It was a rather cold, but busy December 9th night in Manhattan. My fingers felt frostbitten and my nose was running. The only thing that kept my body working was the extreme excitement I had to watch Alvin Ailey perform at City Center. Once I entered New York City Center, which seemed like a grand palace, my fingers regained warmth and my excitement grew by the minute. Simply waiting to watch Alvin Ailey’s Anointed, The Prodigal Prince, and Revelations was a performance in itself, as the ticket room had a man play simple, but melodious songs on a small xylophone. As I entered the concert hall, I was in admiration at the beauty around me. What interested me the most as I reached my orchestra seat was the phrase “ Salamu Alaykum “ engraved right above the stage, an Arabic phrase that can be meant to say hello, which gave me a nice welcomed feeling. After a few minutes, the lights darkened and Anointed began to start.
Christopher L. Huggins’ Anointed begins with Linda Celeste Sims and Jamar Roberts, whom represent Alvin Ailey and Judith Jamison and the history of the Alvin Ailey Dance Company. The first portion of Anointed, Passing, has Judith Jamison repeat the phrase “He asked me, and I said sure”, which was Ms. Jamison recalling how Mr. Ailey asked her to succeed him as the director of Alvin Ailey and her agreement, and it also reflects how Robert Battle will succeed her in January. The grace and emotion that came from both Sims and Roberts were powerful while the movements were executed wonderfully. In the second portion, Sally Forth, four other women join Sims. I enjoyed the switching between anger and happiness on Sims’ face as she danced, giving her both aspects of ferocity and gentleness while she danced. The music in Sally Forth is the sound of African drums and I enjoyed how all the women, especially Sims, were in beat to the drums using their arms and legs. Another dancer I would like to note is Ghrai DeVore, for her unique look onstage. She also had ferocity in her looks and dancing and I thought she was unique in the fact that she was the only dancer onstage with a visible tattoo, which was of an Ankh. The third portion of Anointed, 52 and Counting, which refers to the growing age of the Alvin Ailey Dance Company, has the women joined by men and the partner dancing was executed perfectly here as well. I believe that Anointed does well in its mission to tell the history of the Alvin Ailey Dance Company.
During the intermission, I spoke with my peers about the seating arrangement. Sitting right in front of the stage obscured some moments of the dance, yet it was a sight to see as well, as one can see beads of sweat roll down the dancers face and hear them groan when they lifted their partners, which was amazing to me as it made them human and not entirely perfect beings. As the intermission ended, I sat in my seat awaiting The Prodigal Prince.
Geoffrey Holder’s The Prodigal Prince tells the story of Hector Hyppolite, played by Kirven James Boyd. The Prodigal Prince tells of Hyppolite’s visions of the Voudoun goddess Erzulie, St. John the Baptist and The Mambo, played by Briana Reed, Clifton Brown and Renee Robinson respectively. Robinson and Brown’s dancing were very sensual to the point that it caused a little discomfort among my peers. What I enjoyed about The Prodigal Prince was the Spirit, played by Michael Francis McBride, who added a little humor to the overall seriousness of the dance. The were many dancers onstage and different types of dancing that it was, to an extent, distracting, as one did not know what exactly to focus on, which really takes away from the wonderful dancing and story.
After the second intermission came Ailey’s magnum opus, Revelations. Revelations is split into three parts with the first being Pilgrim of Sorrow. The movements in this portion were slow and soft, reminiscent of the lack of freedom African slaves had centuries ago. The next section was entitled Take Me to the Water and it has a young couple being baptized in blue and white sheets, representing a river where most baptisms took place while Mr. Ailey grew up. The young couple, played by Matthew Rushing and Rachel McLaren moved as if they were water, demonstrating the amazing skills of dance they contain in their body. Move, Members, Move was my personal favorite out of the entire show; they really were saving the best for last. Sinner Man and Rocka My Soul in the Bosom of Abraham had a lot of energy which touched the crowd positively, as the entire audience began to clap along to the music and felt like moving to the music. Rocka My Soul was so enjoyable that they danced it again even after the company took their bows.
Revelations proved to be one of Alvin Ailey’s, the company and the legend, greatest dances. Unlike my peer Anthony, I do not believe that audiences in the future will believe that this timeless classic will be too old fashioned to perform or be enjoyed; it is the old fashioned style of the choreography that gives Revelations its charm and greatness. Revelations will continue to be performed as it is for the next 50 years that Alvin Ailey performs. It is the entire performance, Anointed, The Prodigal Prince, and Revelations, really had inspired me to go back and take up dancing again, as I used to dance when I was younger but quit due to school. Alvin Ailey’s dances and dancers are an inspiration to all; it is definitely a performance you must see if you are in New York.
