Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater 2425 Casting

Casting

Tuesday, April 8, 2025 at 7:30pm

CASTING INFORMATION

Grace
(1999, Bay Area Premiere of New Production 2024)
Choreography by Ronald K. Brown
Rehearsal Associate: Arcell Cabuag
Music by Various Artists*
Costumes by Omatayo Wunmi Olaiya
Lighting by Tsubasa Kamei

Coral Dolphin, Hannah Alissa Richardson, Jacquelin Harris, Ashley Kaylynn Green,
Samantha Figgins, Vernard J. Gilmore, Isaiah Day, Solomon Dumas, Xavier Mack, Patrick Coker, Chalvar Monteiro

This new production of Grace is supported by Maury & Joseph Bohan.

The original production of Grace was made possible by Elizabeth Marsteller Gordon and Natasha Leibel Levine, M.D. & Harlan B. Levine, M.D.

The creation of this work was made possible in part by AT&T, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, and The Harkness Foundation for Dance.

Ronald K. Brown is an advocate for the growth of the African American dance community and uses movement as a means of acquainting audiences with the beauty of traditional African forms and rhythms. Brown founded the Brooklyn-based EVIDENCE, A Dance Company in 1985 and has also set works on Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Ailey II, Cleo Parker Robinson Ensemble, Dayton Contemporary Dance Company, Jennifer Muller/The Works, Jeune Ballet d’Afrique Noire, Ko-Thi Dance Company, PHILADANCO!, and others. He choreographed Regina Taylor’s award-winning play, Crowns, for which he won an AUDELCO Award. In addition, he has received honors including a John Guggenheim Memorial Fellowship, a National Endowment for the Arts Choreographers Fellowship, a New York Foundation for the Arts Fellowship, and a United States Artists Fellowship.

* “Come Sunday” by arrangement with G. Schirmer, Inc. publisher and copyright owner. Composed by Duke Ellington. Performed by Jimmy McPhail. “Gabriel” performed by Peven Everett and Roy Davis Jr. Published by Studio Confessions (ASCAP) and Warner Chappell Music Ltd (PRS). Licensed exclusively from Large Music, LLC. All Rights Reserved. 1996. “Bless It” by Paul Johnson. Recorded at Undaground Therapy Music Studios Chicago, IL. “Rock Shock” written and produced by Roy Davis, Jr., published by Roy Davis, Jr. Music (ASCAP). Recorded at Undaground Therapy Music Studios, Chicago, IL. “Shakara” by Fela (Anikulapo) Kuti. Copyright Shanachie Entertainment Group. “Come Sunday” by arrangement with G. Schirmer, Inc., publisher and copyright owner. Composed by Duke Ellington. Performed by Jennifer Holliday.

INTERMISSION

Al-Andalus Blues
(2024, Bay Area Premiere)
Choreography by Jamar Roberts
Assistant to the Choreographer: Ghrai Devore-Stokes
Music performed by Roberta Flack and Miles Davis
Costumes by Jamar Roberts and Jon Taylor
Lighting by Brandon Stirling Baker
Scenic Design by Libby Stadstad

Hannah Alissa Richardson, Alisha Rena Peek, Caroline T. Dartey, Coral Dolphin, Isaiah Day, Shawn Cusseaux, Christopher Taylor, Jesse Obremski

The creation of Al-Andalus Blues is supported by Elaine & Larry Rothenberg.

This season’s world-premiere performances of Al-Andalus Blues are made possible by Celestine & Howard Campbell.

Jamar Roberts, from Miami, Florida, was Resident Choreographer of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater from 2019–22. Roberts has made six works on the company: Members Don’t Get Weary (2016), Ode (2019), A Jam Session for Troubling Times (2020), Holding Space (2021), and In a
Sentimental Mood (2022), all to critical acclaim; and this season’s premiere Al-Andalus Blues. He also set Gemeos on Ailey II. Roberts is a graduate of the New World School of the Arts and The Ailey School and has danced for Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Ailey II, and Complexions. He won the 2016 New York Dance and Performance (“Bessie”) Award for Outstanding Performer and has performed as a guest artist with the Royal Ballet in London. Commissions include DanceAspen, Miami City Ballet, San Francisco Ballet, ABT Studio Company, Martha Graham Dance Company, LA Dance Project, Vail Dance Festival, Fall for Dance, Juilliard, BalletX, MoveNYC, New York City Ballet, and Works and Process at the Guggenheim, where he created the films Cooped and A Chronicle of a Pivot at a Point in Time. The March on Washington Film Festival invited Roberts to create a tribute to John Lewis, and he has also made a film for LA Opera entitled The First Bluebird in the Morning. Roberts was a Director’s Fellow at NYU’s Center for Ballet and the Arts and a Creative Associate at Juilliard.

“Angelitos Negros” written by Manuel Álvarez “Maciste” Rentería. Original lyrics written by Andrés Eloy Blanco. Adapted from Píntame Angelitos Negros. Courtesy of Orfeón Records. The Adagio from Concierto de Aranjuez written by Joaquín Rodrigo, courtesy of the Victoria and Joaquín Rodrigo Foundation.

