Dance Theatre of Harlem (DTH) recently hosted its annual Vision Gala at New York City Center and the Ziegfeld Ballroom. This year’s gala honored Ford Foundation President Darren Walker with the Arthur Mitchell Vision Award, presented by filmmaker and producer Ava DuVernay.
The evening celebrated Mr. Walker’s extraordinary contributions to the arts and social justice. Ava delivered a powerful speech, celebrating Darren as a true champion of the arts, creatives, and the underrepresented. “Darren has always seen the beauty in the bold, the precision in the daring, the grace in the fight,” she said.
Related: Dance Theatre of Harlem Brings Joy to City Center, April 10-13
The gala also featured a powerhouse lineup of honorary chairs, including dance and film legend Ben Vereen, TV host and legal analyst Sunny Hostin, art curator and academic Isolde Brielmaier, actress Bianca Lawson, acclaimed visual artist Mickalene Thomas, and trailblazing model and activist Bethann Hardison. Notable guests included Law Roach, Misty Copeland, Brandon Blackwood, Bevy Smith, Alicia Graf Mack, Thelma Golden and more.
Alicia Graf Mack, Robert Garland, Misty Copeland, Anna Glass Credit: (Jason Crowley BFA photos) 
Ava DuVernay at the Dance Theatre of Harlem Vision Gala Credit: (Jason Crowley BFA photos) 
(L-R): Martino Moore, Sharon Madison, Janice Vickers, Tangela Richter, Leslie Wims Morris, Anna Glass, Darren Walker, Charles DeSantis, Isabel Kallman, Bonita Stewart, Terri Prettyman Bowles, Trey Muldrow Credit: (Jason Crowley BFA photos) 
(L-R): Alicia Graf Mack, Robert Garland, Misty Copeland Credit: (Jason Crowley BFA photos) 
(L-R): Mickalene Thomas, Isolde Brielmaier Credit: (Jason Crowley BFA photos)
Guests enjoyed performances by the Dance Theatre of Harlem company, including a special presentation of We Are All Brown – Commemorating Brown v. Board of Education with an oration by Janai Nelson, President and Director-Counsel of the Legal Defense Fund. The evening concluded with dinner and dancing at the iconic Ziegfeld Ballroom, with entertainment by DJ D-Nice and Kenny Burns.
The night was electric —- and the joy hit new heights when Executive Director Anna Glass and Kenny Burns revealed that the $1.3 million goal wasn’t just met, it was smashed with an additional $132,000 raised in the room.