Alvin Ailey Biography

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.

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Alvin Ailey

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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,

" 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.

American Dance Theater

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