INTERMISSION

Revelations
(1960)
Choreography by Alvin Ailey
Music: Traditional
Décor and Costumes by Ves Harper
Costume dresses for “Move, Members, Move” redesigned by Barbara Forbes
Lighting by Nicola Cernovitch

PILGRIM OF SORROW

I Been ‘Buked (Arranged by Hall Johnson*)
The Company

Didn’t My Lord Deliver Daniel (Arranged by James Miller+)
Shawn Cusseaux, Miranda Quinn, Corrin Rachelle Mitchell

Fix Me, Jesus (Arranged by Hall Johnson*)
Sarah Daley-Perdomo, Yannick Lebrun

TAKE ME TO THE WATER

Processional/Honor, Honor (Adapted and arranged by Howard A. Roberts)
Xavier Mack, Ashley Kaylynn Green, Christopher R. Wilson, James Gilmer

Wade in the Water (Adapted and arranged by Howard A. Roberts; “Wade in the Water” sequence by Ella Jenkins; “A Man Went Down to the River” is an original composition by Ella Jenkins)
Jacquelin Harris, Renaldo Maurice, Constance Stamatiou

I Wanna Be Ready (Arranged by James Miller+)
Vernard J. Gilmore

MOVE, MEMBERS, MOVE

Sinner Man (Adapted and arranged by Howard A. Roberts)
Christopher R. Wilson, Chalvar Monteiro, Patrick Coker

The Day is Past and Gone (Arranged by Howard A. Roberts and Brother John Sellers)
The Company

You May Run On (Arranged by Howard A. Roberts and Brother John Sellers)
The Company

Rocka My Soul in the Bosom of Abraham (Adapted and arranged by Howard A. Roberts)
The Company

* used by arrangement with G. Schirmer, Inc., publisher and copyright owner.
+ used by special arrangement with Galaxy Music Corporation, New York City.

All performances of Revelations are permanently endowed by a generous gift from Donald L. Jonas in celebration of the birthday of his wife, Barbara, and her deep commitment to the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.

Wednesday, April 9, 2025 at 7:30pm

CASTING INFORMATION

Sacred Songs
(2024, Bay Area Premiere)
Choreography by Matthew Rushing
Assistant to the Choreographer: Alexandria Johnson
Creative Associate and Music by Du’Bois A’Keen
Costumes by Danté Baylor
Lighting by Andre A.Vazquez
Scenic Design by Matthew Rushing and Joseph Anthony Gaito

Corrin Rachelle Mitchell, Christopher R. Wilson, James Gilmer, Constance Stamatiou, Jacquelin Harris, Samantha Figgins, Jessica  Amber Pinkett, Ashley Kaylynn Green, Hannah Alissa Richardson,  Renaldo Maurice, Chalvar Monteiro, Solomon Dumas, Xavier Mack

The creation of Sacred Songs is supported by The Kansas City Friends of Alvin Ailey— Sara & Bill Morgan New Works Endowment Fund, Tracy Elise Poole, Red Moose Charitable Trust, The Jeanne Greenberg Rohatyn & Nicolas Rohatyn New Works Endowment Fund, and Daria L. & Eric J. Wallach.

INTERMISSION

Many Angels
(2024, Bay Area Premiere)
Choreography by Lar Lubovitch
Assistant to the Choreographer: Katarzyna Skarpetowska
Music by Gustav Mahler
Costumes by Harriet Jung and Reid Bartelme
Lighting by Clifton Taylor
Scenic Design by Lar Lubovitch

After 60 years as a choreographer, I am still frequently asked,“Why do you make dances?” In his writings, the 13th-century theologian Saint Thomas Aquinas posed a theoretical question  about the mysterious behavior of angels to which no actual answer is possible. “How many angels can dance on the head of a pin?” is a saying still heard today to illustrate that some questions have no logical answer but may be understood as a matter of faith. Occasionally, something may exist in the world just for the sake of itself. For example, a dance. Many Angels is not really about angels (well, maybe a little).
—Lar Lubovitch

Samantha Figgins, James Gilmer,
Miranda Quinn, Christopher R. Wilson, Vernard J. Gilmore

The creation of Many Angels is made possible by The Ellen Jewett and Richard L. Kauffman New Works Endowment Fund.

