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Alvin Ailey

February 02, 2023

Alvin Ailey Jr. (January 5, 1931 – December 1, 1989) was an American dancer, director, choreographer, and activist who founded the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater (AAADT). He created AAADT and its affiliated Alvin Ailey American Dance Center (later Ailey School) as havens for nurturing Black artists and expressing the universality of the African-American experience through dance.

Alvin Ailey
photographed by Carl Van Vechten, 1955
Born(1931-01-05)January 5, 1931
Rogers, Texas, U.S.
DiedDecember 1, 1989(1989-12-01) (aged 58)
Manhattan, New York City, U.S.
Occupation(s)Dancer, choreographer
AwardsPresidential Medal of Freedom Kennedy Center Honors

A gay man, his work fused theater, modern dance, ballet, and jazz with Black vernacular, creating hope-fueled choreography that continues to spread global awareness of Black life in America. Ailey's choreographic masterpiece Revelations is recognized as one of the most popular and most performed ballets in the world.[1][2][3]

On July 15, 2008, the United States Congress passed a resolution designating AAADT a "vital American cultural ambassador to the World."[4][5] That same year, in recognition of AAADT's 50th anniversary, then Mayor Michael Bloomberg declared December 4 "Alvin Ailey Day" in New York City, while then-Governor David Paterson honored the organization on behalf of New York State.[6]

Early life and education

Born in Rogers, Texas, at the height of the Great Depression in the violently racist and segregated south, during his youth Ailey was barred from interacting with mainstream society. Abandoned by his father Alvin Ailey[7] when he was three months old, Ailey and his mother, Lula Elizabeth,[7][8] were forced to work in cotton fields and as domestics in white homes — the only employment available to them. As an escape, Ailey found refuge in the church, sneaking out at night to watch adults dance, and in writing a journal, a practice that he maintained his entire life. Even this could not shield him from a childhood spent moving from town to town as his mother sought employment, being abandoned with relatives whenever she took off on her own.[9][7]

Looking for greater job prospects, Ailey's mother departed for Los Angeles in 1941. He arrived a year later, enrolling at George Washington Carver Junior High School, and then graduating into Thomas Jefferson High School. In 1946 he had his first experience with concert dance when he saw the Katherine Dunham Dance Company and Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo perform at the Los Angeles Philharmonic Auditorium. This awakened an until then unknown spark of joy within him,[10] though he did not become serious about dance until 1949 when his classmate and friend Carmen De Lavallade dragged him to the Melrose Avenue studio of Lester Horton.[11][12]

Ailey studied a wide range of dance styles and techniques — from ballet to Native American inspired movement studies — at Horton's school, which was one of the first racially integrated dance schools in the United States.[13][14] Though Horton became his mentor,[15] Ailey did not commit to dancing full-time; instead he pursued academic courses, studying romance languages and writing at UCLA.[16][17] He continued these studies at San Francisco State in 1951. Living in San Francisco, he met Maya Angelou, then known as Marguerite Johnson,[18] with whom he formed a nightclub act called "Al and Rita."[19] Eventually, he returned to study dance with Horton in Los Angeles.[20]

Career

He joined Horton's dance company in 1953, making his debut in Horton's Revue Le Bal Caribe.[21] Horton died suddenly that same year in November from a heart attack, leaving the company without leadership. In order to complete the organization's pressing professional engagements, and because no one else was willing to, Ailey took over as artistic director and choreographer.[22][23]

 
Alvin Ailey and Carmen de Lavallade (1954)

In 1954 De Lavallade and Ailey were recruited by Herbert Ross to join the Broadway show, House of Flowers. Ross had been hired to replace George Balanchine as the show's choreographer and he wanted to use the pair, who had become known as a famous dance team in Los Angeles, as featured dancers.[24][25] The show's book was written and adapted by Truman Capote from one of his novellas with music from Harold Arlen and starred Pearl Bailey and Diahann Carroll.[26]

Ailey and De Lavallade met Geoffrey Holder, who performed alongside them in the chorus, during the production. Holder married De Lavallade and became a life-long artistic collaborator with Ailey.[26] After House of Flowers closed, Ailey appeared in Harry Belafonte's touring revue Sing, Man, Sing with Mary Hinkson as his dance partner,[27] and the 1957 Broadway musical Jamaica, which starred Lena Horne and Ricardo Montalbán. Drawn to dance, but unable to find a choreographer whose work fulfilled him, Ailey started gathering dancers to perform his own unique vision of dance.

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater

Main article: Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater

In 1958 Ailey founded the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater to present his vision of honoring Black culture through dance. The company had its debut at the 92nd Street Y. The performance included Ailey's first masterpiece, Blues Suite, which followed men and women as they caroused and cavorted over the course of an evening while blues music played in the background until church bells began to ring, signalling a return to mundane life.[28][29]

Also in 1960, Ailey premiered his most popular and critically acclaimed work, Revelations, again at the 92nd Street Y. In creating Revelations, Ailey drew upon his "blood memories" of growing up in Texas surrounded by Black people, the church, spirituals, and the blues. The ballet charts the full range of feelings, from the majestic "I Been ’Buked" to the rapturous "Wade in the Water," closing with the electrifying finale, "Rocka My Soul in the Bosom of Abraham."[30][31][32]

 
Revelations performed by Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre in 2011

After this performance, and despite their success, the Ailey company struggled to find consistent bookings. Though the US State Department sponsored AAADT's first international tour in 1962, which traveled across Asia — with followups to Senegal in 1966 and East & West Africa in 1967 — the company was able to book only a few performances per season in America. After a successful week-long engagement at the Billy Rose Theatre, the company was invited to become the resident company at Brooklyn Academy of Music.[33]

The relationship did not go well and ended a few years later. Ailey struggled with the state department tours, which insisted on marketing the company as an "ethnic" company rather than a modern dance company, and were closely supervised by the FBI - the latter referred to Ailey's homosexuality as "lewd and criminal tendencies" and threatened his company with bankruptcy if he showed any signs of effeminate or homosexual behavior while on tour.[33]

