In 1958, a group of talented young dancers led by visionary choreographer Alvin Ailey performed for the first time as the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater (AAADT). During the course of Ailey’s tenure, the AAADT would become lauded for being a tour de force in the world of modern dance.
The company’s success was attributed not only to Ailey’s expansive collection of ballets, such as the classic “Revelations” and “Cry,” but also to its brilliant dancers. At the forefront of the troupe was Masazumi Chaya, a classically trained dancer from Japan who became AAADT’s associate artistic director in 1991, and Judith Jamison, a ballerina from Philadelphia who was discovered by Agnes de Mille and widely considered to be Ailey’s muse. Jamison performed with the troupe for 15 years (1965-80) before leaving to do guest appearances with ballets across the globe and, eventually, start her own dance company. However, when Ailey died in 1989, she returned as his personally chosen successor to assume the mantle of artistic director.
For the past 20 years, Jamison has continued Ailey’s vision while masterfully infusing it with her own. Under her direction, she has transformed the organization from one on the verge of bankruptcy into a global arts ambassador that consistently reaches vibrant and progressive new heights, both fiscally and creatively. Now in its 51st year, the AAADT is still flourishing. To date, the company has performed on six continents — including two residencies in South Africa — for an estimated 23 million people.
Under Jamison’s leadership, the company also has achieved many milestones stateside, including establishing a bachelor of fine arts program for dancers at Fordham University, and strengthening the Ailey School and community outreach programs such as AileyCamp, which teaches disadvantaged children self-esteem and discipline through the art of dance. (The Fox hosts one every summer.) And in 2004, the dance company moved into the $55 million Joan Weill Center for Dance; a 77,000-sq. ft., eight-story midtown Manhattan office and rehearsal space said to be the nation’s largest building dedicated solely to dance.
However, Jamison’s biggest influence as artistic director can be seen on the stage. Not only has she choreographed and commissioned numerous works, she also has inspired a new generation of dancer-choreographers. Matthew Rushing is one such dancer. Having trained at the Ailey School, Rushing danced with Ailey II, the popular touring company that fuses young dance talent with emerging choreographers, for a year before joining the ranks of the main company in 1992. Now, his first solo-choreographed piece “Uptown,” an ode to the Harlem Renaissance Era, debuts as part of the 20-city U.S. tour commemorating Jamison’s 20 years of direction, which will conclude with her announced retirement in 2011.
Jamison, 66, has spent the better part of her lifetime solidifying the legacy of Alvin Ailey. As she steps into the role of artistic director emerita, it may be said that she is fulfilling his vision of using “dance as a medium for honoring the past, celebrating the present and fearlessly reaching into the future.” Although a replacement has yet to be named, an even brighter future is expected to follow with the new visionary; who will have very big shoes to fill as only the third artistic director in the AAADT’s history.
“I’m looking for someone with great intelligence and great nerve. Someone who understands the tradition of the company, but makes decisions as an individual,” Jamison said in a 2008 New York Times interview. “That’s what I did. I couldn’t imitate Alvin. All I could do was follow the road map. What he laid down is perfectly wonderful.”
Celebrate the contributions of Judith Jamison with the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater as they take to the Fox stage Feb. 18-21.
