Quick Facts
- NAME: Alvin Ailey
- OCCUPATION: Choreographer
- BIRTH DATE: January 05, 1931
- DEATH DATE: December 01, 1989
- PLACE OF BIRTH: Rogers, Texas
- PLACE OF DEATH: New York, New York
- Full Name: Alvin Ailey Jr.
- AKA: Alvin Ailey
Best Known For
Alvin Ailey was an American choreographer and activist who founded the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in New York in 1958.
Videos see all videos
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Alvin Ailey - Revelations (3:06)
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Alvin Ailey - Revelations
Alvin Ailey choreographed “Revelations” when he was just 29 years old. The ballet premiered on January 31st, 1960 and has become a masterpiece of American dance. Video courtesy of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.
Maya Angelou - Mini Biography
A short biography of author and poet Maya Angelou who wrote the bestselling autobiography, "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings."
Josephine Baker - The Activist Entertainer
Josephine Baker fought for racial equality as a performer in the 1920s and '30s. Learn the steps that this dancer took in the fight against discrimination.
Paul Taylor - Bad Boy of Modern Dance
An inside look at American dancer and choreographer Paul Taylor who spent decades revolutionizing modern dance. Click "Buy Now" to learn more about Paul Taylors book "Facts and Fancies." Video courtesy of Open Road Media.
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Play NowAlvin Ailey. (2013). The Biography Channel website. Retrieved 02:46, Jun 19, 2013, from http://www.biography.com/people/alvin-ailey-9177959.
Alvin Ailey. [Internet]. 2013. The Biography Channel website. Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/alvin-ailey-9177959 [Accessed 19 Jun 2013].
"Alvin Ailey." 2013. The Biography Channel website. Jun 19 2013, 02:46 http://www.biography.com/people/alvin-ailey-9177959.
"Alvin Ailey," The Biography Channel website, 2013, http://www.biography.com/people/alvin-ailey-9177959 [accessed Jun 19, 2013].
"Alvin Ailey," The Biography Channel website, http://www.biography.com/people/alvin-ailey-9177959 (accessed Jun 19, 2013).
Alvin Ailey [Internet]. The Biography Channel website; 2013 [cited 2013 Jun 19] Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/alvin-ailey-9177959.
Alvin Ailey, http://www.biography.com/people/alvin-ailey-9177959 (last visited Jun 19, 2013).
Alvin Ailey. The Biography Channel website. 2013. Available at: http://www.biography.com/people/alvin-ailey-9177959. Accessed Jun 19, 2013.
This prestigious accolade came near the end of his life. Ailey died at the age of 58 on December 1, 1989, at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City. At the time, The New York Times reported that he had suffered from "terminal blood dyscrasia, a rare disorder that affects the bone marrow and red blood cells." It was later revealed that Ailey had died of AIDS.
The dance world mourned the passing of one of its great pioneers. Alvin Ailey "had a big heart and a tremendous love of the dance,
Contents
" dancer Mikhail Baryshnikov told The New York Times, adding, "His work made an important contribution to American culture."
Despite his untimely death, Ailey continues to be an important figure in the arts through the ballets he created and the organizations he founded. The dancers with the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater have performed for more than 20 million people around the world and countless others have seen their work through numerous television broadcasts.
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American Dance Theater
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Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater celebrates the human spirit through the African-American cultural experience and the American modern dance tradition. For information about performances, training and educational programs, visit www.alvinailey.org
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