The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater is a modern dance company based in New York, New York. It was founded in 1958 by choreographer and dancer Alvin Ailey. The dance theater is made up of 30 dancers, led by artistic director Robert Battle and associate artistic director Masazumi Chaya.
Alvin Ailey and a group of young Black modern dancers first performed at New York’s 92nd Street Y, under the name Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in March 1958. The company started as an ensemble of only seven dancers, plus their choreographer, and many guest choreographers. Ailey established a school in 1969, the same year that the company moved to the Brooklyn Academy of Music. The Ailey School and nearby Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC), Fordham University, have since affiliated to offer a BFA degree program.
The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater has performed for an estimated 23 million people in 48 states, as well as 71 countries on six continents. The company has often been an ambassador for American culture, starting with President John F. Kennedy’s Southeast Asia tour program. The Ailey company and its dancers and artistic staff have been recognized as cultural ambassadors numerous times, as in the 2001 awarding of the National Medal of Arts to both Judith Jamison and the Alvin Ailey Dance Foundation.
In September, 2010, First Lady Michelle Obama has invited dancers from the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater to the White House. The dance company kicked off a series celebrating American dance as part of an event honoring the theater’s artistic director Judith Jameson. Michelle Obama has invited dancers from the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater to the White House.
Founder Alvin Ailey created more than 79 dances for his company during his tenure; he also maintained, however, that the company was not solely a repository for his choreography. Because of this, the dance company has a repertory of more than 200 works by more than 70 choreographers, including such choreographers as Ulysses Dove, Karole Armitage, George Faison, Uri Sands, Elisa Monte, Talley Beatty, Katherine Dunham and Twyla Tharp).
The company keeps Alvin Ailey’s works, including Revelations (1960), Night Creature (1974) and Cry (1971), in continuous performance.