2/1/15 O&A Gospel Sunday: Excerpts from Alvin Ailey’s Revelations

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Revelations tells the story of African-American faith and tenacity from slavery to freedom. This enduring classic is a tribute to that tradition, born out of the choreographer Alvin Ailey’s “blood memories” of his childhood in rural Texas and the Baptist Church. Continue reading

8/23/24 O&A Shall We Dance Friday: Happy Birthday Dudley Williams- Conversation with Jennifer Dunning (Part One)

By Walter Rutledge

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August 18th came and went with little fanfare for Ailey dancer emeritus Dudley Williams. In 2004 Dudley became a member of theIMG_1407

On Thursday October 23, 2015 Clack Center NYC hosted A Conversation with Dudley Williams at the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts Bruno Walter Auditorium, 40 Lincoln Center Plaza at 6pm. Dance critic and author Jennifer Dunning talked with Williams about his career that spans almost six decades. Williams was frank, funny and informative, discussing a wide range of his experiences with some of the world’s most renowned choreographers.  Continue reading

10/11/24 O&A SHALL WE DANCE FRIDAY: The Fountain of Bakhchisarai Starring Galina Ulanova and Maya Plisetskaya

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The Fountain of Bakhchisarai (Russian: Бахчисарайский фонтан) is a Russian ballet inspired by the 1823 poem by Alexander Pushkin of the same title. With music by Boris Asafyev and choreography by Rostislav Zakharov, the ballet premiered in Saint Petersburg, (then Leningrad) in 1934 at the Kirov Academic Theatre of Opera and Ballet (now the Mariinsky Theatre). Continue reading

1/23/15 O&A Shall We Dance Friday: Maya Plisetskaya Dances Bolero (Choreography by Maurice Béjart) And The Dying Swan

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Maya Plisetskaya, Prima Ballerina Assoluta of the Bolshoi Ballet, danced Maurice Bejart’s Bolero set to the famous Ravel score in 1975. Plisetskaya created a stunning theatrical experience. What makes the piece so compelling is that although Plisetskaya may be accompanied by dozens of other dancers mirroring her movement, the first and only focus is on the prima ballerina herself.  Continue reading

1/17/15 O&A Its Saturday- Anything Goes: Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake 2004 Super Bowl XXXVIII Halftime Show

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Janet Jackson performed a medley of hits at the 2004 Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show. Jackson began with All for You, Rhythm Nation, and a brief excerpt of The Knowledge before surprise guest Timberlake appeared to perform a duet version of Justin Timberlake’s song Rock Your Body. The incident, sometimes referred to as Nipplegate was widely discussed, it also broke the record for Most Searched Event Over One Day. Continue reading

1/16/14 O&A Shall We Dance Friday: Lil Buck- Encore

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Charles “Lil Buck” Riley, was born May 25, 1988, in Chicago, while growing up in Memphis he was introduced to an urban street dance style called Memphis Jookin. In 2013 Buck just wrapped up a 9 month contract in the Cirque du Soleil show Michael Jackson: One, in Las Vegas. And in 2014, he presented his skills globally for the world to see. Continue reading

1/9/15 O&A Shall We Dance Friday: Black and Blue- The Musical

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Black and Blue is a musical revue celebrating the black culture of dance and music in Paris between World War I and World War II.  Choreographed by Henry LeTang, Cholly Atkins, Frankie Manning, and Fayard Nicholas the cast of forty-one singers, dancers, and musicians included Ruth Brown, Linda Hopkins, Carrie Smith, Savion Glover, Claude Williams, Roland Hanna, Grady Tate, Jimmy Slyde, Bill Easley, Jimmy “Preacher” Robins, Lon Chaney (the jazz tap dancer, not the actor) Bunny Briggs and  Dianne Walker. The Broadway production opened on January 26, 1989.  Continue reading

1/2/15 O&A Shall We Dance Friday: Storyboard P- An Urban Storyteller

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Storyboard P has pushed street dancing in a darker, more mature direction of urban storytelling he calls Mutant. The twenty-three year old Brooklyn dancer  combines jarring feats of contortion, pantomime, floating footwork and simulated levitation. His choreography, most of it improvised, has a wide range of influences: Jerome Robbins, especially his work in West Side Story; the Nicholas Brothers, whose acrobatic tap-dancing routines amazed Fred Astaire in the nineteen-forties; and, above all, Michael Jackson.  Continue reading

12/26/14 O&A Shall We Dance Friday: Alvin Ailey- Cry

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In 1971, Alvin Ailey created Cry, one of his signature dance works, as a birthday present for his mother Lula Elizabeth Ailey. Ailey dedicated the ballet to “all black women everywhere — especially our mothers.” The three-part ballet, set to popular and gospel music by Alice Coltrane, Laura Nyro and Chuck Griffin, depicts a woman’s journey through the agonies of slavery to an ecstatic state of grace. Cry premiered at New York City Center on May 4, 1971. Continue reading

12/19/14 O&A Shall We Dance Friday: Just Dance 2015 Bollywood Santa – XMas Tree

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Just Dance 2015 Bollywood Santa – Xmas Tree: The dance appears to take place on a frozen lake with snow covering the area around it. It also takes place during the night and elephants and elves appear. A huge snowy Christmas Tree also remains in the background throughout the routine. Continue reading