Alvin Ailey(1931-1989), founding director of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, an internationally renowned modern dance- repertory company. Born in Rogers, Texas, Ailey enrolled at the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) and became involved with the Lester Horton Dance Theater in 1949. He studied under Horton, and after Horton's death in 1953, Ailey became director of the company, a position he held until 1954. That same year Ailey moved to New York City. There he appeared in a number of stage productions while studying under American dancers Martha Graham, Charles Weidman, Doris Humphrey, and Hanya Holm and American actor Stella Adler. During this time Ailey gained fame for the strength and grace of his performances. In 1958 he formed his own company, which joined the New York City Center in 1972. Ailey's company performed the works of many noted choreographers, including Anna Sokolow, Katherine Dunham, José Limón, and Pearl Primus, as well as works of Ailey's own creation, often inspired by the African American heritage. The company toured throughout the United States and the world, including Australia in 1962 and Senegal in 1966. In 1984 the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater became the first predominantly African American troupe to perform at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York City. In 1985 the company toured China. Ailey's works incorporate techniques of modern dance, jazz dance, ballet, and ethnic dance. They include Blues Suite (1958); Mass (1971; music by Leonard Bernstein); and Revelations (1960), which is Ailey's most prominent work, based on African American spirituals and expresses universal themes of faith and humanity. Ailey choreographed for several companies in addition to his own, including the American Ballet Theatre, Paris Opera Ballet, and Joffrey Ballet, for which he created Feast of Ashes (1962). He received the Capezio Award in 1979 for his lifetime contribution to dance, and in 1985 he became the first choreographer to be named distinguished professor by the City College of New York. Ailey's autobiography, Revelations: The Autobiography of Alvin Ailey, was published in 1994.
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