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Eric J. and Daria L. Wallach, Actress and Honorary Chair Gabrielle Union, Artistic Director Robert Battle, and Joan and Sanford Weill
Eric J. and Daria L. Wallach, ... (Read More) Eric J. and Daria L. Wallach, Actress and Honorary Chair Gabrielle Union, Artistic Director Robert Battle, and Joan and Sanford Weill (Hide)
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater's Opening Night Gala
Alvin Ailey American Dance ... (Read More) Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater's Opening Night Gala (Hide)
Gala Chairs with Actress and Honorary Chair Gabrielle Union and Artistic Director Robert Battle
Gala Chairs with Actress and ... (Read More) Gala Chairs with Actress and Honorary Chair Gabrielle Union and Artistic Director Robert Battle (Hide)
Eric J. and Daria L. Wallach, Actress and Honorary Chair Gabrielle Union, Artistic Director Robert Battle, and Joan and Sanford Weill
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater's Opening Night Gala
Gala Chairs with Actress and Honorary Chair Gabrielle Union and Artistic Director Robert Battle
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Featured News Releases

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater's Opening Night Gala Honors Dance Education Luminary Jody Gottfried Arnhold Wednesday, December 4 At 7pm

NEW YORK — updated November 12, 2024 — Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater kicks off its five-week holiday season celebrating the life and legacy of Artistic Director Emerita Judith Jamison on Wednesday, December 4 at 7pm with a star-studded Opening Night Gala, including a performance at New York City Center and party at Ziegfeld Ballroom. The Gala honors Jody Gottfried Arnhold for her steadfast commitment to accessible dance education for all and her invaluable support of AILEY’s mission. The Honorary Chairs for the evening are Gayle King, co-host of “CBS Mornings” and Editor-at-Large of Oprah Daily, and Phylicia Rashad, two-time Tony® Award-winning actress.

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater’s 25th Anniversary Washington, Dc Gala Benefit Returns To The John F. Kennedy Center For The Performing Arts

(WASHINGTON, DC) October 3, 2024 – On Wednesday, February 5, 2025, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater will host its 25th annual Washington, DC Gala Benefit, celebrating the renowned Company’s season of Legacy in Motion during a week-long engagement at The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, February 4–9, as part of a coast-to-coast US tour. Following a 7:30pm performance on the Opera House Stage by Ailey’s extraordinary dancers, prominent figures in entertainment, business, philanthropy, and politics will gather for dinner and dancing at the Kennedy Center.

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater's 65th Anniversary Opening Night Gala Performance and Party Honors Beloved Artistic Director Emerita Judith Jamison Wednesday, November 29 at 7pm

NEW YORK – Updated November 21, 2023 —On the heels of a successful international tour, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater kicks off its 65th anniversary season at New York City Center on November 29 with an Opening Night Gala honoring beloved trailblazer and iconic Artistic Director Emerita Judith Jamison in her 80th year. The celebration pays tribute to her legendary career as a groundbreaking dancer, choreographer, and visionary leader who has left an indelible mark on Ailey, the greater dance community, and American culture. The evening’s Honorary Chairs are Tony®, Emmy®, and GRAMMY® Award-winning and Oscar-nominated actress, singer, author, and producer Cynthia Erivo and 3x Emmy® Award-winning co-host of ABC’s “The View” and 2x New York Times best-selling author Sunny Hostin.

Featured Press Coverage

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The Guardian - Alvin Ailey: New Exhibition Celebrates The Life And Legacy Of A Dance Icon

Alvin Ailey was a momentous figure in American dance. One of his most substantial and lasting achievements was to transform ideas of what a modern dance company could be, collapsing distinctions between diverse worlds like concert dance, jazz and Hollywood entertainment. He was also a transformational figure for the Black community: the dance institutions that he built in his lifetime – the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater and the Alvin Ailey American Dance Center – have cultivated generations of Black dance talent while sharing the experience of Black people in America.

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Observer - Edges of Ailey Brings Dance to the Whitney

At the edge of Manhattan, in an 18,000-square-foot gallery on the fifth floor of a bright asymmetrical building, is the first large-scale exhibition about the life and work of the groundbreaking Black American choreographer Alvin Ailey (1931-1989). This show is a long time coming, both for Engell Speyer Family Senior Curator Adrienne Edwards (who has been working on the show for about six years) and for fans of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, founded by Ailey in 1958 (I, for one, have been looking forward to it for months).

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The New York Times - Alvin Ailey’s Silky Creatures Of The Night

The sun sets, the moon rises and New York City is reborn. The night was a source of fascination for the choreographer Alvin Ailey. He understood its power, how bodies could soften in its shadows. It’s a time when some people “become their real selves,” he wrote in his notebooks in reference to his dance Night Creature. It’s no accident that Ailey, the subject of Edges of Ailey, a major exhibition at the Whitney Museum of American Art, choreographed a performance to open Studio 54 in 1977.