In 1972, Alvin Ailey created the elegiac solo Love Songs for dancer Dudley Williams. The sixteen minute solo, composed in three sections includes A Song for You by Donny Hathaway; Poppies by Nina Simone; and He Ain’t Heavy, He’s my Brother by Donny Hathaway. Many thought of the work as the male equivalent of the female solo Cry (1971). Continue reading
Category: Entertainment
5/17/23 O&A NYC WILDIN OUT WEDNESDAY: Jay Pharoah’s Best Impression- Shannon Sharpe, 50 Cent, Will Smith, Kevin Hart and more!

Jay Pharoah demonstrates his comic genius in this copulation of some of his best impressions including Shannon Sharpe, 50 Cent, Will Smith, Kevin Hart and more.
Continue reading
5/17/23 O&A NYC WaleStylez DANCE PARTY: Lil Buck & LoJoWerkz Tulsa Race Riot Memorial -T21 Preview (2014)
Lil Buck teams up with LoJoWerkz to launch their T21 Project. This is an excerpt of a performance commemorating Black Wall Street and the Tragedy of the Tulsa Race Riot of 1921, performed on the anniversary of the Riot (May 31st) on the historic grounds where the events took place.
Continue reading
5/14/23 O&A NYC GOSPEL SUNDAY: Shirley Caesar – Everyday is like Mothers Day
4/22/23 O&A NYC FILM REVIEW: An American Ballet Story- The Harkness Ballet
By Walter Rutledge
An American Ballet Story is the long-awaited documentary about the rise and fall of the Harkness Ballet. The company and school had an almost mythical two-decade impact on dance and helped changed the artform forever. The 94-minute documentary, which was seven years in the making, tells the unvarnished story of the now defunct and largely forgotten Harkness Ballet of New York. Continue reading
4/18/23 O&A NYC GOING BACK TO AFRICA WITH WaleStylez: Story Time With Kody- The Fisherman and The Princess Fish (Nigerian Folktale)
Story Time With Kody’s Nigerian folktale, The Fisherman and The Princess Fish, is the captivating story of Ebiakpor and the Princess Fish. Continue reading
4/15/23 O&A NYC SHALL WE DANCE FRIDAY: Lawrence Rhodes- Beginning of the Harkness Ballet
Larry Rhodes discusses the events leading to the formation of the Harkness Ballet in an excerpt from the upcoming documentary An American Ballet Story. The story about the all too short life of the Harkness Ballet, will have its New York live screening premiere on April 20th at the New York Public Library Performing Arts – Bruno Walter Auditorium. O&A NYC Magazine Editor-in-Chief Walter Rutledge will moderate the post screening Q and A. Continue reading
4/10/23 HOLLYWOOD MONDAY: Ruby Dee- Harriet Tubman and The Underground Railroad (1964) |
The excellent Ruby Dee plays the escaped slave Harriet Tubman and her attempts to rescue enslaved family members and friends through the pre-Civil War Underground Railroad. aka “Go Down Moses.” With Brock Peters, Ossie Davis, Isabel Cooley and Ethel Waters. Continue reading
4/9/23 O&A NYC DANCE REVIEW: A.I.M. By Kyle Abraham
By Walter Rutledge
A.I.M. By Kyle Abraham presented their New York season from April 4th through April 9th at the Joyce Theater. The well curated program presented five works by three choreographers including three world premieres. All the works, which ranged from dance theatre/storytelling to pure dance, fit the A.I.M. By Abraham aesthetic surprisingly well, this successfully produced a visual cohesive, but uneven evening of dance. Continue reading
4/7/23 O&A NYC SHALL WE DANCE FRIDAY: Ballet For Life: Harkness Ballet- Finis Jhung
In the dance film autobiography Ballet For Life: Harkness Ballet former dance and acclaimed teacher Finis Jhung reminisces about his years with the Harkness Ballet where he reached the pinnacle in his career and discovered Buddhism, which dramatically changed the course of his life. Continue reading
















