Jazz Island

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater's Caroline Dartey, Leonardo Brito and Jessica Pinkett in Maija Garcia's Jazz Island
Please Credit Photo: Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater's Caroline Dartey Leonardo Brito and Jessica Pinkett in Maija Garcia's Jazz Island. Photo by Paul Kolnik
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In García’s first work for Ailey, a Caribbean folktale comes to life through ancestral rhythms and divine intervention. Inspired by Geoffrey Holder’s “Black Gods, Green Islands” and featuring an original score by Etienne Charles, this theatrical staging explores the spiritual dimensions of human drama and the connective force of love across the Afro-Caribbean diaspora. 

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Jazz Island B-Roll
Jazz Island B-Roll
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Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater Announces Inaugural Season Led By Artistic Director Alicia Graf Mack Launching At New York City Center December 3, 2025 - January 4, 2026, Followed By United States Tour

NEW YORK — updated August 20, 2025 — Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, New York City Center’s Principal Dance Company and a beloved American cultural ambassador to the world, returns to the New York City Center stage from December 3, 2025 – January 4, 2026 for a five-week engagement, which has become a joyous holiday tradition! The milestone season raises the curtain on AILEY’s next era under the leadership of new Artistic Director Alicia Graf Mack, the renowned dancer and educator, guided as ever by Alvin Ailey’s pioneering legacy. Audiences will be treated to classic works from the Ailey repertory that have inspired and uplifted fans for decades — including the touchstone of inspiration Revelations, the ultimate anthem to resilience and joy, which will be performed with live music for six performances on the Opening Night Gala and opening weekend.

Featured Press Coverage

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Lighting & Sound America - Island Gods

Cuban-American choreographer Maija Garcia made her debut with Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater this fall with "Jazz Island." Based on a folktale from the book "Black Gods, Green Islands," by actor-director-designer and all-around polymath Geoffery Holder, it features Erzulie, Afro-Caribbean goddess of love, intervening in the affairs of young Bashiba, who is engaged, unhappily, to a young traveling man. Supplying the jazz in "Jazz Island" is a score by Trinidadian composer and trumpeter Etienne Charles.

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The New York Times - From Ailey, A New Work That's Old-School

The goddess of love drifts in on waves and wind. When the choreographer Maija García was invited to make her first work for Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, this was the first image that came to mind. Then, a colleague directed her to “Black Gods, Green Islands,” a collection of Afro-Caribbean folklore written by Geoffrey Holder, the Trinidad-born artist, actor and dancer. The final story, “Goddess,” opens with almost the same image as the one in García’s vision. Taking this as a sign, she chose “Goddess” to adapt into dance.