Leap and Awe

Also, check out the Paws to Listen podcast for a review of this performance.    

An internationally renowned group of dancers leapt onto the Russell Auditorium stage on Tuesday, April 15. With a packed house and exuberant crowd, Alvin Ailey II took the stage to perform modern choreography and its world masterpiece, “Revelations.”
    Twelve young dancers amazed the audience with their sheer enthusiasm for dance and their passion for conveying that to others. Yet, their visit to GCSU consisted of more than performing; it was also combined with community outreach programs.
     Alvin Ailey, one of the most internationally proclaimed modern dance ensembles in the world, was founded in 1958. Soon after the company’s growth, Alvin Ailey, the founder and artistic director, created Alvin Ailey II in 1974. The mission of Alvin Ailey II is to promote dance in the community, while sharing its creative vision and young talent with the world.
     Traveling to over 45 cities this year alone, Alvin Ailey II is driven to share its zeal for dance with society. While staying at GCSU, the company held a lecture and demonstration open to all students and faulty to exhibit the process of choreography for dancers and to allow audience members to interact with the Alvin Ailey II members. Select company members also offered master classes to dance minors and GCSU company members on April 14 and 15.
     Katie Perreault, a freshman athletic trainer major, took the master class offered by Alvin Ailey II on April 15.
     “The workshop was beneficial. It is always good to take classes from other dancers and companies. This was a way to see how they do everything. It is a good way to take a break from what you are used to as a dancer. It is sort of a new challenge,” says Perreault.
     The company member chosen to lead the master class on April 15 was Mr. Yannick Lebrun. Lebrun is from French Guiana, Brazil. He competed in dance competitions for eight years in French Guiana and France. Lebrun also received scholarships to such schools as Ecole Supérieure de Danse de Cannes Rosella Hightower. When he was young he discovered that Alvin Ailey was the company for him.
     “Alvin Ailey was always the one for me, because it corresponds with my personality and my style of dancing. I really loved the whole technique,” says Lebrun.
     Lebrun sincerely believes the community outreach programs are one of the most important assets the company has to offer.
     “For me the workshops are important, because it gives everyone the chance to have the Alvin Ailey experience. It’s good to come here and share a little of what we know to those who have never had the chance to take an Ailey course,” says Lebrun.
     Many of the GCSU dance minor students felt the same way. Chelsea Losh, a sophomore English major, commented on her experience with Alvin Ailey II.
     “I think it’s a good thing that Alvin Ailey II was brought to GCSU, because I am totally in love with the company. I never thought I would ever get the chance to dance with the Alvin Ailey dancers. Their company, blending ballet and modern, will exhibit a different form of dance that most people haven’t seen—hopefully opening people’s minds to variety of dance that is out there,” says Losh.
     Alvin Ailey II was brought to Milledgeville thanks to many sponsors. MetLife is the 2008 official tour sponsor, but a multitude of other organizations bear great responsibility for the company performing here. The residency was funded by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with the Southern Arts Federation. The Baldwin County Allied Arts and the GCSU Arts Unlimited Committee. As the packed out house proclaimed, the Alvin Ailey II performance was well appreciated.
     Along with the dance masterpiece, “Revelations,” known worldwide, Alvin Ailey II also performed three newer pieces. The first piece was “Celestial Landscape,” choreographed by Darrell Grand Moultie. A contemporary piece, the music was sharp and poignant, nicely offsetting the movements portrayed. “Takademe” was next, performed solely by Ephraim M. Sykes.  “Takademe” expressed the chaos of gibberish and the uncontrollable state of life. The third piece, “When Dawn Comes…,” was a beautiful dance made-up of duets and partnering expressing the renewal of life and the changes in relationships.
     Every dance Alvin Ailey II performed brought a new aspect to dance. Some fierce, some gentle, some emotionally agonizing—overall the show captured the essence of life for every human.
     Perreault sums up the importance of Alvin Ailey II’s visit by saying, “It is good that GCSU brings Alvin Ailey because as a dancer, I myself know about the dancing world, but there are those that do not and by them being here, it opens up the dance world to new opportunities of growth and recognition.”

Posted by Colonnade Archives on Apr 18 2008. Filed under Features. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry