The Legacy of 'Night Creature' Panel Discussion

Join former Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater company members Sarita Allen and Don Bellamy for a conversation about Alvin Ailey’s masterpiece Night Creature, moderated by AILEY dancer and educator Lisa Johnson-Willingham. They will discuss their experiences working under Mr. Ailey’s direction and the creation of Night Creature, a perfect fusion of Ailey’s buoyant choreography and Duke Ellington’s sparkling music. At once wistful and sassy, it beckons viewers into a nocturnal world populated by jazz babies and night owls. Mr. Ellington said that “night creatures, unlike stars, do not come OUT at night—they come ON, each thinking that, before the night is out, he or she will be the star.”  

Speakers 

Sarita Allen was a leading member of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater for many years and was also an original member of Complexions Contemporary Ballet. In Allen’s first season with Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Mr. Ailey created lead roles for her in two Ellington premieres: The Mooche—opposite Judith Jamison, Estelle Spurlock, and Sara Yarborough—and Night Creature.  

Don Bellamy is an alumnus of Duke Ellington School of the Arts and has performed with Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Dance Theatre of Harlem, and Complexions Contemporary Ballet, among many others, as well as in numerous Broadway productions.  

Lisa Johnson-Willingham has been a part of AILEY for over thirty years. She was a dancer with Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater under the direction of Judith Jamison, has served as the Director of AileyCamp Chicago, and, since 2011, has been Director of Ailey Extension.