Lar Lubovitch was born in 1943 and founded Lar Lubovitch Dance Company, which tours worldwide, in 1968. Numerous dances have been performed by major US and international companies. Othello—A Dance in Three Acts, created with ABT and San Francisco Ballet, was featured on PBS’ Great Performances (Emmy nomination). Film and television dances include Fandango (International Emmy), My Funny Valentine for Robert Altman’s film The Company (American Choreography Award nomination), and Concerto Six Twenty-two and North Star for the BBC. He has created ice dances for many Olympic skaters, as well as television specials, include The Sleeping Beauty on Ice (PBS), and The Planets on Ice (A&E—International Emmy nomination, Cable Ace Award, Grammy Award). Broadway credits include Into the Woods (Tony nomination), The Red Shoes (Astaire Award), and the Tony Award-winning revival of The King and I. In 1987, Lubovitch conceived Dancing for Life, the dance community’s first response to the AIDS crisis. In 2007, he founded the Chicago Dancing Festival. In 2016, he premiered the evening-length ballet The Bronze Horseman at the Mikhailovsky Ballet  (St. Petersburg, Russia). Recent awards include Chicagoan of the Year; Ford Fellow (US Artists); the Dance/USA Honor; the Prix Benois de la Danse for Choreography (Bolshoi, Moscow); America’s  Irreplaceable Dance Treasure (Dance Heritage Coalition); and lifetime achievement awards from American Dance Guild, ADF/Scripps, Dance Magazine, and the Martha Graham Foundation. Lubovitch holds honorary doctorates from Juilliard and the Boston Conservatory. Since 2018, he has been Distinguished Professor of Dance at UC Irvine.

The Adagietto from Mahler’s Symphony No. 5 in C-sharp minor, performed by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Daniel Barenboim conducting.

PAUSE

Constance Stamatiou, Caroline T. Dartey, Corrin Rachelle Mitchell, Ashley Kaylynn Green, Jessica Amber Pinkett, Michael Jackson, Jr., Christopher Taylor, Yannick Lebrun, Renaldo Maurice, Shawn Cusseaux, Chalvar Monteiro

This new production of Grace is supported by Maury & Joseph Bohan.

The original production of Grace was made possible by Elizabeth Marsteller Gordon and Natasha Leibel Levine, M.D. & Harlan B. Levine, M.D.

The creation of this work was made possible in part by AT&T, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, and The Harkness Foundation for Dance.

* “Come Sunday” by arrangement with G. Schirmer, Inc. publisher and copyright owner. Composed by Duke Ellington. Performed by Jimmy McPhail. “Gabriel” performed by Peven Everett and Roy Davis Jr. Published by Studio Confessions (ASCAP) and Warner Chappell Music Ltd (PRS). Licensed exclusively from Large Music, LLC. All Rights Reserved. 1996. “Bless It” by Paul Johnson. Recorded at Undaground Therapy Music Studios Chicago, IL. “Rock Shock” written and produced by Roy Davis, Jr., published  by Roy Davis, Jr. Music (ASCAP). Recorded at Undaground Therapy Music Studios, Chicago, IL. “Shakara” by Fela (Anikulapo) Kuti. Copyright Shanachie Entertainment Group. “Come Sunday” by arrangement with G. Schirmer, Inc., publisher and copyright owner. Composed by Duke Ellington. Performed by Jennifer Holliday.

Thursday, April 10, 2025 at 7:30pm

CASTING INFORMATION 

Finding Free
(2024, Bay Area Premiere)
Choreography by Hope Boykin
Assistant to the Choreographer: Terri Ayanna Wright
Music by Matthew Whitaker
Costumes by Hope Boykin and Jon Taylor
Lighting by Al Crawford

Jessica Amber Pinkett, Constance Stamatiou, Samantha Figgins, Jacquelin Harris,
Alisha Rena Peek, Vernard J. Gilmore, Renaldo Maurice, Michael Jackson, Jr., Patrick Coker, Xavier Mack

Finding Free is not the absence of trials but the ability to carry weight, gaining the strength to endure.

The creation of Finding Free is supported by The Barbara & Gary Brandt Family Foundation.

This season’s world-premiere performances of Finding Free are made possible by Judith McDonough Kaminski & Joseph Kaminski.

The choreographer is grateful for support she received from American Dance Festival and the BAM Resident Artist Program during the creation of this ballet.

Two-time New York Dance and Performance (“Bessie”) Award winner Hope Boykin danced with Complexions and PHILADANCO!, and performed for 20 years with Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. She has choreographed for dance companies including American Ballet Theatre Studio Company, Ballet Black of London, BalletX, Dallas Black Dance Theatre, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, PHILADANCO!, and the Philadelphia Ballet. Boykin has created three works for Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater and a special commission with Cynthia Erivo honoring Judith Jamison. States Of Hope, an evening-length work written and choreographed for HopeBoykinDance, premiered in 2023, presented by the Joyce Theater. Boykin has choreographed for Off-Broadway and regional theater, including Kinky Boots for Bucks County Playhouse and Cornelia Street for the Atlantic Theater Company in New York City. She delivered keynote addresses for Lincoln Center Activate, Performing Arts Medical Association, and the American Society of Hand Therapists. Boykin is Artistic Advisor for Dance Education at the Kennedy Center and Artistic Lead for the Kennedy Center Dance Lab. She is Artist-In-Residence at the USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance, an alumni Fellow of the Center for Ballet and the Arts, and was advisor for the Howard University Department of Dance in 2021. As a writer and filmmaker, Boykin blends her words and cadence as the foundation of her developing movement-language. Beauty Size & Color, her short film commenting on changes during the first 20 years of the 21st century, is available on PBS.org. As an educator, creator, mover, and motivator working through her nonprofit HBArts Collective, Boykin firmly believes there are no limits.

