The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater (AAADT) tops this month’s calendar on its return to BAM for the first time since 2010.
Alvin Ailey made his debut on the BAM stage as a dancer in 1956. In 1969, the company began a residency at BAM and then established the Ailey School in Brooklyn. For the momentous return, planned programs include: “Program A: Brooklyn Bond,” just in time for AAADT artistic director emerita Judith Jamison’s 80th birthday, Ronald K. Brown’s “Dancing Spirit”; Twyla Tharp’s “Roy’s Joys”; and Kyle Abraham’s “Are You in Your Feelings?”
Program B: All Ailey will present “Night Creature” (1975), Cry (1971), “Survivors” (1986) by Alvin Ailey and Mary Barnett, and Ailey’s signature work “Revelations” (1960). Robert Battle has been the artistic director since 2011. Performances will run from June 6–11 at BAM’s Opera House. For more information, visit https://www.bam.org/alvin-ailey-american-dance-theater?gad=1&gclid=CjwKCAjwvdajBhBEEiwAeMh1U5NivIKjhi7dFOfWzN7ZPSNTAb42hkmF6Bi1JgFFv-OSDGJwUEFVJhoCUTgQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds.
ALSO THIS MONTH:
June 2–19: Kaatsbaan Cultural Park will present their Spring Festival over three weekends, featuring dance, live music, film screenings, and more, both outdoor and indoor. For more information, visit https://ci.ovationtix.com/36035.
June 3–24: The Jamaica Dance Festival, featuring performances by Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company, Rajarillo Pinta’O Dance, Asase Yaa African American Dance Theater, Obremski/Works, and more, returns to Rufus King Park. For more information, visit https://thejamaicadancefestival.com/.
June 4–11: Yanira Castro will be at the Chocolate Factory with the world premiere of “I came here to weep”: “a performance and collective exorcism co-created with the public…that examines U.S. territorial possession through the redaction, deconstruction and performance of absurdist colonial texts,” according to the release. For more information, visit https://chocolatefactorytheater.org/yanira-castro-2023/.
June 7: For the first time, Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Company will perform in Times Square with “/Time: Study III.” For more information, visit https://newyorklivearts.org/event/time-square-perfomance/.
RELATED: Ailey II exudes joy of being young, gifted and Black
June 8–16: The Contemporary Dance series at Bryant Park, curated by Tiffany Rea-Fisher, will include Robin Dunn and other artists celebrating hip-hop’s 50th anniversary (Jun. 8), Dance Heginbotham (Jun. 9),Tarek Lewis + Kayla Farrish (June 15), and Soles of Duende + Josh Johnson (Jun .16). For more information, visit https://bryantpark.org/activities/picnic-performances.
June 8–10: At the Chelsea Factory, Yue Yin will premiere “NOWHERE,” which “challenges us to embrace feelings of uncertainty and to explore new possibilities and new directions,” notes the release. For more information, visit https://www.chelseafactory.org/yydc-nowhere.
June 9–12: (In person & virtual) The 92nd Street Y Harkness Dance Center closes their dance series with Maleek Washington and collaborators Waverly Fredericks, SaQuoiia Santiago, and Babou Sanneh in “Shades 2.0 D.A.P Diamonds of Principal.” For more information, visit https://www.92ny.org/event/maleek-washington/.
June 9–30: The “OUT LIKE THAT” Festival at BAAD! begins with Antonio Ramos & The Gangbangers (June 3–10) and follows with Pepatián Presents Dancing Futures: Meet the Artists 2023 (June 15), plus Richard Rivera and PHYSUAL (June 30–July 1). For more information, visit http://www.baadbronx.org/home.html/.
June 9–25: Sydnie L. Mosley Dances’ “PURPLE: A Ritual in Nine Spells,” an evening-length choreopoem inspired by the late playwright, poet, and feminist Ntozake Shange, will be presented at the Clark Studio Theater as part of Lincoln Center’s Summer for the City series. For more information, visit http://lincolncenter.org/series/summer-for-the-city/sydnie-l-mosley-dancesandrsquo-purple-a-ritual-in-nine-spells-435?utm_source=wordfly&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=SFTC23Announcement&utm_content=version_A&uid=217057&sourceNumber=51623.
