A00028 - Eva Jessye, Choir Director

Eva Jessye (1895-1992) was a composer, musician, choral director, educator, writer, and actress, became the first African American woman to achieve acclaim as director of a professional choral group.  The Eva Jessye Choir performed regularly at the Capital Theater in New York City, from 1926 to 1929.  Jessye directed the choir in Hollywood's first African American musical, Hallelujah, in 1929.  She was born in Coffeyville, Kansas, graduated from Western University (Quindaro, Kansas), and later attended Langston University in Oklahoma.