Ailey II : Harmonic Echo 

Floor 3, Theater

September 25–29 at 11 am
November 20–21  at 2 pm, 5 pm
November 22 at 2 pm, 7:30 pm
November 23*–24 at 2 pm, 5 pm
December 21–22 at 2 pm, 5 pm
January 22–24 at 1:30 pm
January 25–26 at 11 am

*Audio description will be available for the performance on November 23 at 2 pm.

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This performance is presented as part of the exhibition Edges of Ailey.

Ailey II 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. The performance opens with an excerpt from Divining, a dance by Judith Jamison set to a score of North African, Central African, and Latin rhythms. This piece builds on African dance idioms to create a striking, pulsating modern dance work. Divining is followed by excerpts from three classic works by Alvin Ailey, beginning with his first masterpiece, Blues Suite, which poignantly evokes the sorrow, humor, and humanity of the blues—those heartfelt songs that Ailey called “hymns to the secular regions of the soul.” Lark Ascending seamlessly fuses ballet and modern vocabularies to display the dancers’ technical abilities in both disciplines and has entranced audiences for years. The performance closes with the formal, meditative mood of Streams. The dance evokes images and sensations inspired by various bodies of water—from gentle brooks to turbulent oceans—that correlate to the changing tides within us.

Program
Excerpt from Divining
Excerpts from Blues Suite
Excerpt from Lark Ascending
Excerpts from Streams 

Runtime is approximately 30 minutes.

Excerpt from Divining
1984
Choreography by Judith Jamison
Restaged by Elizabeth Roxas-Dobrish
Music by Kimati Dinizulu and Monti Ellison
Original costume design by Masazumi Chaya
Costumes redesigned by Andy Kay
Original lighting by Chenault Spence
Lighting redesign by Timothy Hunter

Cast:
Corinth Moulterie (Sept. 25, 26, 27, Nov 20 at 2pm, Nov 21 at 5pm, Nov 22 at 7:30pm)
Jordyn White (Sept. 28 & 29, Nov 20 at 5pm, Nov 21 at 2pm, Nov 23 at 2pm)
Kayla Mei-Wan Thomas (Nov 23 at 5pm, Nov 25 at 5pm)
Kiri Moore (Nov 22 at 2pm, Nov 24 at 2pm)

Excerpts from Blues Suite
1958
Blues Suite is dedicated to the memory of our Brother John Sellers.
Choreography by Alvin Ailey
Restaged by Masazumi Chaya, Sylvia Waters, Renee Robinson, and Kanji Segawa
Music: Traditional
Original decor and costumes by Ves Harper
Costumes by Normand Maxon
Original lighting by Nicola Cernovitch
Lighting by Chenault Spence

Cast:
"Mean Ol' Frisco"
Xhosa Scott (Sept. 25, 26, 27, Nov 20 at 2pm, Nov 21 at 5pm, Nov 22 at 7:30pm, Nov 23 at 5pm, Nov 24 at 5pm)
Corinth Moulterie (Sept. 28 & 29, Nov 20 at 5pm, Nov 21 at 2pm, Nov 22 at 2pm, Nov 23 at 2pm, Nov 24 at 2pm)
Kamani Abu, Xavier Logan, Darion Turner, Alfred L. Jordan II

"House of the Rising Sun"
Jordyn White, Kayla Mei-Wan Thomas, Jennifer M. Gerken (Sept. 25, 26, 27, Nov 20 at 2pm, Nov 21 at 5pm, Nov 22 at 7:30pm)
Kiri Moore, Meredith Brown, Carley Brooks (Sept. 28 & 29, Nov 20 at 5pm, Nov 21 at 2pm, Nov 23 at 2pm)
Jordyn White, Meredith Brown, Carley Brooks (Nov 22 at 2pm, Nov 24 at 2pm)
Jordyn White, Meredith Brown, Jennifer M. Gerken (Nov 23 at 5pm, Nov 24 at 5pm)

Excerpt from Lark Ascending
1972
Choreography by Alvin Ailey
Restaged by Elizabeth Roxas-Dobrish
Music by Ralph Vaughan Williams  (“The Lark Ascending” Romance for Violin and Orchestra)
Costumes by Bea Feitler
Lighting by Chenault Spence

Cast:
Kiri Moore, Xhosa Scott (Sept. 25, 26, 27, Nov 20 at 2pm, Nov 21 at 5pm, Nov 22 at 7:30pm, Nov 23 at 5pm, Nov 24 at 5pm)
Kayla Mei-Wan Thomas, Corinth Moulterie (Sept. 28 & 29, Nov 20 at 5pm, Nov 21 at 2pm, Nov 22 at 2pm, Nov 23 at 2pm, Nov 24 at 2pm)

Excerpts from Streams 
1970
Choreography by Alvin Ailey
Restaged by Masazumi Chaya, Linda Kent, Renee Robinson, and Kanji Segawa
Music by Miloslav Kabelac (“Eight Inventions, Opus 45”)
Costumes by A. Christina Giannini
Lighting by Chenault Spence

(Otto Invenzions by Miroslav Kabeláč, by arrangement with Czech Music Fund and Boosey & Hawkes, Inc.

Cast:
Scherzo:
Alfred L. Jordan II, Xavier Logan (Sept. 25, 26, 27, Nov 20 at 2pm, Nov 21 at 5pm, Nov 22 at 7:30pm, Nov 23 at 5pm, Nov 24 at 5pm)
Xhosa Scott, Darion Turner (Sept. 28 & 29, Nov 20 at 5pm, Nov 21 at 2pm, Nov 22 at 2pm, Nov 23 at 2pm, Nov 24 at 2pm)

Lamentoso:
Jordyn White (Sept. 25, 26, 27, Nov 20 at 2pm, Nov 21 at 5pm, Nov 22 at 7:30pm, Nov 23 at 5pm, Nov 24 at 5pm)
Jennifer M. Gerken (Sept. 28 & 29, Nov 20 at 5pm, Nov 21 at 2pm, Nov 22 at 2pm, Nov 23 at 2pm, Nov 24 at 2pm)

Diabolico: The Company

All casting is subject to change. Read the dancers' bios at ailey.org/ailey-ii

AILEY II 

Ailey II—The Next Generation of Dance—is AILEY’s second company. Founded in 1974 as the Alvin Ailey Repertory Ensemble, Ailey II has advanced Alvin Ailey’s vision by giving early-career dancers the vital experience of transitioning from training as a student to becoming a professional dancer. Ailey II dancers bring their technical mastery and emotional depth to works by the most daring established and emerging choreographers. Just as Mr. Ailey envisioned, the company continues to expand the audience for dance through global touring and community-based performances.

Sylvia Waters, the company’s first artistic director, was personally chosen by Mr. Ailey and led the company for 38 seasons. In September 2021, Francesca Harper became artistic director. Ms. Harper—a former student at The Ailey School who has choreographed for both AILEY companies—guides Ailey II with her unique perspective, paying homage to Mr. Ailey’s legacy while taking the company in bold, new directions.

Under Ms. Harper’s direction, Ailey II is forging a new path for modern dance—one that’s inclusive, experimental, and transformative.