In 1970, with few bookings on the radar — and on the eve of a tour to Russia as part of a cultural exchange agreement — Ailey announced at a press conference that he was closing the company. In response, the State Department sponsored an Ailey tour of North Africa to tide things over. That August, the company toured to Russia where it was ecstatically received. Their performances were broadcast on Moscow television and seen by over 22 million viewers. On closing night, because the Russian audiences would not stop applauding, the company gave over 30 curtain calls. Returning home with news of this triumph, the company performed a two-week engagement at the ANTA Theater. By the end of the January 1971 performance, the entire run was sold out. After 13 years, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre was a monumental success. In August 1972 the company was briefly renamed Alvin Ailey City Center Dance Theater and became a resident company of New York City Center.[34]

While Ailey choreographed more than 100 ballets for his dancers, he insisted that the company perform pieces by other choreographers rather than stand as a singular vehicle for his voice.

Though AAADT was formed to celebrate African American culture and to provide performances for black dancers, who were frequently denied opportunities due to racist mores of the time, Ailey proudly employed artists based solely on artistic talent and integrity, regardless of their background.[35] In addition to his work as artistic director and choreographer with AADT, Ailey also choreographed ballets for other companies including American Ballet Theatre,[36] Joffrey Ballet, Royal Danish Ballet,[37] and The Metropolitan Opera. For American Ballet Theater, he created The River (1970), one of several choreographies he set to the jazz music of Duke Ellington.[38]

The Ailey School

In 1969, Ailey founded the Alvin Ailey American Dance Center with the famed Martha Graham Dance Company principal and choreographer Pearl Lang as his co-director of the school. Their aim was to provide access to arts and dance to under-resourced communities. They started off in Brooklyn with 125 students. A year later the school relocated to Manhattan behind the Lincoln Center complex. In 1984, Denise Jefferson assumed directorship. Under her leadership, the school developed a Bachelor of Fine Arts Program in partnership with Fordham University in 1998.[39]

The school was renamed The Ailey School in 1999. Several years later, the school moved into The Joan Weill Center for Dance. Following Jefferson's death in 2010, Tracy Inman and Melanie Person assumed stewardship of the school as co-directors of the school. In 2012, after leading Ailey 2 for 38 years, Sylvia Waters retired. The second company's resident choreographer and associate director Troy Powell took over her role as artistic director. With the addition of the Elaine Wynn and Family Education Wing, the Ailey school is still growing and is now the largest place in New York City committed to training dancers.[39]

From her joining in 1965, the dancer Judith Jamison served as Ailey's muse.[40] In 1971 she premiered Cry, which he dedicated to his mother and black women everywhere.[41] She took over as artistic director following his death in 1989.[42][43][44]

Other important figures in the company include Sylvia Waters, who in 1974, after performing with the company for six year was asked by Ailey to lead The Alvin Ailey Repertory Ensemble — a junior company, known today as Ailey 2, that prepares leading students for professional dance careers[45][46] - and Masazumi Chaya, who danced with the company for 15 years then became rehearsal director, and was appointed associate artistic director in 1991.[47][48]

Personal life

Ailey loathed the label "Black choreographer" and preferred being known simply as a choreographer. He was notoriously private about his life.[49] Though gay, he kept his romantic affairs in the closet. Following the death of his friend Joyce Trisler, a failed relationship, and bouts of heavy drinking and cocaine use, Ailey suffered a mental breakdown in 1980. He was diagnosed as manic depressive, known today as bipolar disorder. During his rehabilitation, Judith Jamison served as co-director of AAADT.[50]

Death

Ailey died from an AIDS-related illness on December 1, 1989, at the age of 58.[51] He asked his doctor to announce that his death was caused by terminal blood dyscrasia in order to shield his mother from the stigma associated with HIV/AIDS.[52]

Reception and legacy

Recognition and honors

After his death, Ailey’s personal papers were housed at the Black Archives of Mid-America in Kansas City, Missouri.[64]

Documentary

In 2021, the documentary Ailey by director Jamila Wignot was released in the United States.[65] Wignot first discovered the work of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater by attending a performance while she was a student at Wellesley College; in her documentary more than twenty years later, Alexandra Villarreal of The Guardian writes, "What emerges is a towering figure who won worldwide acclaim with art steeped in personal experience, yet was too afraid to openly share his full identity even in death."[65]

Though Ailey's work has been met with popular and critical acclaim, there have been detractors of his theatrical style. Marcia Siegel accused the company of "selling soul,"[66] and of amplifying and transforming the emotivity characteristic of Martha Graham and his modern dance teachers into "metaphors of the American black experience" while creating a positive stereotype of "supremely physical, supremely sensitive beings" at the expense of genuineness."[67]

Ailey responded to such criticism by stating, "The black pieces we do that come from blues, spirituals and gospels are part of what I am. They are as honest and truthful as we can make them. I'm interested in putting something on stage that will have a very wide appeal without being condescending; that will reach an audience and make it part of the dance; that will get everybody into the theater. If it's art and entertainment — thank God, that's what I want to be."[34]

Associated people

In 1960, James Truitte joined the dance company, and later became an authority on Lester Horton's technique.[68][69]

