Vernard J. Gilmore

Vernard J. Gilmore
Please Credit Photo: Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater's Vernard J. Gilmore. Photo by Andrew Eccles
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VERNARD J. GILMORE (Chicago, IL) began his training at Curie Performing and Creative Arts High School in Chicago under Diane Holda. He later studied at the Joseph Holmes Chicago Dance Theater with Harriet Ross, Marquita Levy, and Emily Stein. He received first place in the all-city NAACP ACT-SO competition in 1993. He attended Barat College under scholarship and tutelage of Rory Foster and Eileen Cropley. He then studied as a scholarship student at The Ailey School and was a member of Ailey II. In 2010, he performed as part of the White House Dance Series. Gilmore is a choreographer whose work has been a part of the Ailey Dancers Resource Fund, Fire Island Dance Festival 2008, and Jazz Foundation of America Gala 2010, and he produced the Dance of Light project in 2010 and 2015. An excerpt of Gilmore’s work La Muette was performed in 2017 as part of the “Celebrating the Men of Ailey” program at New York City Center. Nimbus Dance Works performed a new work by Gilmore in 2018. He is a certified Zena Rommett Floor-Barre instructor and teaches workshops and master classes around the world. Gilmore joined the Company in 1997.  

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Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater’s Glenn Allen Sims, Linda Celeste Sims, Jamar Roberts, Akua Noni Parker, Vernard J. Gilmore, and Hope Boykin. Photo by DCP
Alvin Ailey American Dance ... (Read More) Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater’s Glenn Allen Sims, Linda Celeste Sims, Jamar Roberts, Akua Noni Parker, Vernard J. Gilmore, and Hope Boykin. Photo by DCP (Hide)
Vernard J. Gilmore in Cape Town
Vernard J. Gilmore in Cape Town
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater’s Glenn Allen Sims, Linda Celeste Sims, Jamar Roberts, Akua Noni Parker, Vernard J. Gilmore, and Hope Boykin. Photo by DCP
Vernard J. Gilmore in Cape Town
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Featured News Releases

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater National Tour January 28 - May 8 Celebrates A Decade Of Robert Battle's Leadership And 50th Anniversary Of Alvin Ailey's Cry

NEW YORK – JANUARY 27, 2022 – Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, America’s beloved cultural ambassador to the world, returns to stages on a coast-to-coast National Tour starting January 28 in Philadelphia, kicking off Black History Month at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. on February 1 , and traveling to cities like Atlanta, Miami, Berkeley, Boston, Chicago, and Los Angeles before the finale in Newark on May 8. Marking a decade of leading the Company forward, Artistic Director Robert Battle presents Ailey’s renowned artists in a diverse repertory of premieres, new productions, and Ailey classics. Highlights include a Battle 10th Anniversary program; two world premieres adapted from video to stage, For Four by Robert Battle and Holding Space by Ailey Resident Choreographer Jamar Roberts; the return of hip-hop innovator Rennie Harris’s acclaimed Lazarus; 50 Years of Cry commemorating Ailey’s beloved classic dedicated to “all Black women everywhere—especially our mothers;” and Ailey & Ellington, spotlighting cherished classics from the series of more than a dozen ballets that Alvin Ailey created celebrating the musical genius of the eminent American composer Duke Ellington. Alvin Ailey’s American masterpiece Revelations, which has inspired generations through its powerful storytelling and soul- stirring spirituals since its creation in 1960, will reach all cities on the North American tour.

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater Presents Ailey Forward - First-Ever Virtual Season Celebrating Six Decades Of Revelations December 2 - 31, 2020

New York – November 10, 2020 – This holiday season, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater will continue a tradition of uplifting and uniting audiences across the globe with a free virtual engagement celebrating six decades of Revelations, thanks to the generous support of Bank of America. Nine special presentations extending from December 2 – 31 will each be available online for a one-week period and open to all. Ailey’s extraordinary dancers will elevate a legacy of innovation and excellence in artistry with a reimagined season featuring premieres by Ailey’s Resident Choreographer Jamar Roberts; and Associate Artistic Director Matthew Rushing, in partnership with Company member and Assistant to the Rehearsal Director Clifton Brown, and former Company member Yusha-Marie Sorzano; a variety of other distinct programs; and a series of BattleTalk conversations, moderated by Artistic Director Robert Battle.

Ailey Extension Offers Special Opportunities This Fall To Train With Celebrated Dancers And Take The Stage At The Ailey Citigroup Theater

(New York) October 7, 2019 – This October Ailey Extension offers a wealth of opportunities for dancers of all ages to learn moves from internationally-acclaimed dance icons and veterans of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. Pose on FX’s Dashaun Wesley, will teach every element of vogue in a workshop focused on the culturally rich and highly stylized history and fundamentals of this alluring technique. Veteran Ailey dancer Vernard Gilmore will lead multiple Rommett Floor Barre® workshops allowing dancers to correct alignment and understand their energy. New and seasoned dancers alike will have the exciting chance to dance in a Contemporary workshop taught by Ailey’s Jamar Roberts, before he makes his premiere as Ailey’s first-ever resident choreographer. Students can take part in an exciting new collaboration project between famed Afro Latin Artist/Choreographer Sekou Miller and Senegalese Experimental Sabar Innovator Babacar Top during a lively Afro Fusions Masterclass combining African modern dance with traditional and social dances from West Africa, the Caribbean and the US. Dancers of all experience levels can learn the basics of vogue from Cesar Valentino - an icon of New York City’s famed Ballroom Vogue scene - and put their moves to the test on the runway during a Halloween- themed Vogue Workshop/Mini Ball. Ailey Extension also invites the public to join In Conversation with Masazumi Chaya, moderated by former Ailey Company member Renee Robinson, to reflect on Chaya’s history-making five-decade journey with the Ailey organization prior to his final season as Associate Artistic Director at New York City Center from December 4, 2019 – January 5, 2020.

Featured Press Coverage

WindyCityTimes_AAADT_USTour2022_Chicago_VernardGilmore_Feature_2.21.22

Windy City TImes - Dancer Vernard Gilmore 'Reflects' On Alvin Ailey, Dance, His Own Feelings

Twenty-five years is a long time to be involved in any discipline. Now imagine having to be in prime physical shape all that time—on the level of an elite athlete. Vernard Gilmore, who grew up in Chicago, has been with the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater for a quarter-century. He began his training at Curie Performing and Creative Arts High School before studying at the Joseph Holmes Chicago Dance Theater and then moving to New York City. Gilmore is currently featured in Alvin Ailey's solo "Reflections in D" and takes center stage in other classics such as Revelations and Blues Suite. Gilmore, who's openly gay, recently talked with Windy City Times about Alvin Ailey, the evolution of dance, the Ailey documentary and his own feelings during the past two years that have challenged everyone.

NewYorkTimes_AAADT_60thAnniversary_NYCC_TImelessYetCurrent_MasteryOfMultipleStyles_Review_12.18.18

The New York Times - Spreading Joy With A Mastery Of Multiple Styles

Ailey's troupe, timeless yet current. New York City Center celebrated its 75th anniversary last week. That milestone nearly coincided 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.