INTERMISSION

Treading
(1979, Bay Area Premiere of New Production 2024)
Choreography by Elisa Monte
Rehearsal Associate: Clymene Aldinger
Music: Eighteen Musicians by Steve Reich*
Costumes by Marisol
Original Lighting by Tina Charney
Lighting Design by Clifton Taylor

Coral Dolphin, James Gilmer

This production of Treading is supported by an Anonymous donor, Leanne Lachman, and the Pamela D. Zilly and John H. Schaefer New Works Endowment Fund.

Elisa Monte has been widely recognized as an important innovator and contributor to contemporary dance. She is a former principal dancer with the Martha Graham Dance Company and also danced with Lar Lubovitch Dance Company and Pilobolus. Monte’s signature style—recognized as daring, intense, and passionate—is classical and highly athletic. Rooted in sensuality and controlled, sustained energy, her work is notable for its expansive range of movement. Hers is a diverse vocabulary that refuses stylistic conformity. Monte founded her company, Elisa Monte Dance in 1981 and served as Artistic Director until 2016. She has choreographed more than 50 works danced by countless domestic and international companies, including Boston Ballet, Batsheva Dance Company, Martha Graham Dance Company, San Francisco Ballet, Les Grands Ballets Canadiens, Teatro alla Scala Ballet,  PHILADANCO!, and Dallas Black Dance Theatre. Monte is thrilled to have Treading back in this season’s Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater repertory and thankful to Alvin Ailey for his support and trust in her work.

* Excerpts from Music for 18 Musicians used by arrangement with Hendon Music, Inc., a Boosey & Hawkes Company, publisher and copyright owner.

PAUSE

Solo
(1997, New Production 2023)
Choreography by Hans van Manen
Staged by Clifton Brown and Rachel Beaujean
Music by Johann Sebastian Bach
Costumes by Keso Dekker
Lighting by Joop Caboort

Christopher R. Wilson, Christopher Taylor, Xavier Mack

This new production of Solo is made possible by the Red Moose Charitable Fund.

Hans van Manen began his career in 1951 as a member of Sonia Gaskell’s Ballet Recital. In 1952, he joined the Netherlands Opera Ballet, where he created his first ballet, Feestgericht in 1957. He was a member of Roland Petit’s company in Paris, Het Nationale Ballet in Amsterdam, and Netherlands Dans Theater, where he later became a choreographer and Artistic Director of the company. He has created more than 150 ballets, each carrying his unmistakable signature of clarity in structure and a refined simplicity of elements, which have earned him the name “the Mondriaan” of dance. Van Manen has staged ballets for companies including Stuttgart Ballett, Berlin Opera, National Ballet of Canada, Royal Danish Ballet, Compañia Nacional de Danza, and Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, among others. He is the recipient of many awards including the Benois de la Danse for his entire body of work, the prestigious German Dance Prize, and the Erasmus Prize for outstanding achievements in Dutch dance, and was knighted by the Queen of the Netherlands as Commander in the Order of the Dutch Lion. In 2003, the Foundation Hans van Manen, which categorizes and takes inventory of  van Manen’s cultural estate so that it may function as a production archive, was officially launched.

Partita for Solo Violin No. 1 in B minor, BWV 1002 – Double: Presto and Partita for Solo Violin No. 1 in B minor, BWV 1002 – Double: Corrente performed by Sigiswald Kuijken and composed Johann Sebastian Bach.

INTERMISSION

PILGRIM OF SORROW
I Been ‘Buked (Arranged by Hall Johnson*)
The Company

Didn’t My Lord Deliver Daniel (Arranged by James Miller+)
Jesse Obremski, Alisha Rena Peek, Isabel Wallace-Green

Fix Me, Jesus (Arranged by Hall Johnson*)
Sarah Daley-Perdomo, Christopher R. Wilson

TAKE ME TO THE WATER

Processional/Honor, Honor (Adapted and arranged by Howard A. Roberts)
Patrick Coker, Coral Dolphin, Leonardo Brito, De’Anthony Vaughan

Wade in the Water (Adapted and arranged by Howard A. Roberts; “Wade in the Water” sequence by Ella Jenkins; “A Man Went Down to the River” is an original composition by Ella Jenkins)
Jessica Amber Pinkett, Michael Jackson, Jr., Constance Stamatiou

I Wanna Be Ready (Arranged by James Miller+)
Chalvar Monteiro

MOVE, MEMBERS, MOVE

Sinner Man (Adapted and arranged by Howard A. Roberts)
Leonardo Brito, James Gilmer, Shawn Cusseaux

The Day is Past and Gone (Arranged by Howard A. Roberts and Brother John Sellers)
The Company

You May Run On (Arranged by Howard A. Roberts and Brother John Sellers)
The Company

Rocka My Soul in the Bosom of Abraham (Adapted and arranged by Howard A. Roberts)
The Company

* used by arrangement with G. Schirmer, Inc., publisher and copyright owner.
+ used by special arrangement with Galaxy Music Corporation, New York City.