Works

Choreography

  • Cinco Latinos, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, Kaufmann Concert Hall, New York City, 1958?
  • Blues Suite (also see below), Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, Kaufmann Concert Hall, 1958.[70]
  • Revelations, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, Kaufmann ConcertHall, 1960[71]
  • Three for Now, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, Clark Center, New York City, 1960.
  • Knoxville: Summer of 1915, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, Clark Center, 1960.[72]
  • (With Carmen De Lavallade) Roots of the Blues, Lewisohn Stadium, New York City, 1961.[73]
  • Hermit Songs, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C., 1963.
  • Ariadne, Harkness Ballet, Opera Comique, Paris, 1965.[74]
  • Macumba, Harkness Ballet, Gran Teatro del Liceo, Barcelona, Spain,1966, then produced as Yemanja, Chicago Opera House, 1967.[75]
  • Quintet, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, Church Hill Theatre, Edinburgh Festival, Scotland, 1968, then Billy Rose Theatre, New York City, 1969.
  • Masekela Langage, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, American Dance Festival, New London, Connecticut, 1969, then Brooklyn Academy of Music, New York City, 1969.[76][77]
  • Streams, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, Brooklyn Academy of Music, 1970.[78]
  • Gymnopedies, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, Brooklyn Academy of Music, 1970.[79][80]
  • The River, American Ballet Theatre, New York State Theater, 1970.[81][82]
  • Flowers, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, ANTA Theatre, 1971.[83]
  • Myth, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, New York City Center, 1971.[84]
  • Choral Dances, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, New York City Center, 1971.[85][86]
  • Cry, solo created for Judith Jamison, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, New York City Center, 1971.[87]
  • Mingus Dances, Robert Joffrey Company, New York City Center, 1971.[88]
  • Mary Lou's Mass, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, New York City Center, 1971.[89]
  • Song for You, solo created for Dudley Williams, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, New York City Center, 1972.[90]
  • The Lark Ascending, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, New York City Center, 1972.
  • Love Songs, Alvin Ailey City Center Dance Theater, New York City Center, 1972.[90]
  • Shaken Angels, 10th New York Dance Festival, Delacorte Theatre, New York City, 1972.[34]
  • Sea Change, American Ballet Theatre, Kennedy Center Opera House, Washington, D.C., 1972, then New York City Center, 1973.[91]
  • Hidden Rites, Alvin Ailey City Center Dance Theater, New York City Center, 1973.[92]
  • Archipelago, 1971,[93]
  • The Mooche, 1975,[94]
  • Night Creature, 1975,[95]
  • Pas de "Duke", 1976,[96]
  • Memoria, 1979,[97]
  • Phases, 1980[98][99]
  • Landscape, 1981.[100]
  • Survivors, 1986.[101][102]

Stage

Acting and dancing

  • (Broadway debut) House of Flowers, Alvin Theatre, New York City, 1954 – Actor and dancer.[103]
  • The Carefree Tree, 1955 – Actor and dancer.[104]
  • Sing, Man, Sing, 1956 – Actor and dancer.[105]
  • Show Boat, Marine Theatre, Jones Beach, New York, 1957 – Actor and dancer.
  • Jamaica, Imperial Theatre, New York City, 1957 – Actor and lead dance.[106]
  • Call Me By My Rightful Name, One Sheridan Square Theatre, 1961 – Paul.[107]
  • Ding Dong Bell, Westport Country Playhouse, 1961 – Negro Political Leader.[108]
  • Blackstone Boulevard, Talking to You, produced as double-bill in 2 by Saroyan, East End Theatre, New York City, 1961–62.
  • Tiger, Tiger, Burning Bright, Booth Theatre, 1962 – Clarence Morris.[109]

Stage choreography

  • Carmen Jones, Theatre in the Park, 1959.
  • Jamaica, Music Circus, Lambertville, New Jersey, 1959.
  • Dark of the Moon, Lenox Hill Playhouse, 1960.
  • (And director) African Holiday (musical), Apollo Theatre, New York City, 1960, then produced at Howard Theatre, Washington, D.C., 1960.
  • Feast of Ashes (ballet), Robert Joffrey Company, Teatro San Carlos, Lisbon, Portugal, 1962, then produced at New York City Center, 1971.[110]
  • Antony and Cleopatra (opera), Metropolitan Opera House, Lincoln Center, New York City, 1966.[111]
  • La Strada, first produced at Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, 1969.[112]
  • Leonard Bernstein's Mass, Metropolitan Opera House, 1972, then John F. Kennedy delícia Center for the Performing Arts, Washington, D.C., and Philadelphia Academy of Music, both 1972.[113]
  • Carmen, Metropolitan Opera, 1972.[114]
  • Choreographed ballet, Lord Byron (opera; also see below), Juilliard School of Music, New York City, 1972.[17]
  • Four Saint[115]s in Three Acts, Piccolo Met, New York City, 1973.[34][116]

Director

  • (With William Hairston) Jerico-Jim Crow, The Sanctuary, New York City, 1964, then Greenwich Mews Theatre, 1968.[115]

See also

References

Citations

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Cited works

  • DeFrantz, Thomas F. (2004). Dancing Revelations: Alvin Ailey's Embodiment of African American Culture. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-530171-7.

External links

 
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Alvin Ailey.
 
Wikiquote has quotations related to Alvin Ailey.
  • Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater
  • Alvin Ailey at the Internet Broadway Database  
  • Alvin Ailey at IMDb
  • Alvin Ailey at the Internet Off-Broadway Database
  • NPR: Holiday Dance at the Alvin Ailey Theater
  • Archival footage of Matthew Rushing performing in Alvin Ailey's Revelations in 2007 at Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival
  • Archival footage of Ailey II performing in Alvin Ailey's Revelations in 1988 at Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival
  • Archival footage of Dance Theatre of Harlem performing in Alvin Ailey's The Lark Ascending in 2013 at Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival
  • Alvin Ailey at Find a Grave

