by Linda Chin
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater is presented by the Celebrity Series of Boston. Robert Battle, Artistic Director. At the Boch Center Wang Theatre, Boston, through May 7, 2023.
Whether it’s your first-time seeing Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater (like my adult son), or the umpteenth (like my plus-two, Boston dance legend/educator-extraordinaire Adrienne T. Hawkins), or a dozen or so times like me, you will feel uplifted by the experience. Prepare to be astounded by the impeccably trained company members’ artistry and physicality, to be swept up in the emotions and energy that leaps off the stage. The carefully curated program we saw on opening night (the repertoire and dancers vary at each performance) blends music of a range of genres, new and old works (two world premieres and two pieces choreographed in the sixties), adding to its inter-generational appeal.
The opening number In a Sentimental Mood (2022), choreographed by Jamar Roberts, features music by Duke Ellington and Rafiq Bhatia (interspersed with the lovely song First Time Ever I Saw Your Face), simple costumes and décor (a chair, coat rack, hat, and coat), also by Jamar Roberts, further the storytelling, and mesmerizing performances by Ghrai DeVore-Stokes and Chalvar Monteiro. Duet, a piece choreographed by Ailey’s colleague Paul Taylor and first performed by Taylor’s dance company in 1964 (it made its Ailey premiere in 2022) to music by Josef Haydn, focuses on a couple’s physical forms. At different moments in the piece, their bodies intertwine, move in parallel, or are unified like a solid sculpture. The piece featured Patrick Coker and Belén Indhira Pereyra (who Hawkins excitedly noted was a Boston native).
The second world premiere of the evening, Are You in Your Feelings? (2022) includes an impressive playlist of R&B, soul, and hip-hop music by Erykah Badu, Drake, Lauryn Hill, Kendrick Lamar, and other contemporary composers. Choreographer Kyle Abraham has created combinations and formations that give 12 company members the opportunity to shine as individuals and a connected ensemble. With billowy costumes (designed by Karen Young) and brilliant lighting (designed by Dan Scully), the moment when the luminous dancers, glowing orbs suspended in the air, is literally one of the production’s high points.
Revelations, a montage of ten dances first performed in 1960, is Ailey’s signature work. The (full) Company, resplendently dressed in costumes for the period (Ves Harper), and radiant with Nichole Cernovitch’s lighting design, performs in the first and final three pieces, bookending six duos, trios, and a quartet. Audience favorites Wade in the Water (a trio) and the closing number Rocka My Soul in the Bosom of Abraham are rousing reminders of the power of live arts, community, and the human spirit. The audience rises to their feet in gratitude and awe. In every Alvin Ailey performance that I’ve had the privilege of seeing over the decades, the talent of the company members is a revelation. Whether you are in your feelings or not, they will assuredly rocka your soul. For tickets and information, go to: https://www.celebrityseries.org/