Friday, April 11, 2025 at 8pm

CASTING INFORMATION

Constance Stamatiou, Caroline T. Dartey, Fana Minea Tesfagiorgis, Miranda Quinn, Jessica Amber Pinkett, Michael Jackson, Jr., Christopher Taylor, Yannick Lebrun, Renaldo Maurice, Shawn Cusseaux, Christopher R. Wilson

This new production of Grace is supported by Maury & Joseph Bohan.

The original production of Grace was made possible by Elizabeth Marsteller Gordon  and Natasha Leibel Levine, M.D. & Harlan B. Levine, M.D.

The creation of this work was made possible in part by AT&T, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation,  and The Harkness Foundation for Dance.

Ronald K. Brown is an advocate for the growth of the African American dance community and uses movement as a means of acquainting audiences with the beauty of traditional African forms and rhythms. Brown founded the Brooklyn-based EVIDENCE, A Dance Company in 1985 and has also set works on Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Ailey II, Cleo Parker Robinson Ensemble, Dayton Contemporary Dance Company, Jennifer Muller/The Works, Jeune Ballet d’Afrique Noire, Ko-Thi Dance Company, PHILADANCO!, and others. He choreographed Regina Taylor’s award-winning play, Crowns, for which he won an AUDELCO Award. In addition, he has received honors including a John Guggenheim Memorial Fellowship, a National Endowment for the Arts Choreographers Fellowship, a New York Foundation for the Arts Fellowship, and a United States Artists Fellowship.

* “Come Sunday” by arrangement with G. Schirmer, Inc. publisher and copyright owner. Composed by Duke Ellington. Performed by Jimmy McPhail. “Gabriel” performed by Peven Everett and Roy Davis Jr. Published by Studio Confessions (ASCAP) and Warner Chappell Music Ltd (PRS). Licensed exclusively from Large Music, LLC. All Rights Reserved. 1996. “Bless It” by Paul Johnson. Recorded at Undaground Therapy Music Studios Chicago, IL. “Rock Shock” written and produced by Roy Davis, Jr., published  by Roy Davis, Jr. Music (ASCAP). Recorded at Undaground Therapy Music Studios, Chicago, IL. “Shakara” by Fela (Anikulapo) Kuti. Copyright Shanachie Entertainment Group. “Come Sunday” by arrangement with G. Schirmer, Inc., publisher and copyright owner. Composed by Duke Ellington. Performed by Jennifer Holliday.

INTERMISSION

Ashley Kaylynn Green, Jacquelin Harris, Miranda Quinn, Constance Stamatiou, Christopher R. Wilson, Patrick Coker, Renaldo Maurice, Chalvar Monteiro

The creation of Al-Andalus Blues is supported by Elaine & Larry Rothenberg.

This season’s world-premiere performances of Al-Andalus Blues are made possible by Celestine & Howard Campbell.

Jamar Roberts, from Miami, Florida, was Resident Choreographer of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater from 2019–22. Roberts has made six works on the company: Members Don’t Get Weary (2016), Ode (2019), A Jam Session for Troubling Times (2020), Holding Space (2021), and In a  Sentimental Mood (2022), all to critical acclaim; and this season’s premiere Al-Andalus Blues. He also set Gemeos on Ailey II. Roberts is a graduate of the New World School of the Arts and The Ailey School and has danced for Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Ailey II, and Complexions. He won the 2016 New York Dance and Performance (“Bessie”) Award for Outstanding Performer and has performed as a guest artist with the Royal Ballet in London. Commissions include DanceAspen, Miami City Ballet, San Francisco Ballet, ABT Studio Company, Martha Graham Dance Company, LA Dance  Project, Vail Dance Festival, Fall for Dance, Juilliard, BalletX, MoveNYC, New York City Ballet, and Works and Process at the Guggenheim, where he created the films Cooped and A Chronicle of a Pivot at a Point in Time. The March on Washington Film Festival invited Roberts to create a tribute to John Lewis, and he has also made a film for LA Opera entitled The First Bluebird in the Morning. Roberts was a Director’s Fellow at NYU’s Center for Ballet and the Arts and a Creative Associate  at Juilliard.

“Angelitos Negros” written by Manuel Álvarez “Maciste” Rentería. Original lyrics written by Andrés Eloy Blanco. Adapted from Píntame Angelitos Negros. Courtesy of Orfeón Records. The Adagio from Concierto de Aranjuez written by Joaquín Rodrigo, courtesy of the Victoria and Joaquín Rodrigo Foundation.

INTERMISSION

PILGRIM OF SORROW

I Been ‘Buked (Arranged by Hall Johnson*)
The Company

Didn’t My Lord Deliver Daniel (Arranged by James Miller+)
Patrick Coker, Dandara Veiga, Fana Minea Tesfagiorgis

Fix Me, Jesus (Arranged by Hall Johnson*)
Caroline T. Dartey, Michael Jackson, Jr.

