporary Art, Jazz Institute of Chicago, and abroad. He teaches at T.E.S. Arts, Red Clay Dance Academy, Ruth Page School of Dance, and the Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University. Since 2021 Jumaane has also been the artistic director of Rhythm World, Chicago Human Rhythm Project's annual tap dance festival.