February 02, 2023
alvin, ailey, january, 1931, december, 1989, american, dancer, director, choreographer, activist, founded, american, dance, theater, aaadt, created, aaadt, affiliated, american, dance, center, later, ailey, school, havens, nurturing, black, artists, expressing. Alvin Ailey Jr January 5 1931 December 1 1989 was an American dancer director choreographer and activist who founded the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater AAADT He created AAADT and its affiliated Alvin Ailey American Dance Center later Ailey School as havens for nurturing Black artists and expressing the universality of the African American experience through dance Alvin Aileyphotographed by Carl Van Vechten 1955Born 1931 01 05 January 5 1931Rogers Texas U S DiedDecember 1 1989 1989 12 01 aged 58 Manhattan New York City U S Occupation s Dancer choreographerAwardsPresidential Medal of Freedom Kennedy Center HonorsA gay man his work fused theater modern dance ballet and jazz with Black vernacular creating hope fueled choreography that continues to spread global awareness of Black life in America Ailey s choreographic masterpiece Revelations is recognized as one of the most popular and most performed ballets in the world 1 2 3 On July 15 2008 the United States Congress passed a resolution designating AAADT a vital American cultural ambassador to the World 4 5 That same year in recognition of AAADT s 50th anniversary then Mayor Michael Bloomberg declared December 4 Alvin Ailey Day in New York City while then Governor David Paterson honored the organization on behalf of New York State 6 Contents 1 Early life and education 2 Career 2 1 Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater 2 2 The Ailey School 3 Personal life 3 1 Death 4 Reception and legacy 4 1 Recognition and honors 4 2 Documentary 4 3 Associated people 5 Works 5 1 Choreography 5 2 Stage 5 2 1 Acting and dancing 5 2 2 Stage choreography 5 2 3 Director 6 See also 7 References 7 1 Citations 7 2 Cited works 8 External linksEarly life and education EditBorn in Rogers Texas at the height of the Great Depression in the violently racist and segregated south during his youth Ailey was barred from interacting with mainstream society Abandoned by his father Alvin Ailey 7 when he was three months old Ailey and his mother Lula Elizabeth 7 8 were forced to work in cotton fields and as domestics in white homes the only employment available to them As an escape Ailey found refuge in the church sneaking out at night to watch adults dance and in writing a journal a practice that he maintained his entire life Even this could not shield him from a childhood spent moving from town to town as his mother sought employment being abandoned with relatives whenever she took off on her own 9 7 Looking for greater job prospects Ailey s mother departed for Los Angeles in 1941 He arrived a year later enrolling at George Washington Carver Junior High School and then graduating into Thomas Jefferson High School In 1946 he had his first experience with concert dance when he saw the Katherine Dunham Dance Company and Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo perform at the Los Angeles Philharmonic Auditorium This awakened an until then unknown spark of joy within him 10 though he did not become serious about dance until 1949 when his classmate and friend Carmen De Lavallade dragged him to the Melrose Avenue studio of Lester Horton 11 12 Ailey studied a wide range of dance styles and techniques from ballet to Native American inspired movement studies at Horton s school which was one of the first racially integrated dance schools in the United States 13 14 Though Horton became his mentor 15 Ailey did not commit to dancing full time instead he pursued academic courses studying romance languages and writing at UCLA 16 17 He continued these studies at San Francisco State in 1951 Living in San Francisco he met Maya Angelou then known as Marguerite Johnson 18 with whom he formed a nightclub act called Al and Rita 19 Eventually he returned to study dance with Horton in Los Angeles 20 Career EditHe joined Horton s dance company in 1953 making his debut in Horton s Revue Le Bal Caribe 21 Horton died suddenly that same year in November from a heart attack leaving the company without leadership In order to complete the organization s pressing professional engagements and because no one else was willing to Ailey took over as artistic director and choreographer 22 23 Alvin Ailey and Carmen de Lavallade 1954 In 1954 De Lavallade and Ailey were recruited by Herbert Ross to join the Broadway show House of Flowers Ross had been hired to replace George Balanchine as the show s choreographer and he wanted to use the pair who had become known as a famous dance team in Los Angeles as featured dancers 24 25 The show s book was written and adapted by Truman Capote from one of his novellas with music from Harold Arlen and starred Pearl Bailey and Diahann Carroll 26 Ailey and De Lavallade met Geoffrey Holder who performed alongside them in the chorus during the production Holder married De Lavallade and became a life long artistic collaborator with Ailey 26 After House of Flowers closed Ailey appeared in Harry Belafonte s touring revue Sing Man Sing with Mary Hinkson as his dance partner 27 and the 1957 Broadway musical Jamaica which starred Lena Horne and Ricardo Montalban Drawn to dance but unable to find a choreographer whose work fulfilled him Ailey started gathering dancers to perform his own unique vision of dance Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater Edit Main article Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater In 1958 Ailey founded the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater to present his vision of honoring Black culture through dance The company had its debut at the 92nd Street Y The performance included Ailey s first masterpiece Blues Suite which followed men and women as they caroused and cavorted over the course of an evening while blues music played in the background until church bells began to ring signalling a return to mundane life 28 29 Also in 1960 Ailey premiered his most popular and critically acclaimed work Revelations again at the 92nd Street Y In creating Revelations Ailey drew upon his blood memories of growing up in Texas surrounded by Black people the church spirituals and the blues The ballet charts the full range of feelings from the majestic I Been Buked to the rapturous Wade in the Water closing with the electrifying finale Rocka My Soul in the Bosom of Abraham 30 31 32 Revelations performed by Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre in 2011 After this performance and despite their success the Ailey company