TAKE ME TO THE WATER

Processional/Honor, Honor (Adapted and arranged by Howard A. Roberts)
Shawn Cusseaux, Alisha Rena Peek, James Gilmer, Isaiah Day

Wade in the Water (Adapted and arranged by Howard A. Roberts; “Wade in the Water” sequence by Ella Jenkins; “A Man Went Down to the River” is an original composition by Ella Jenkins)
Hannah Alissa Richardson, Solomon Dumas, Corrin Rachelle Mitchell

I Wanna Be Ready (Arranged by James Miller+)
Vernard J. Gilmore

MOVE, MEMBERS, MOVE

Sinner Man (Adapted and arranged by Howard A. Roberts)
James Gilmer, Chalvar Monteiro, De’Anthony Vaughan

The Day is Past and Gone (Arranged by Howard A. Roberts and Brother John Sellers)
The Company

You May Run On (Arranged by Howard A. Roberts and Brother John Sellers)
The Company

Rocka My Soul in the Bosom of Abraham (Adapted and arranged by Howard A. Roberts)
The Company

* used by arrangement with G. Schirmer, Inc., publisher and copyright owner.
+ used by special arrangement with Galaxy Music Corporation, New York City.

Saturday, April 12, 2025 at 2pm

CASTING INFORMATION

Please note:
Your program book inadvertently identifies two programs for this evening’s performance. The correct program and casting follows:

Caroline T. Dartey, Isaiah Day, Jesse Obremski, Kali Marie Oliver, Dandara Veiga, Miranda Quinn, Coral Dolphin, Alisha Rena Peek, Fana Minea Tesfagiorgis, Patrick Coker, De’Anthony Vaughan, Christopher Taylor, Shawn Cusseaux

The creation of Sacred Songs is supported by The Kansas City Friends of Alvin Ailey— Sara & Bill Morgan New Works Endowment Fund, Tracy Elise Poole, Red Moose Charitable Trust,  The Jeanne Greenberg Rohatyn & Nicolas Rohatyn New Works Endowment Fund, and Daria L. & Eric J. Wallach.

INTERMISSION

After 60 years as a choreographer, I am still frequently asked,“Why do you make dances?” In his writings, the 13th-century theologian Saint Thomas Aquinas posed a theoretical question  about the mysterious behavior of angels to which no actual answer is possible. “How many angels can dance on the head of a pin?” is a saying still heard today to illustrate that some questions have no logical answer but may be understood as a matter of faith. Occasionally, something may exist in the world just for the sake of itself. For example, a dance. Many Angels is not really about angels (well, maybe a little).
—Lar Lubovitch

Miranda Quinn, James Gilmer, Dandara Veiga, Christopher R. Wilson, Vernard J. Gilmore

The creation of Many Angels is made possible by The Ellen Jewett and Richard L. Kauffman New Works Endowment Fund.

Lar Lubovitch was born in 1943 and founded Lar Lubovitch Dance Company, which tours worldwide, in 1968. Numerous dances have been performed by major US and international companies. Othello—A Dance in Three Acts, created with ABT and San Francisco Ballet, was featured on PBS’ Great Performances (Emmy nomination). Film and television dances include Fandango (International Emmy), My Funny Valentine for Robert Altman’s film The Company (American Choreography Award nomination), and Concerto Six Twenty-two and North Star for the BBC. He has created ice dances for many Olympic skaters, as well as television specials, include The Sleeping Beauty on Ice (PBS), and  The Planets on Ice (A&E—International Emmy nomination, Cable Ace Award, Grammy Award). Broadway credits include Into the Woods (Tony nomination), The Red Shoes (Astaire Award), and the Tony Award-winning revival of The King and I. In 1987, Lubovitch conceived Dancing for Life, the dance community’s first response to the AIDS crisis. In 2007, he founded the Chicago Dancing Festival. In 2016, he premiered the evening-length ballet The Bronze Horseman at the Mikhailovsky Ballet  (St. Petersburg, Russia). Recent awards include Chicagoan of the Year; Ford Fellow (US Artists); the Dance/USA Honor; the Prix Benois de la Danse for Choreography (Bolshoi, Moscow); America’s  Irreplaceable Dance Treasure (Dance Heritage Coalition); and lifetime achievement awards from American Dance Guild, ADF/Scripps, Dance Magazine, and the Martha Graham Foundation. Lubovitch holds honorary doctorates from Juilliard and the Boston Conservatory. Since 2018, he has been Distinguished Professor of Dance at UC Irvine.

The Adagiettov from Mahler’s Symphony No. 5 in C-sharp minor, performed by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Daniel Barenboim conducting.

PAUSE

PILGRIM OF SORROW

I Been ‘Buked (Arranged by Hall Johnson*)
The Company

Didn’t My Lord Deliver Daniel (Arranged by James Miller+)
Shawn Cusseaux, Coral Dolphin, Kali Marie Oliver

Fix Me, Jesus (Arranged by Hall Johnson*)
Constance Stamatiou, Michael Jackson, Jr.

