POSTED October 23, 2024
50 Years of Ailey II
Fifty years is a huge milestone for any company. Doubly so for Ailey II, the second company of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater that began when Alvin Ailey saw an opportunity to take students from his school onto the stage. For five decades, Ailey II has not only acted as a bridge between The Ailey School and a performance career, it has also spread dance to all corners of the world. Here are five milestones that highlight Ailey II’s reach over 50 years.
1. “Ailey Celebrates Ellington” on CBS (1974)
Alvin Ailey formed Ailey II, then the Alvin Ailey Repertory Ensemble, in 1974 to give select students from his school the opportunity to develop further as performers. The ensemble also served as a workshop for himself and other young choreographers to create dances without taking time away from the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater company dancers. Their first performance was on the CBS television special, “Ailey Celebrates Ellington,” featuring Gladys Knight and the debut of four new dances by Mr. Ailey, including Night Creature and The Mooche. Former Ensemble member who also danced with the main Ailey company, Sarita Allen was one of the first dancers in the new company. “At the time, we weren’t doing so many technical dances,” she said. “They were all about personalities.”
2. Building the Repertory (1983)
Much like Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Ailey II was conceived as a repertory company that could house the works of many choreographers, both commissioning new creations and archiving American classics. In 1983, Ailey II performed Talley Beatty’s The Road of the Phoebe Snow, one of Beatty’s early masterpieces and a tribute to the maturity of the Ailey II performers. Following this came pieces from some of the most esteemed choreographers, including Donald Byrd, Donald McKayle, and Judith Jamison.
3. Ailey II goes to Cuba (1998)
The Alvin Ailey Repertory Ensemble was initially established to tour regional schools, care facilities, and even prisons, but the success of the second touring company eventually led it to traveling abroad. In 1998, the company made a visit to Cuba, only two years after President Bill Clinton signed the Helms-Burton Act that tightened the US Embargo and penalized other countries from doing business with Cuba. The company performed Lar Lubvitch’s Marimba and Mr. Ailey’s Escapades and Revelations.
4. Winter Garden after 9/11 (2002)
After the collapse of the twin towers on September 11, 2001, the nearby Winter Garden in the World Financial Center was partially destroyed. A year later, on October 2, 2002, Ailey II was the first group to perform in the refurbished Winter Garden. $50 million was spent to reconstruct, rewire, and update the performance space. Ailey II performed excerpts from four works by Mr. Ailey: Blues Suite, Hidden Rites, The Lark Ascending, and Streams.
5. Ailey II at the Brandenburg Gate (2008)
AILEY is widely recognized for its diplomatic international tours, and Ailey II is a vital part of that endeavor. To celebrate the opening of a new United States Embassy in Berlin at Pariser Platz in 2008—returning to the site for the first time since before World War II—Ailey II performed on stage in front of the Brandenburg Gate during Amerikafest. The new embassy sat in what was once the no-go zone along the Berlin wall. The performance also marked Ailey II’s first performance in Europe.