struggled to find consistent bookings Though the US State Department sponsored AAADT s first international tour in 1962 which traveled across Asia with followups to Senegal in 1966 and East amp West Africa in 1967 the company was able to book only a few performances per season in America After a successful week long engagement at the Billy Rose Theatre the company was invited to become the resident company at Brooklyn Academy of Music 33 The relationship did not go well and ended a few years later Ailey struggled with the state department tours which insisted on marketing the company as an ethnic company rather than a modern dance company and were closely supervised by the FBI the latter referred to Ailey s homosexuality as lewd and criminal tendencies and threatened his company with bankruptcy if he showed any signs of effeminate or homosexual behavior while on tour 33 In 1970 with few bookings on the radar and on the eve of a tour to Russia as part of a cultural exchange agreement Ailey announced at a press conference that he was closing the company In response the State Department sponsored an Ailey tour of North Africa to tide things over That August the company toured to Russia where it was ecstatically received Their performances were broadcast on Moscow television and seen by over 22 million viewers On closing night because the Russian audiences would not stop applauding the company gave over 30 curtain calls Returning home with news of this triumph the company performed a two week engagement at the ANTA Theater By the end of the January 1971 performance the entire run was sold out After 13 years Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre was a monumental success In August 1972 the company was briefly renamed Alvin Ailey City Center Dance Theater and became a resident company of New York City Center 34 While Ailey choreographed more than 100 ballets for his dancers he insisted that the company perform pieces by other choreographers rather than stand as a singular vehicle for his voice Though AAADT was formed to celebrate African American culture and to provide performances for black dancers who were frequently denied opportunities due to racist mores of the time Ailey proudly employed artists based solely on artistic talent and integrity regardless of their background 35 In addition to his work as artistic director and choreographer with AADT Ailey also choreographed ballets for other companies including American Ballet Theatre 36 Joffrey Ballet Royal Danish Ballet 37 and The Metropolitan Opera For American Ballet Theater he created The River 1970 one of several choreographies he set to the jazz music of Duke Ellington 38 The Ailey School Edit In 1969 Ailey founded the Alvin Ailey American Dance Center with the famed Martha Graham Dance Company principal and choreographer Pearl Lang as his co director of the school Their aim was to provide access to arts and dance to under resourced communities They started off in Brooklyn with 125 students A year later the school relocated to Manhattan behind the Lincoln Center complex In 1984 Denise Jefferson assumed directorship Under her leadership the school developed a Bachelor of Fine Arts Program in partnership with Fordham University in 1998 39 The school was renamed The Ailey School in 1999 Several years later the school moved into The Joan Weill Center for Dance Following Jefferson s death in 2010 Tracy Inman and Melanie Person assumed stewardship of the school as co directors of the school In 2012 after leading Ailey 2 for 38 years Sylvia Waters retired The second company s resident choreographer and associate director Troy Powell took over her role as artistic director With the addition of the Elaine Wynn and Family Education Wing the Ailey school is still growing and is now the largest place in New York City committed to training dancers 39 From her joining in 1965 the dancer Judith Jamison served as Ailey s muse 40 In 1971 she premiered Cry which he dedicated to his mother and black women everywhere 41 She took over as artistic director following his death in 1989 42 43 44 Other important figures in the company include Sylvia Waters who in 1974 after performing with the company for six year was asked by Ailey to lead The Alvin Ailey Repertory Ensemble a junior company known today as Ailey 2 that prepares leading students for professional dance careers 45 46 and Masazumi Chaya who danced with the company for 15 years then became rehearsal director and was appointed associate artistic director in 1991 47 48 Personal life EditAiley loathed the label Black choreographer and preferred being known simply as a choreographer He was notoriously private about his life 49 Though gay he kept his romantic affairs in the closet Following the death of his friend Joyce Trisler a failed relationship and bouts of heavy drinking and cocaine use Ailey suffered a mental breakdown in 1980 He was diagnosed as manic depressive known today as bipolar disorder During his rehabilitation Judith Jamison served as co director of AAADT 50 Death Edit Ailey died from an AIDS related illness on December 1 1989 at the age of 58 51 He asked his doctor to announce that his death was caused by terminal blood dyscrasia in order to shield his mother from the stigma associated with HIV AIDS 52 Reception and legacy EditRecognition and honors Edit 1968 Guggenheim Fellowship for Creative Arts US amp Canada 53 1977 Spingarn Medal from the NAACP 54 1992 Inducted into the National Museum of Dance and Hall of Fame 55 1989 Kennedy Center Honors 55 2012 Ailey crater on Mercury named in his honor 56 2012 Inducted into the Legacy Walk in 2012 57 58 2014 Posthumously received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Barack Obama 59 August 2019 Inducted in the Rainbow Honor Walk a walk of fame in San Francisco s Castro neighborhood noting LGBTQ people who have made significant contributions in their fields 60 61 62 2020 Figure skating choreographer Rohene Ward and Olympic medallist Jason Brown co choreographed a tribute to Ailey set to Nina Simone s version of Sinnerman which Brown competed in both the 2020 2021 and 2021 2022 seasons including at the 2022 Winter Olympics 63 After his death Ailey s personal papers were housed at the Black Archives of Mid America in Kansas City Missouri 64 Documentary Edit In 2021 the documentary Ailey by director Jamila Wignot was released in the United States 65 Wignot first discovered the work of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater by attending a performance while she was a student at Wellesley College in her documentary more than twenty years later Alexandra Villarreal of The Guardian writes What emerges is a towering figure who won worldwide