June 9–10: Hilary Brown-Istrefi, the 2023 Resident Artist at the Trisk, will present “Horses full of steam,” which promises to deconstruct and reimagine visual and topical elements from the almost-forgotten 1932 ballet-symphony. For more information, visit https://www.triskelionarts.org/hilary-brown-istrefi-2023.
June 10: nora chipaumire’s five-hour epic, “Nehanda,” “a juridical opera, taking up questions of jurisprudence in defense of the native freedom fighters murdered by the British South Africa Company (BSAC) on behalf of the British Empire and Queen Victoria in 1898,” according to the release, is part of Lincoln Center’s Summer for the City series. For more information, visit https://www.lincolncenter.org/series/summer-for-the-city/nehanda-242.
June 10: Danspace Project will offer the inaugural Center for Dialogue and Exchange in the Arts (CDEA), a creative incubator experimenting at the intersection of artistic practice and expansive thinking. The event is organized and hosted by 2021–2023 Danspace Project Artist Research Fellows devynn emory, Okwui Okpokwasili, Samita Sinha, and David Thomson. For more information, visit https://danspaceproject.org/calendar/spring2023-cdea/.
June 11: At the Abrons Arts Center, the 37th annual Performance Mix Festival brings together 30 experimental dance and film artists, including Raúl Tamez, LayeRhythm, and more. For more information, visit https://ci.ovationtix.com/209/production/1155289.
June 13–18: At the Joyce Theater, Flamenco Vivo Carlota Santa will present “El Cuadragésimo” (“The Fortieth”), celebrates the company’s 40th anniversary and flamenco with original company works and the return of flamenco stars. For more information, visit https://www.joyce.org/performances/flamenco-vivo-carlota-santana.
June 15–17: Gibney presents the premiere of Johnnie Cruiser Mercer’s “The Decade from Hell,” “a devised movement theater work and a live-studio audience recording…,” according to the release. For more information, visit https://gibney.my.salesforce-sites.com/ticket/#/events/a0S8W00000e9nuaUAA.
June 16–17: Kyle Abraham pairs choreographers and composers in “Planting Connections,” which includes Jordan Demetrius Lloyd, Marla Phelan, Kayla Farrish, Vinson Fraley, Anthony R. Green, Shelley Washington, Crystal Monee Hall, and Li Yilei for two evenings of new works as part of Lincoln Center’s Summer for the City series. For more information, visit https://www.lincolncenter.org/series/summer-for-the-city/planting-connections-curated-by-kyle-abraham-704.
June 16–17: New York Live Arts’ signature residency program “Fresh Tracks” returns for its 58th year to present new work from emerging artists Kristel Baldoz, Malcolm X Betts, Miguel Alejandro Castillo, Jade Charon, and Orlando Hernández. For more information, visit https://newyorklivearts.org/event/fresh-tracks22-new-works/.
June 17–18 & 29–30: Thelma Hill Performing Arts Center will present their 47th season with two musical genres: gospel and funk, “The Gospel According to THPAC” at the Central Baptist Church of NYC and “So Very Sly” at the Mark O’Donnell Theater. For more information, visit https://www.thelmahill.org/events.
June 21: (In person & virtual) “I wanna be with you everywhere”, organized by Arika, Amalle Dublon, Jerron Herman, Carolyn Lazard, Park McArthur, Alice Sheppard, and Constantina Zavitsanon, a gathering of, by, and for disabled artists, returns to Performance Space and your space. For more information, visit https://performancespacenewyork.org/shows/i-wanna-be-with-you-everywhere-2023/.June 23–24: WHITE WAVE Dance presents the annual four-day DUMBO Dance Festival of contemporary dance by emerging and established dance makers at the Mark Morris Dance Center. The late choreographer Jennifer Muller and the current director of programming at the Joyce, Danni Gee, will be honored. For more information, visit https://www.whitewavedance.org/.