Ailey II in Bradford

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Ailey 2 (Enemy in the Figure, Freedom Series, The Hunt and Revelations) Alhambra Theatre, Bradford 18 Oct2023 19:30

Aikey II is to Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre what NDT2 is to the Nederlands Dans Theater.  According to its website, Ailey 2 is "universally renowned for merging the spirit and energy of the country’s best early-career dance talent with the passion and creative vision of today’s most outstanding and emerging choreographers."  By inference, it consists of some of the best early-career dance talent in the United States.

The company has just completed a tour of England and Inverness.   I caught it at the Bradford Alhambra on 18 Oct 2023 where it performed four of its works:

• an excerpt from William Forsyth's Enemy in the Figure; 
• an excerpt from Francesca Harper's  Freedom Series; 
• The Hunt by Robert Battle; and 
• Alvin Ailey's Revelations.

The choice of works and the order in which they were presented were a reverse retrospective of the development of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre and Ailey II.  Although William Forsyth is an American he made his reputation in Germany.  His works have been performed by companies all over the world including the Royal Ballet but it was through performances by Continental companies that I learned about his work.  Ailey II's artistic director Francesca Harper danced with the Frankfurt Ballet while Forsyth was the Director.  Robert Battle is the current Artistic Director of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre and Alvin Ailey was, of course, the companies' founder.

Another way of looking at the programme was that it started with a work or at least a style that is familiar to European audiences as it is in the repertoire of many of the world's leading companies, continued with a work in the same tradition but by an American choreographer, followed with one that was quintessentially American and finished with pure African-American music and dance.  Visually my abiding memory of Freedom Series is of the illuminated white globes carried by the audience.  Aurally it is of the juxtaposition of voice against the electronic score.   Excitement mounted with the beat of Les Tambours de Bronx.  The show climaxed with Revelations bringing African-American spirituals that were familiar but sung and danced with a rawness and energy that was anything but.

Revelations was my favourite piece of the evening.   There were remarkable performances by everyone in the cast but I was particularly impressed by Spencer Everett in I Wanna Be Ready and Corinth Moultrie, Patrick Gamble and Alfred L Jordan II.  Interestingly, I heard some of the same music two weeks later in Mthuthuzeli November's Nina By Whatever Means where it was interpreted subtly differently by a South African choreographer and a Brazilian lead dancer.  

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre and Ailey II are more than just performance companies. There is a vocational school in New York and classes for the general public,   I was pleased to read in the programme notes that there is a scheme for the school and companies to train promising British students known as Ailey Project UK.  Apparently, the first batch of British students is already in the USA.   The programme also states that the project has been promoted by Marcus Willis who danced with Alvin Ailey and is now the Artistic Director of Phoenix.   I met Marcus several times when he was with Ballet Cymru and was very impressed.

The last tour of the UK by Ailey II was in 2011 though we have seen the main company several times since them.   I hope that we do not have to wait another decade to see those super-talented young artists again,

My Visit to the Acosta Dance Centre

Jane Lambert

(c) 2023 Melissa Rayne Reproduced with kind permission of the copyright owner

 

During that glorious Indian summer at the beginning of September, I was in London.  I was there for many reasons.  A landmark birthday of someone very dear and close to me.  Open house Sunday at the Royal Opera House and Lincoln's Inn.  A reception at the House of Lords to launch Wales Innovation Week in London.   A webinar on digital enterprise at the Welsh Government's office in Victoia.  And the piȅce de résistance a visit to The Acosta Dance Centre in Woolwich.

As its name indicates, the Centre is a project of Carlos Acosta.   Its mission is "to become an international reference for dance, providing a nurturing space for dance-creative practitioners, industry professionals, and passionate dance enthusiasts."  It is situated a short distance from the Elizabeth Line in the former Royal Arsenal. 

As it is some distance from the West End, Woolwich may not be the most obvious choice for "an international reference for dance" but it is culturally and socially one of the most diverse neighbourhoods of London   It already has several theatres and it now hosts the Thamesmead Festival to which my good friend Melissa Rayne contributed The Tree of Life Emergence.

Melissa also teaches a regular Creative Dance and Improvisation class at the Centre. She gave me a tour of the premises and took the photographs.  I have seen a lot of dance studios over the years and most of them are run down.   The Acosta Centre is one of the most impressive I have ever seen,  Every studio had a well-sprung floor with barres and a pristine feel like a new car in a showroom, but even more impressive were the space and natural light.  

That is perhaps best illustrated by the following photo which I believe to have been the ground floor.

 

However, I think it would be impressive even at night because the light fittings are glorious,

Mel demonstrated her dramatic prowess below which prompted me to stand bras bas.  Unfortunately, I was wearing quite the wrong trousers 

There is a massive range of classes in all styles of dance.    Ballet with great teachers like Denzil Bailey, Diana Conti and Ludovic Ondiviela.  There is also ballroom, contemporary, Cuban, orishas, rumba - you name it.   There are several membership schemes and gift cards.  Fees vary with the teacher and dance style but ballet classes seem to start at around £10 per session.  That is not much more than I pay in the North of England and it is certainly not bad for London.

Although Carlos Acosta founded the Centre it is run by his compatriot Javier Torres. He was one of my favourite dancers at Northern Ballet.  I can't think of a better qualified person to undertake that role.