acclaim with art steeped in personal experience yet was too afraid to openly share his full identity even in death 65 Though Ailey s work has been met with popular and critical acclaim there have been detractors of his theatrical style Marcia Siegel accused the company of selling soul 66 and of amplifying and transforming the emotivity characteristic of Martha Graham and his modern dance teachers into metaphors of the American black experience while creating a positive stereotype of supremely physical supremely sensitive beings at the expense of genuineness 67 Ailey responded to such criticism by stating The black pieces we do that come from blues spirituals and gospels are part of what I am They are as honest and truthful as we can make them I m interested in putting something on stage that will have a very wide appeal without being condescending that will reach an audience and make it part of the dance that will get everybody into the theater If it s art and entertainment thank God that s what I want to be 34 Associated people Edit In 1960 James Truitte joined the dance company and later became an authority on Lester Horton s technique 68 69 Works EditChoreography Edit Cinco Latinos Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre Kaufmann Concert Hall New York City 1958 Blues Suite also see below Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre Kaufmann Concert Hall 1958 70 Revelations Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre Kaufmann ConcertHall 1960 71 Three for Now Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre Clark Center New York City 1960 Knoxville Summer of 1915 Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre Clark Center 1960 72 With Carmen De Lavallade Roots of the Blues Lewisohn Stadium New York City 1961 73 Hermit Songs Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre Library of Congress Washington D C 1963 Ariadne Harkness Ballet Opera Comique Paris 1965 74 Macumba Harkness Ballet Gran Teatro del Liceo Barcelona Spain 1966 then produced as Yemanja Chicago Opera House 1967 75 Quintet Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre Church Hill Theatre Edinburgh Festival Scotland 1968 then Billy Rose Theatre New York City 1969 Masekela Langage Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre American Dance Festival New London Connecticut 1969 then Brooklyn Academy of Music New York City 1969 76 77 Streams Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre Brooklyn Academy of Music 1970 78 Gymnopedies Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre Brooklyn Academy of Music 1970 79 80 The River American Ballet Theatre New York State Theater 1970 81 82 Flowers Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre ANTA Theatre 1971 83 Myth Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre New York City Center 1971 84 Choral Dances Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre New York City Center 1971 85 86 Cry solo created for Judith Jamison Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre New York City Center 1971 87 Mingus Dances Robert Joffrey Company New York City Center 1971 88 Mary Lou s Mass Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre New York City Center 1971 89 Song for You solo created for Dudley Williams Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre New York City Center 1972 90 The Lark Ascending Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre New York City Center 1972 Love Songs Alvin Ailey City Center Dance Theater New York City Center 1972 90 Shaken Angels 10th New York Dance Festival Delacorte Theatre New York City 1972 34 Sea Change American Ballet Theatre Kennedy Center Opera House Washington D C 1972 then New York City Center 1973 91 Hidden Rites Alvin Ailey City Center Dance Theater New York City Center 1973 92 Archipelago 1971 93 The Mooche 1975 94 Night Creature 1975 95 Pas de Duke 1976 96 Memoria 1979 97 Phases 1980 98 99 Landscape 1981 100 Survivors 1986 101 102 Stage Edit Acting and dancing Edit Broadway debut House of Flowers Alvin Theatre New York City 1954 Actor and dancer 103 The Carefree Tree 1955 Actor and dancer 104 Sing Man Sing 1956 Actor and dancer 105 Show Boat Marine Theatre Jones Beach New York 1957 Actor and dancer Jamaica Imperial Theatre New York City 1957 Actor and lead dance 106 Call Me By My Rightful Name One Sheridan Square Theatre 1961 Paul 107 Ding Dong Bell Westport Country Playhouse 1961 Negro Political Leader 108 Blackstone Boulevard Talking to You produced as double bill in 2 by Saroyan East End Theatre New York City 1961 62 Tiger Tiger Burning Bright Booth Theatre 1962 Clarence Morris 109 Stage choreography Edit Carmen Jones Theatre in the Park 1959 Jamaica Music Circus Lambertville New Jersey 1959 Dark of the Moon Lenox Hill Playhouse 1960 And director African Holiday musical Apollo Theatre New York City 1960 then produced at Howard Theatre Washington D C 1960 Feast of Ashes ballet Robert Joffrey Company Teatro San Carlos Lisbon Portugal 1962 then produced at New York City Center 1971 110 Antony and Cleopatra opera Metropolitan Opera House Lincoln Center New York City 1966 111 La Strada first produced at Lunt Fontanne Theatre 1969 112 Leonard Bernstein s Mass Metropolitan Opera House 1972 then John F Kennedy delicia Center for the Performing Arts Washington D C and Philadelphia Academy of Music both 1972 113 Carmen Metropolitan Opera 1972 114 Choreographed ballet Lord Byron opera also see below Juilliard School of Music New York City 1972 17 Four Saint 115 s in Three Acts Piccolo Met New York City 1973 34 116 Director Edit With William Hairston Jerico Jim Crow The Sanctuary New York City 1964 then Greenwich Mews Theatre 1968 115 See also Edit LGBT portal Biography portalPostmodern dance 20th century concert dance List of dance companiesReferences EditCitations Edit Dancing the Night Away Alvin Ailey A Life in Dance By Jennifer Dunning Addison Wesley The Joffrey Ballet Robert Joffrey and the Making of an American Dance Company By Sasha Anawalt Scribner s book reviews Los Angeles Times 1996 11 17 Retrieved 2019 07 29 Dunning Jennifer 1989 12 10 Alvin Ailey Believer in the Power of Dance The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 29 For Alvin Ailey Dance Theater the themes that inspired its founder are as relevant as ever thestar com The Star 2019 01 30 Retrieved 2019 07 29 Nadler Jerrold 2008 07 15 H Res 1088 110th Congress 2007 2008 Recognizing and commending the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater for 50 years of service as a vital American cultural ambassador to the world www congress gov Retrieved 2019 07 29 Dunning Jennifer 2008 03 27 Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater Dance Celebration