This month Ailey II will perform in Rotterdam, at the Holland Dance Festival. Almost all members of the company (named after choreographer Alvin Ailey) are of color. From the moment Van den Heuvel saw these dancers on YouTube, she wanted to be part of them.
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater is getting ready to celebrate its 65th anniversary season at the New York City Center on November 29. Opening night will include a special tribute to trailblazer and iconic Artistic Director Emerita Judith Jamison. The highly acclaimed former dancer sat down with Kemberly Richardson in a rare interview. The now 80-year-old, who is retired, is still very much involved with the dance company.
Dancer and choreographer Alvin Ailey created nearly 80 ballets in his career, but none is as well-known and well-loved as Revelations. Ailey was only 29 when he created the masterpiece inspired by his experience growing up in church in the South. He used movement and music to tell a beautiful story of the despair, hope and joy of the Black experience. And it has been beloved by audiences for over 60 years.
Crain’s 2023 class of 40 Under 40 honorees includes some of the most talented young people in New York. Read on to be inspired by the professionals doing the hard work well, including Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater's Khalia Campbell.
Note: This article is presented as part of the ALL ARTS program “Alvin Ailey New Directions” by filmmaker Steven Tabakin. The eight-part digital series follows choreographers Quilan “Cue” Arnold and Maria Bauman as they work with dancers from The Ailey School as part of their New Directions Choreography Lab residencies. Here, Arnold shares further insight into his process.
The story took flight with a chance encounter at the 60th Street post office in Manhattan. It was the mid-'90s and Denise Jefferson, then head of The Ailey School, and Edward Bristow, then dean of Fordham College at Lincoln Center, would often bump into each other in the neighborhood. At that point, both schools were already looking for ways to expand their relationship, and Jefferson had previously floated the idea of starting a BFA program. While standing in line to buy stamps, Bristow says, their friendly chitchat set in motion an idea to form a planning committee tasked with creating a BFA program that would change the lives of scores of young dancers.
Ahtoy Juliana is an instructor with Ailey Extension and the Artistic Director of BAILA Society, a multi-faceted Latin dance and theater company that celebrates Latin dance and music heritage through its international repertory company, online dance academy, live classes, and community events. For more details on how people of all ages can get moving with Ailey to salsa and other techniques, check out alvinailey.org/extension.
Ahtoy Juliana is the Artistic Director of BAILA Society, a multi-faceted Latin dance and theater company that celebrates Latin dance and music heritage through its international repertory company, online dance academy, live classes, and community events. Ahtoy’s work as a dancer and choreographer has been featured in international dance festivals, musical revues, TV, and film, including the recent screen adaptation of In the Heights. Ahtoy began her professional training in classical ballet with the Houston and San Francisco Ballet Companies. She began her salsa career with Santo Rico Dance Company before creating BAILA Society in 2006.