TAKE ME TO THE WATER

Processional/Honor, Honor (Adapted and arranged by Howard A. Roberts)
Patrick Coker, Tara Bellardini, Isaiah Day, Leonardo Brito

Wade in the Water (Adapted and arranged by Howard A. Roberts; “Wade in the Water” sequence by Ella Jenkins; “A Man Went Down to the River” is an original composition by Ella Jenkins)
Alisha Rena Peek, Renaldo Maurice, Fana Minea Tesfagiorgis

I Wanna Be Ready (Arranged by James Miller+)
Xavier Mack

MOVE, MEMBERS, MOVE

Sinner Man (Adapted and arranged by Howard A. Roberts)
Jesse Obremski, Isaiah Day, De’Anthony Vaughan

The Day is Past and Gone (Arranged by Howard A. Roberts and Brother John Sellers)
The Company

You May Run On (Arranged by Howard A. Roberts and Brother John Sellers)
The Company

Rocka My Soul in the Bosom of Abraham (Adapted and arranged by Howard A. Roberts)
The Company

* used by arrangement with G. Schirmer, Inc., publisher and copyright owner.
+ used by special arrangement with Galaxy Music Corporation, New York City.

Saturday, April 12, 2025 at 8pm

CASTING INFORMATION

Chalvar Monteiro, Coral Dolphin, Caroline T. Dartey, Miranda Quinn,  Hannah Alissa Richardson, James Gilmer, Christopher R. Wilson, Solomon Dumas, Christopher Taylor, Isaiah Day

Finding Free is not the absence of trials but the ability to carry weight, gaining the strength to endure.

The creation of Finding Free is supported by The Barbara & Gary Brandt Family Foundation.

This season’s world-premiere performances of Finding Free are made possible by Judith McDonough Kaminski & Joseph Kaminski.

The choreographer is grateful for support she received from American Dance Festival and the BAM Resident Artist Program during the creation of this ballet.

Two-time New York Dance and Performance (“Bessie”) Award winner Hope Boykin danced with Complexions and PHILADANCO!, and performed for 20 years with Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. She has choreographed for dance companies including American Ballet Theatre Studio Company, Ballet Black of London, BalletX, Dallas Black Dance Theatre, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, PHILADANCO!, and the Philadelphia Ballet. Boykin has created three works for Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater and a special commission with Cynthia Erivo honoring Judith Jamison. States Of Hope, an evening-length work written and choreographed for HopeBoykinDance, premiered in 2023, presented by the Joyce Theater. Boykin has choreographed for Off-Broadway and regional theater, including Kinky Boots for Bucks County Playhouse and Cornelia Street for the Atlantic Theater Company in New York City. She delivered keynote addresses for Lincoln Center Activate, Performing Arts Medical Association, and the American Society of Hand Therapists. Boykin is Artistic Advisor for Dance Education at the Kennedy Center and Artistic Lead for the Kennedy Center Dance Lab. She is Artist-In-Residence at the USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance, an alumni Fellow of the Center for Ballet and the Arts, and was advisor for the Howard University Department of Dance in 2021. As a writer and filmmaker, Boykin blends her words and cadence as the foundation of her developing movement-language. Beauty Size & Color, her short film commenting on changes during the first 20 years of the 21st century, is available on PBS.org. As an educator, creator, mover, and motivator working through her nonprofit HBArts Collective, Boykin firmly believes there are no limits.

INTERMISSION

Treading
(1979, Bay Area Premiere of New Production 2024)
Choreography by Elisa Monte
Rehearsal Associate: Clymene Aldinger
Music: Eighteen Musicians by Steve Reich*
Costumes by Marisol
Original Lighting by Tina Charney
Lighting Design by Clifton Taylor

Ashley Kaylynn Green, Christopher Taylor

This production of Treading is supported by an Anonymous donor, Leanne Lachman, and the Pamela D. Zilly and John H. Schaefer New Works Endowment Fund.

* Excerpts from Music for 18 Musicians used by arrangement with Hendon Music, Inc., a Boosey & Hawkes Company, publisher and copyright owner.

PAUSE

Solo
(1997, New Production 2023)
Choreography by Hans van Manen
Staged by Clifton Brown and Rachel Beaujean
Music by Johann Sebastian Bach
Costumes by Keso Dekker
Lighting by Joop Caboort

Renaldo Maurice, James Gilmer, Shawn Cusseaux

This new production of Solo is made possible by the Red Moose Charitable Fund.

INTERMISSION

PILGRIM OF SORROW

I Been ‘Buked (Arranged by Hall Johnson*)
The Company

Didn’t My Lord Deliver Daniel (Arranged by James Miller+)
De’Anthony Vaughan, Miranda Quinn, Corrin Rachelle Mitchell

Fix Me, Jesus (Arranged by Hall Johnson*)
Sarah Daley-Perdomo, Yannick Lebrun

TAKE ME TO THE WATER

Processional/Honor, Honor (Adapted and arranged by Howard A. Roberts)
Xavier Mack, Tara Bellardini, Isaiah Day, James Gilmer

I Wanna Be Ready (Arranged by James Miller+)
Vernard J. Gilmore

MOVE, MEMBERS, MOVE

Sinner Man (Adapted and arranged by Howard A. Roberts)
Isaiah Day, Chalvar Monteiro, Patrick Coker

The Day is Past and Gone (Arranged by Howard A. Roberts and Brother John Sellers)
The Company

You May Run On (Arranged by Howard A. Roberts and Brother John Sellers)
The Company

Rocka My Soul in the Bosom of Abraham (Adapted and arranged by Howard A. Roberts)
The Company

* used by arrangement with G. Schirmer, Inc., publisher and copyright owner.
+ used by special arrangement with Galaxy Music Corporation, New York City.

