at Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater’s 2013 opening night gala in New York City.
NEW YORK, NY – Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater’s 2013-14 New York season kicked off with an Opening Night Gala benefit on Wednesday, December 4th at New York City Center, raising over 2.4 million dollars for the creation of new works and Alvin Ailey’s extensive educational programs for young people, including AileyCamp and scholarships to The Ailey School.
Hosted by honorary chair Gabrielle Union, the gala was attended by prominent figures in the worlds of entertainment, business, philanthropy and politics.
The curtain went up with an exhilarating company premiere of Wayne McGregor’s Chroma, a ballet filled with layered beautiful dancing, astonishing lifts and a luminous set. The Ailey company premiere, made possible with generous support of New York City Center, marks the first time a work by this multi award-winning British choreographer appears in the Ailey repertory. The gala performance concluded with Alvin Ailey’s timeless masterpiece Revelations, which was accompanied by live music.
The celebration continued at the gala after party in the Hilton New York’s Grand Ballroom with Ailey’s Board of Trustees led by Chair Joan Weill and President Daria L. Wallach with 1,000 guests including models Joan Smalls and Carolyn Murphy, actor Taye Diggs, BET Chairman and CEO Debra L. Lee, chef Marcus Samuelsson, actor/singer Tristan “Mack Wilds,” opera star Jessye Norman, Elaine Wynn of Wynn Resorts, David & Karen Peetz, Delores Browne, Ebonie & Rossi Thurman,Steven & Daryl Roth, Ailey Artistic Director Emerita Judith Jamison and many more who joined in dinner and dancing with the stars of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.