The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 29 MacAulay Alastair December 4 2008 One Foot in the Present Season One Foot in the Past The New York Times a b c Alvin Ailey Biography at Black History Now Black Heritage Commemorative Society 8 June 2010 Retrieved 2019 07 29 Cockerille Livingston Lili 2000 Ailey Alvin American National Biography Oxford University Press doi 10 1093 anb 9780198606697 article 1800010 ISBN 978 0 19 860669 7 Retrieved November 13 2022 Valerie Gladstone October 23 1996 Frail Strong and Dance Incarnate The New York Times Retrieved January 9 2009 Katherine Dunham Helped Teach the World to Dance NPR Retrieved 2019 07 29 Lester Horton More Resources DHC Treasures treasures danceheritage org Archived from the original on 2019 07 29 Retrieved 2019 07 29 Kaufman Sarah Carmen de Lavallade is 86 and still the best dancer in the room The Washington Post Retrieved 2019 07 29 Horton Technique Dance Spirit 2017 03 23 Retrieved 2019 07 28 Lester Horton Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater 2016 04 11 Retrieved 2019 07 28 Kisselgoff Anna Alvin Ailey s Assent Chicago Tribune The New York Times News Service Retrieved 2019 07 29 Judy Gitenstein Alvin Ailey New York The Rosen Publishing Group 2006 p 20 a b Dunning Jennifer 1989 12 02 Alvin Ailey a Leading Figure In Modern Dance Dies at 58 The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 28 Shepeard Crystal 29 May 2014 Dr Maya Angelou Her Lifetime of Moments Took Our Breath Away Truthout Retrieved 29 May 2014 Balint Becca Al and Rita The Brattleboro Reformer Retrieved 2019 07 28 Alvin Ailey 2018 01 06 Retrieved 2019 07 28 DeFrantz Thomas 2006 Dancing Revelations Alvin Ailey s Embodiment of African American Culture Oxford University Press pp 29 30 ISBN 0195301714 Roy Sanjoy 2010 09 09 Step by step guide to dance Alvin Ailey The Guardian ISSN 0261 3077 Retrieved 2019 07 29 Alvin Ailey Is Finally Getting His Flowers 30 Years Too Late www out com 2019 04 24 Retrieved 2019 07 29 Ailey Alvin 1995 02 12 What Ailey Thought of Balanchine The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 29 The Elder Statesman of Eclectic Los Angeles Times 1998 05 10 Retrieved 2019 07 29 a b Geoffrey Holder Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater 2011 12 01 Retrieved 2019 07 29 Great Performances Free To Dance Biographies Mary Hinkson www thirteen org Retrieved 2019 07 29 Anderson Jack 1989 12 17 Review Dance Three Suites and a Solo In the Ailey Tradition The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 28 Alvin Ailey s Dance Troupe at 45 NPR Retrieved 2019 07 29 Why We Need Ailey s Revelations Now More Than Ever Dance Magazine 2017 11 29 Retrieved 2019 07 29 What makes Alvin Ailey s Revelations an American dance classic Los Angeles Times 2017 03 25 Retrieved 2019 07 29 Alvin Ailey dance troupe teaches blood memories to LA teens Southern California Public Radio 2015 04 14 Retrieved 2019 07 29 a b Croft Claire 2015 Dancers as Diplomats American Choreography in Cultural Exchange Oxford University press ISBN 978 0199958214 a b c d Cohn Ellen 1973 04 29 Modern dance is getting hot The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 29 9 LGBT People Of Color Who Changed History LOGO News Retrieved 2018 10 24 Anderson Jack 2008 04 29 Sallie Wilson 76 Dramatic Ballerina Famed for Antony Tudor Roles The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 29 Kisselgoff Anna 1986 12 04 The Dance 3 Works by Ailey The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 29 Au Susan 26 November 2013 24 February 2010 Alvin Ailey Grove Music Online 8th ed Oxford University Press ISBN 978 1 56159 263 0 Retrieved 11 September 2019 a b History amp Philosophy The Ailey School 2016 03 02 Retrieved 2018 10 24 Judith Jamison joined Alvin Ailey Dance 54 years ago She s still protecting a legacy of inclusion Los Angeles Times 2019 04 03 Retrieved 2019 07 29 Cry Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater 2010 03 15 Retrieved 2019 07 29 Kisselgoff Anna 1990 12 23 Judith Jamison Adds Spices to The Ailey Brew The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 29 Montee Kristy After Ailey Sun Sentinel com Retrieved 2019 07 29 Munson Marty Judith Jamison keeps the Ailey Dance Vision Going The Morning Call Retrieved 2019 07 29 Anderson Jack 1978 02 24 Dance The New and Old By Junior Ailey Troupe The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 29 Kourlas Gia 2012 04 17 Sylvia Waters Steps Down at Ailey II The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 29 Kourlas Gia 2019 07 08 Alvin Ailey s Associate Artistic Director to Step Down The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 29 Masazumi Chaya Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater 2010 02 09 Retrieved 2019 07 29 Newspapers Nancy Goldner Knight Ridder Vivid Memories of the Black Experience in Alvin Ailey s Chicago Tribune Retrieved 2019 07 29 Overtaxed by Work and Worry Dance Master Alvin Ailey Takes a Bad Fall People Retrieved 2019 07 29 Kourlas Gia 2018 11 27 A Dance Homage to Alvin Ailey as His Company Turns 60 The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 29 9 LGBT People Of Color Who Changed History NewNowNext www newnownext com Retrieved 2019 07 29 John Simon Guggenheim Foundation Alvin Ailey Retrieved 2019 07 29 Spingarn Medal Winners 1915 To Today Archived August 2 2014 at the Wayback Machine NAACP a b isbn 1438467478 Google Search Google Retrieved 2019 07 28 Ailey Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature NASA Retrieved 27 June 2012 Alvin Ailey Plaque Image www legacyprojectchicago org Retrieved 2019 07 29 Victor Salvo 2012 Inductees The Legacy Project President Obama Names Recipients of the Presidential Medal of Freedom whitehouse gov November 10 2014 Retrieved November 12 2014 via National Archives Barmann Jay September 2 2014 Castro s Rainbow Honor Walk Dedicated Today SFist SFist Archived from the original on August 10 2019 Retrieved August 15 2019 Bajko Matthew S June 5 2019 Castro to see more LGBT honor plaques The Bay Area Reporter Retrieved 2019 08 16 Yollin Patricia August 6 2019 Tributes in Bronze 8 More LGBT Heroes Join S F s Rainbow Honor Walk KQED The California Report Retrieved 2019 08 16 Rutherford Lynn 13 April 2021 Jason Brown Rohene Ward seek to spread the light with Sinnerman program NBC Sports Stamford Connecticut Retrieved 9 February 2022 Alvin Ailey Papers Black Archives of Mid America in Kansas City Retrieved 2022 08 26 a b Villarreal Alexandra July 26 2021 Alvin Ailey the towering figure of dance who lived in the shadows The Guardian Retrieved 26 July 2021 Siegel Marcia Mar 10 1969 Selling Soul New York Magazine Vol 2 no 10 p 57 Siegel Marcia 1987 01 02 The costumes and music