About Ailey

Ailey All Access. Still, We Dance
Photo by Normand Maxon.
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Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, recognized by U.S. Congressional resolution as a vital American “Cultural Ambassador to the World,” has performed for over 25 million people in 48 states and in 71 countries on 6 continents, celebrating the African-American cultural experience and the American modern dance tradition. Ailey’s permanent home is The Joan Weill Center for Dance, the largest building dedicated to dance in New York City,  the dance capital of the world.

The Ailey Organization includes: Ailey II (a second performing company of young dancers and emerging choreographers), The Ailey School (one of the world's most extensive dance training programs), Ailey Arts In Education & Community Programs (which bring dance into classrooms and communities), and Ailey Extension (offering dance and fitness classes to the public). 

Featured News Releases

AileyCamp Launches First-Ever Virtual Program To Connect With And Inspire Inner-City Youth In Seven Cities Nationwide While Celebrating Love

New York, NY – July 8, 2020 – AileyCamp is proud to continue to provide inner-city youth in seven cities nationwide the opportunity to be themselves and explore their creativity with its first-ever virtual summer program. Founded by Alvin Ailey and Kansas City Friends of Alvin Ailey in 1989, this innovative full-scholarship day camp for middle school students uses dance as a vehicle for developing self-esteem, self-discipline, creative expression, and critical-thinking skills. Driven by Alvin Ailey’s belief that dance was for everyone, AileyCamp will be held over four weeks virtually this summer in Baltimore, MD; Kansas City, KS; Kansas City, MO; Miami, FL; New York, NY; Newark, NJ and Seattle, WA.

The Ailey Spirit Benefit, Still, We Dance, To Be Presented For The First Time As A Global Broadcast Thursday, June 11 At 7:30pm ET

New York – Updated June 10, 2020 – The Ailey organization continues its mission of using dance to uplift and unite all people with the first-ever Ailey Spirit Benefit global broadcast on Thursday, June 11 at 7:30pm ET featuring the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, rising stars of Ailey II, young dancers from The Ailey School and students from AileyCamp. The Ailey All Access special program will include guest appearances by Angela Bassett, Cynthia Erivo, Leslie Odom, Jr., Timothy Shriver, Lorraine Toussaint and remarks by Bryan Stevenson, who has been at the forefront of confronting injustice, poverty and discrimination. “Just Mercy,” his bestselling book that was recently adapted into a feature film, tells the powerful true story of his creation of the Equal Justice Initiative, which will receive a designated donation from the evening’s proceeds.

The Ailey Spirit Gala First-Ever Global Broadcast Thursday, June 11 at 7:30pm ET

New York – May 26, 2020 – The Ailey organization is proud to continue its mission of using dance to uplift and unite all people with the first-ever Ailey Spirit Gala global broadcast on Thursday, June 11 at 7:30pm ET featuring the incomparable Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, the rising stars of Ailey II, gifted young dancers from The Ailey School and talented students from the AileyCamp, along with special guest appearances.

Featured Press Coverage

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Texas Monthly - How Alvin Ailey's 'Revelations' Has Helped Me Find My Way Back To Texas

One warm spring day in the late nineties, I walked hand in hand with my father as he led our family— my mom, my three siblings, and me—into Houston’s Jones Hall for an Alvin Ailey performance. At eight years old, I was more excited to be wearing my new theater dress for all of Houston to see than I was for the show itself. But that excitement quickly evolved into wonder. I don’t recall the name of the performance we saw, but I distinctly remember feeling admiration and reverence for what the dancers were doing in front of me. Before that day, I’d never seen such a large group of professional Black dancers on stage. Experiencing this performance in my youth was significant; it told me that my people were everywhere, and capable of doing everything.

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Dance Informa - AIleyDance For Active Seniors: Dance From And Back To The People

“Dance came from the people and should always be delivered back to the people,” Alvin Ailey said. Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, a key part (but not all of) his legacy, works by this ethos. “Dance is for everybody,” asserts Cathryn Williams, director of Arts in Education and Community Programs at Alvin Ailey Dance Foundation. Amongst many other programs offering dance across the five boroughs of NYC, her department offers AileyDance for Active Seniors.

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CBS New York - All These Years Later, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater Continues Spreading Message Of Inclusion

While protests across the country call for racial justice, an organization in New York City has been spreading a message of inclusion for decades. And they’ve been doing it through dance. CBS2’s Jenna DeAngelis has more on the work of Alvin Ailey. A powerful video was created in the midst of protests, following the death of George Floyd. It featured poetry, paired with a universal language, which at times, says more than words. “We. Dance.” by Hope Boykin. “This was my form of protest. This was the way that I could say it best to honor the organization that had started doing this more than 60 years ago,” Boykin said.