Alvin Ailey is one of the best-known names in the world of dance
– and for good reason. Ailey rose from a poverty-stricken
childhood to become a celebrated dancer and visionary
choreographer, along the way changing the look of modern dance
and elevating the stature of black dancers. Portrait of Alvin
Ailey in 1955 by Carl Van Vechten. (Wikimedia Commons/Library of
Congress) Fifty-five years ago he founded the Alvin Ailey Dance
Theater, which more than 14 years after his death, is still
producing some of the finest works of dance in America. Ailey
was proud to have created a multiracial dance company, giving
opportunities to minorities without showing preference to any
race. It's a sensibility that continues with the dance company
today – as does the high quality of the troupe's work. Today
would have been Ailey's 82nd birthday, and we're honoring his
life with a look at the Alvin Ailey Dance Theater performing a
few of the choreographer's greatest works. Reflections in D
Written by Linnea Crowther