change but what about the dances Christian Science Monitor ISSN 0882 7729 Retrieved 2019 07 29 Dunning Jennifer August 24 1995 James Truitte 72 a dancer teacher and historian dies New York Times James Truitte MOBBallet org 1 November 2019 Retrieved 3 September 2022 Blues Suite Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater 2010 03 11 Retrieved 2019 07 28 Bloom Julie 2010 08 01 Ailey s New Season Revelations at 50 The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 28 McDonagh Don 1969 04 23 Alvin Ailey Ballet On Love and Death Danced in Brooklyn The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 28 Alvin Ailey Offers 2 New Dance Works The New York Times 1963 04 29 ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 28 Barnes Clive 1965 03 13 Tout Paris Sees Harkness Ballet Alvin Ailey s Ariadne Bows at Gala Benefit Opening The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 28 Alvin Ailey Theater Group Warmly Received in Ghana The New York Times 1967 10 20 ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 28 Kisselgoff Anna 1969 11 21 Dance Militant Masekela Langage The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 28 Kisselgoff Anna 1971 01 21 Ailey Troupe Powerful In Reised Dance Piece The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 28 Anderson Jack 1982 05 09 Dance 1970 s Streams Revived by Alvin Ailey The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 28 Barnes Clive 1971 04 11 What s in Store for Us The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 28 Gymnopedies Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater 2010 03 16 Retrieved 2019 07 28 The River American Ballet Theatre Retrieved 2019 07 28 Barnes Clive 1970 06 26 Dance Unfinished River The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 28 Kisselgoff Anna 1971 01 27 Dance No One s Sitting on His Hands The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 28 Barnes Clive 1971 12 16 Dance Playfully Seizing on a Ritual The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 28 Kisselgoff Anna 1971 12 08 Dance New Ailey Season The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 28 Kisselgoff Anna 1977 12 05 Ailey Revives Choral Dances After 6 Years The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 28 Barnes Clive 1971 05 05 The Dance Judith Jamison s Triumph The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 28 Davis Peter G 1971 10 03 Joffrey s Season Starts Wednesday The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 28 Kisselgoff Anna 1971 12 09 Ailey Dancers to Give Mary Lou s Mass The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 28 a b Kisselgoff Anna 1972 11 20 Dance Love Songs The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 28 Barnes Clive 1973 01 10 Dance Ballet Theater s Sea Change The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 28 Kisselgoff Anna 1973 05 19 Ballet Hidden Rites The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 28 Ailey Reinforced by Lynn Seymour The New York Times 1971 01 14 ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 28 Kisselgoff Anna 1975 11 27 Dance Ailey s Mooche The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 28 Barnes Clive 1975 08 14 Ailey Displays Some Gems of Dance The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 28 Barnes Clive 1976 07 31 Ballet One a Little Heavy One Deft The Brahms Quintet by Nahat Danced Alvin Ailey s pas de DUKE The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 28 Dunning Jennifer 1979 12 03 Dance Ailey Homage to Joyce Trisler The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 28 Phases Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater 2010 03 16 Retrieved 2019 07 28 Anderson Jack 1983 12 13 Dance Ailey Company Performs Phases The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 28 Kisselgoff Anna 1981 12 13 Dance Premiere of Ailey Landscape The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 28 The Art and Anguish of Survivors Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater November 2 2022 Retrieved 4 January 2023 Kisselgoff Anna December 11 1986 DANCE SURVIVORS TRIBUTE TO MANDELAS The New York Times Retrieved 4 January 2023 House of Flowers Broadway Musical Original IBDB IBDB Retrieved 2019 07 28 The Carefree Tree Broadway Play Original IBDB IBDB Retrieved 2019 07 28 Great Performances Free To Dance Biographies Mary Hinkson www thirteen org Retrieved 2019 07 28 Jamaica Broadway Musical Original IBDB IBDB Retrieved 2019 07 28 Call Me By My Rightful Name Lortel Archives iobdb com Retrieved 2019 07 28 isbn 0870677934 Google Search www google com Retrieved 2019 07 28 Tiger Tiger Burning Bright Broadway Play Original IBDB IBDB Retrieved 2019 07 28 Barnes Clive 1971 10 07 Feast of Ashes Begins 6 Week Joffrey Season The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 28 BiblioTech PRO V3 2a archives metoperafamily org Retrieved 2019 07 28 La Strada Broadway Musical Original IBDB IBDB Retrieved 2019 07 28 Boutwell Jane 1972 06 03 Mass The New Yorker ISSN 0028 792X Retrieved 2019 07 28 Ailey Will Choreograph Met s Opener Carmen The New York Times 1972 06 13 ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 28 a b Theater A Rousing Jerico Jim Crow Langston Hughes Play With Music Opens The New York Times 1964 01 13 ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 28 Hewitt Jean 1973 02 24 Opera Minimet s Play ful Four Saints The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 07 28 Cited works Edit DeFrantz Thomas F 2004 Dancing Revelations Alvin Ailey s Embodiment of African American Culture New York Oxford University Press ISBN 978 0 19 530171 7 External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Alvin Ailey Wikiquote has quotations related to Alvin Ailey Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater Alvin Ailey at the Internet Broadway Database Alvin Ailey at IMDb Alvin Ailey at the Internet Off Broadway Database American Ballet Theater biography Kennedy Center biography NPR Holiday Dance at the Alvin Ailey Theater Archive footage of Alvin Ailey Repertory Ensemble dancing Revelations in 1988 at Jacob s Pillow Archival footage of Matthew Rushing performing in Alvin Ailey s Revelations in 2007 at Jacob s Pillow Dance Festival Archival footage of Ailey II performing in Alvin Ailey s Revelations in 1988 at Jacob s Pillow Dance Festival Archival footage of Dance Theatre of Harlem performing in Alvin Ailey s The Lark Ascending in 2013 at Jacob s Pillow Dance Festival Alvin Ailey at Find a Grave Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Alvin Ailey amp oldid 1136474656, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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