Research Paper On Alvin Ailey

Alvin Ailey is a great choreographer and a leading figure in Modern dance. Ailey’s best-known masterwork was Revelations, a work which tells the story of African American persistence to fight for freedom. Alvin Ailey is my role model and someone I want to grow up and be like. Even though I have never had a chance to meet him, through his work and his interview, I can feel the passion and a tremendous love he has for dance (Retro JC). He also founded the Alvin Ailey Dance Theater, which is located in New York City. Alvin Ailey started off from being extreme poverty in the segregated world of Texas to many achievements till he passed away at age 58 of a rare blood disease. Ailey was known for his modern dances Revelations; however, Alvin Ailey

He was raised by his mother, Lula. Lula was 17 years old when she gave birth, then her husband abandoned her six months later. As a child without a father, Alvin Ailey watched people dancing, such as church activities, to get through his loneliness and boredom, which later on became part of his success. To move forward, Ailey’s mother decided to move to California to seek more opportunities. Alvin Ailey then started to develop an interest in dance when his friend introduced him to the Hollywood studio of Lester Horton, a modern dance teacher and chorographer who was known for taking inspiration form American Indian dance and Japanese theater. This school was the first muti-racial dance school in the United States. It’s the major influence to Ailey to learn his solid dance foundation and a place he became a director after Horton passed

With the images of the barrelhouses and fields of Alvin Ailey’s southern childhood, Blue Suit tells the story of sorrow, which is about people who are not happy with their lives and where they live, but pretending to like it. Blue Suite derived from blue songs. Ailey created his own choreography because he wanted to find a technique that is different than Martha Graham, Doris Humphrey, and other significant choreographers. Therefore, Ailey mixed his previous training in modern dance, jazz, ballet, and African dance techniques together forming a dynamic and rich dance piece. Blue Suite contains Horton dance technique, early 20th century social dances, jazz dance of Jack Cole, and ballet partnering. The dance movements such as turning, jumping across large distances, muscle contraction and relaxation, and expressive hand movements all indicated the passion he has for dance. The Moreover, the way he staged the theater was proficient and beautiful that caught the eyes of audiences. The animal quality of movements in Blue Suite drew an instant success in Ailey’s