Alvin Ailey Dance Revelations During A Time Of Adversity

On behalf of the Ailey organization, we wanted to send the following information about upcoming offerings that we hope will provide respite.

Despite adversity and obstacles at the cusp of the Civil Rights Movement, Alvin Ailey founded a Company that has used dance to inspire, educate, and unite all in a universal celebration of the human spirit for over six decades now through thick and thin. As Artist Director Robert Battle proclaims, “our destiny is calling—one without hate, oppression, and violence—and it is our turn to answer.” In these extremely difficult times, Ailey will continue to share revelations in an effort to raise spirits as we move forward together in answering the call.

Here are a variety of ways to connect with Ailey artistry on Ailey All Access that we hope will give you a sense of uplift:

• Ailey’s dancers have created a short film entitled “We Dance” exploring their movement through pain and heart ache with text written and performed by dancer Hope Boykin.
• Watch Ailey’s Khalia Campbell in a touching excerpt of Darrell Grand Moultrie’s Ounce of Faith danced to “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” one of the most cherished songs of the Civil Rights Movement often referred to as the Black National Anthem for its powerful  cry for perseverance, courage and liberty.
• A rebroadcast has been shared of Jamar Roberts’ powerful Ode, a flower on the graves of the innocent victims of gun violence and a meditation on the beauty and fragility of life.
• The Thursday, June 4 streaming premiere of a 2015 Ailey at Lincoln Center performance (in conjunction with the new Lincoln Center at Home portal) will culminate with the soul-stirring Revelations, which has had a profound impact on audiences around the world for 60 years. Now more than ever Revelations is needed during these trying times.
• On Thursday, June 11 at 7:30 pm ET the first-ever Ailey Spirit Virtual Gala global broadcast, supported by WarnerMedia, will be a free virtual celebration with a one-time-only special program. Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater will come together while apart for a memorable finale paying homage to Alvin Ailey’s American masterpiece, Revelations, inspired by their initial video at the start of the pandemic that reminded us of our connection despite circumstances as featured in The New York Times article entitled “Ailey Dancers, Separate but Together in a Bit of ‘Revelations.”
• In addition, another work corresponding to current events is Ailey’s first Resident Choreographer Jamar Roberts’ short dance film made for Guggenheim’s Works & Process Artists (WPA) Virtual Commission. Cooped, choreographed, danced and filmed by Jamar Roberts, with music composed and performed by David Watson (Bagpipes) and Tony Buck (Drums), is a fever dream reflecting the fear of sickness and anxiety of quarantine in the context of the historical trauma of being relegated to live in and within confined spaces. As profiled by The New York Times, the video is a powerful “artistic response to the to the Covid-19 crisis, with added resonance after the killing of George Floyd.”

Ailey All Access kicked off on Monday, March 30, 2020, the date of the first performance of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater and has reached almost 14 million people in 64 countries.  Follow Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater on Facebook and Instagram, as well as visit Ailey All Access and www.alvinailey.org regularly for updates.