Sunday, April 12, 2025 at 3pm

CASTING INFORMATION

Chalvar Monteiro, Coral Dolphin, Caroline T. Dartey, Miranda Quinn,  Hannah Alissa Richardson, James Gilmer, Christopher R. Wilson, Solomon Dumas, Christopher Taylor, Isaiah Day

Finding Free is not the absence of trials but the ability to carry weight, gaining the strength to endure.

The creation of Finding Free is supported by The Barbara & Gary Brandt Family Foundation.

This season’s world-premiere performances of Finding Free are made possible by Judith McDonough Kaminski & Joseph Kaminski.

The choreographer is grateful for support she received from American Dance Festival and the BAM Resident Artist Program during the creation of this ballet.

Two-time New York Dance and Performance (“Bessie”) Award winner Hope Boykin danced with Complexions and PHILADANCO!, and performed for 20 years with Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. She has choreographed for dance companies including American Ballet Theatre Studio Company, Ballet Black of London, BalletX, Dallas Black Dance Theatre, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, PHILADANCO!, and the Philadelphia Ballet. Boykin has created three works for Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater and a special commission with Cynthia Erivo honoring Judith Jamison. States Of Hope, an evening-length work written and choreographed for HopeBoykinDance, premiered in 2023, presented by the Joyce Theater. Boykin has choreographed for Off-Broadway and regional theater, including Kinky Boots for Bucks County Playhouse and Cornelia Street for the Atlantic Theater Company in New York City. She delivered keynote addresses for Lincoln Center Activate, Performing Arts Medical Association, and the American Society of Hand Therapists. Boykin is Artistic Advisor for Dance Education at the Kennedy Center and Artistic Lead for the Kennedy Center Dance Lab. She is Artist-In-Residence at the USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance, an alumni Fellow of the Center for Ballet and the Arts, and was advisor for the Howard University Department of Dance in 2021. As a writer and filmmaker, Boykin blends her words and cadence as the foundation of her developing movement-language. Beauty Size & Color, her short film commenting on changes during the first 20 years of the 21st century, is available on PBS.org. As an educator, creator, mover, and motivator working through her nonprofit HBArts Collective, Boykin firmly believes there are no limits.

INTERMISSION

Ashley Kaylynn Green, Christopher Taylor

This production of Treading is supported by an Anonymous donor, Leanne Lachman, and the Pamela D. Zilly and John H. Schaefer New Works Endowment Fund.

* Excerpts from Music for 18 Musicians used by arrangement with Hendon Music, Inc., a Boosey & Hawkes Company, publisher and copyright owner.

PAUSE

Solo
(1997, New Production 2023)
Choreography by Hans van Manen
Staged by Clifton Brown and Rachel Beaujean
Music by Johann Sebastian Bach
Costumes by Keso Dekker
Lighting by Joop Caboort

Renaldo Maurice, James Gilmer, Shawn Cusseaux

This new production of Solo is made possible by the Red Moose Charitable Fund.

INTERMISSION

PILGRIM OF SORROW

I Been ‘Buked (Arranged by Hall Johnson*)
The Company

Didn’t My Lord Deliver Daniel (Arranged by James Miller+)
Patrick Coker, Tara Bellardini, Fana Minea Tesfagiorgis

Fix Me, Jesus (Arranged by Hall Johnson*)
Caroline T. Dartey, Michael Jackson, Jr.

TAKE ME TO THE WATER

Processional/Honor, Honor (Adapted and arranged by Howard A. Roberts)
Shawn Cusseaux, Miranda Quinn, Isaiah Day, Leonardo Brito

Wade in the Water (Adapted and arranged by Howard A. Roberts; “Wade in the Water” sequence by Ella Jenkins; “A Man Went Down to the River” is an original composition by Ella Jenkins)
Hannah Alissa Richardson, Solomon Dumas, Kali Marie Oliver

I Wanna Be Ready (Arranged by James Miller+)
Xavier Mack

MOVE, MEMBERS, MOVE

Sinner Man (Adapted and arranged by Howard A. Roberts)
Leonardo Brito, Jesse Obremski, De’Anthony Vaughan

The Day is Past and Gone (Arranged by Howard A. Roberts and Brother John Sellers)
The Company

You May Run On (Arranged by Howard A. Roberts and Brother John Sellers)
The Company

Rocka My Soul in the Bosom of Abraham (Adapted and arranged by Howard A. Roberts)
The Company

* used by arrangement with G. Schirmer, Inc., publisher and copyright owner.
+ used by special arrangement with Galaxy Music Corporation, New York City.