This theater, for this city. New York City Center Theater celebrated its 75th anniversary on Tuesday night. That milestone neatly coincides with the annual five-week Christmas season of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, the theater’s first resident modern dance company, itself celebrating an anniversary this year: its 60th.
Alvin Ailey's groundbreaking dance company is celebrating its 60th anniversary with a season at New York City Center. Take a step back through their sensational past productions.
While the upbeat jazz of Duke Ellington played in the background, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater instructors taught their choreography to a group of students Feb. 16 at Miami's Phillis Wheatley Elementary School.
Jacoria Adams reads her homework aloud: “Dream, dream and believe. Dream, believe and dance to the beat.” Her poem is inspired by Alvin Ailey’s dance, “Night Creature.”
When producers Kenny "Dope" Gonzales and Louie Vega formed Masters at Work in 1990, they proceeded to creature a catalog that contains some of house music's most recognizable classics. Such is the case when two great creative minds come together to collaborate. It seemed that from the time Alvin Ailey hit the streets of The Big Apple in 1954, he and Duke Ellington's paths were destined to meet.
"Rocks my sould in the bosom of Abraham!" Sweet Honey in the Rock throws the words up like a tidal wave from the City Center pit, while from a corner of the stage, the voice of Ella Mitchell - which has been heard (both live and recorded) during Alvin Ailey's 1960 Revelations for 37 years - soars above the other singers.
The Ailey company's tour leaves South Africa dancing in the aisles.