Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater

From 14 to 18 October, the Teatro Real will host the legendary Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, one of the most influential international contemporary dance companies. It will be performing two programmes that review the company’s different stages of artistic evolution.

The first part of the production is focused on some of its founder’s most emblematic choreographies, pieces that defined the identity of the group and continue to be references of 20th century dance. Movement becomes a form of narration, capable of expressing pain, resistance and celebration with an unmistakeable stage presence.  The second programme brings together the work of choreographers from later generations, such as Medhi Walerski, Judith Jamison, Lar Lubovitch and Jamar Roberts, who provide complementary visions of the body, transcendence and the human condition.

Founded in New York in 1958, during the rise of the civil rights movement in the United States, the company has become an artistic reference worldwide. Its cultural relevance was officially recognised in 2008 when the US Congress designated it Cultural Ambassador of the World, highlighting the importance of a stage project that has crossed borders for more than six decades.

Founded by Alvin Ailey, the company has developed a unique choreographic language that combines modern dance, ballet, jazz, and African and Caribbean traditions. This fusion of styles has led to an unmistakable look, marked by emotional intensity, lyricism and powerful physique. Although its artistic vision has a universal dimension, the group remains deeply rooted in the African-American experience, which has become the cornerstone of its work, which enters into dialogue with memory, identity and spirituality.

Programme:

Programme A: The Legacy of Alvin Ailey (14, 16, 17 October, 7pm)

14 October

NIGHT CREATURE (fragments)

• Music- Duke Ellington (1889-1974)
• Choreography - Alvin Ailey
• Revival - Masazumi Chaya
• Wardrobe - Jane Greenwood
• Recreation of Wardrobe - Barbara Forbes
• Lighting - Chenault Spence

CRY (complete)

• Music - Alice Coltrane (1937-2007), Laura Nyro (1947-1997) and Chuck Griffin (1968)
• Choreography - Alvin Ailey
• Wardrobe - A. Christina Giannini
• Lighting - Chenault Spence

REVELATIONS

• Traditional music
• Choreography - Alvin Ailey
• Set and Costumes - Ves Harper
• Redesign of wardrobe for Rocka my Soul Costumes - Barbara Forbes
• Lighting - Nicola Cernovitch

16 and 17 October

NIGHT CREATURE (fragments)

A SONG FOR YOU

• Music and Lyrics - Leon Russell (1942-2016)
• Choreography - Alvin Ailey
• Vocals - Donny Hathaway
• Wardrobe - Ursula Reed
• Lighting - Shirley Prendergast

CRY (fragment)

GRACE

• Music - various artists
• Choreography - Ronald K. Brown
• Rehearsals - Arcell Cabuag
• Wardrobe - Omatayo Wunmi Olaiya
• Lighting - Tsubasa Kamei

REVELATIONS

Programme B: New Pieces (15, 17 and 18 October, 12.30pm)

BLINK OF AN EYE

• Music - Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750), performed by Itzhak Perlman
• Choreography - Medhi Walerski
• Staging - Valentina Scaglia
• Wardrobe - Medhi Walerski
• Recreation of Wardrobe - Jon Taylor
• Original Lighting - Nicole Pearce

A CASE OF YOU

• Music - Joni Mitchell (1943), performed by Diana Krall
• Choreography - Judith Jamison
• Staging - Clifton Brown
• Wardrobe - Jon Taylor
• Lighting - Al Crawford

MANY ANGELS

• Music- Gustav Mahler (1860-1911)
• Choreography - Lar Lubovitch
• Assistant Choreographer - Katarzyna Skarpetowska
• Wardrobe - Harriet Jung and Reid Bartelme
• Lighting - Clifton Taylor
• Stage Design - Lar Lubovitch

SONG OF THE ANCHORITE

• Music - Maurice Ravel (1875-1937), performed by Avishai Cohen, Yonathan Avishai, Barak Mori and Ziv Ravitz
• Choreography - Jamar Roberts
• Wardrobe - Jon Taylor and Jamar Roberts
• Lighting - Yi-Chung Chen
• Stage Design - Joseph Anthony Gaito

Image Credits:

• Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater © Paul Kolnik: Corrin Rachelle Mitchell and Hannah Richardson in Revelations. Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater
• Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater © Pierre Wachholder: Revelations. Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater
• Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater © Andrew Eccles:  Ashley Kaylynn Green and Xavier Mack. Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater