Ailey & Ellington Special Program

This program will showcase three of the 14 ballets founder Alvin Ailey created during his career that celebrate the musical genius of the eminent American composer Duke Ellington that have become cherished Ailey standards.

Pas de Duke (1976) “Such Sweet Thunder” Pas de Duke was Alvin Ailey’s modern dance translation of a classical pas de deux honoring two of the most renowned dancers in the world, Judith Jamison and Mikhail Baryshnikov and celebrating the musical genius of the late Duke Ellington (1899-1974). Last staged for Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater during the 2006-2007 season, it was originally presented as part of the festival “Ailey Celebrates Ellington” at Lincoln Center’s New York State Theater in 1976, commemorating the nation’s bicentennial with America’s two great art forms – modern dance and jazz music. The ballet is divided into five sections that capture the sassy sophistication of “The Duke’s” jazz music and the exuberance of the star dancers’ qualities and techniques as the male and female soloists mirror each other toe-to-toe and line-for-line in this playful, good-natured competition.

The breathtaking excerpt was filmed at the newly transformed Woolworth Tower Residences on top of the iconic national and New York City landmark Woolworth building with the New York skyline as a backdrop. A visually striking backdrop for the celebration of America’s two great art forms – modern dance and jazz music – The Woolworth Building is an architectural gem that was officially inaugurated on April 24, 1913, when President Woodrow Wilson flipped a switch in the White House to illuminate what was then the world’s tallest building.

“A test of physical endurance, the pas de deux still challenges performers with its unlikely Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater’s balance of glittering play and high-powered technical feats from ballet, jazz and modern Yannick Lebrun and Jacqueline Green performing Alvin Ailey’s Pas De Duke dance, all set to the soaring, pulsing music by Ailey’s beloved Duke Ellington.” at The Woolworth Building. The New York Times Photo Courtesy of Ailey.

“…one of those special dances that lives in new ways with each new set of performers.” The New York Times

Reflections in D (1962) Alvin Ailey originally created the strong yet serene solo Reflections in D for himself in 1962. The ballet is a stunning, masterful expression of Duke Ellington’s music, and has been performed over the years by some of the most formidable of Ailey dancers, including Consuelo Atlas, Judith Jamison and Dudley Williams. Though the ballet is only three minutes in length – it was originally choreographed as a transition piece to give other dancers time for costume changes – the technical and artistic demands of the

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater’s Vernard work are great. The current company of Ailey artists is well-suited to such a challenge. Gilmore in Alvin Ailey’s Reflections in D. Photo Courtesy of Ailey. “…Fierce elegance...” The New York Times

“An enthralling display of modern dance technique… a moving combination of plastic beauty and passionate expression.” The Sunday Times

“…Noble grace…” Dance Magazine Night Creature (1974) A bubbly champagne cocktail of a dance, Night Creature perfectly fuses Alvin Ailey’s buoyant choreography and Duke Ellington’s sparkling music in a definitive homage to The Duke’s jazz that remains one of Mr. Ailey’s most popular works. Ellington said, “night creatures, unlike stars, do not come OUT at night– they come ON, each thinking that, before the night is out, he or she will be the star.”

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in Alvin Ailey’s Night Creature. Photo by Paul Kolnik

“One of Mr. Ailey’s happiest works. It has a joyful pulse, a sophisticated entente with its sophisticated music that carries on the best of the Ellington tradition.” The New York Times

“This remains one of Ailey’s best curtain raisers, and the company throw themselves into its elf-like spirit with only rhythmic measure containing their dance abandon.” The New York Post

Duke Ellington Born in Washington, D.C. in 1899, composer, pianist and band-leader Duke Ellington was one of the most influential figures in the history of music. In the early 1930’s his band established its fame at the Cotton Club in New York City, with a sound Ellington called “American Music” rather than jazz. In his fifty year career, the “Duke” played over 20,000 performances in Europe, Latin America, the Middle East as well as Asia, and is best remembered for the over 3,000 songs that he composed before his death in 1974, including It Don’t Mean a Thing if It Ain’t Got That Swing, Sophisticated Lady, Mood Indigo, Solitude and Satin Doll. Ellington’s popular compositions set the bar for generations of jazz, pop, theatre and soundtrack composers to come. Duke Ellington, 1970. Photo by Stanley Dance.

Music Credit Information Pas de Duke Music: “Such Sweet Thunder” (1957) Composed by: Duke Ellington Used with the permission of Tempo Music, Inc., Mercer Ellington Publishing and G. Schirmer Inc.

Reflections in D Music: “Reflections in D” Composed by: Duke Ellington