Who Was Alvin Ailey, Jr?
Alvin Ailey, Jr was a dancer and a choreographer. He was born on January 5, 1931 and passed away on December 1, 1989. He was the founder of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. He was of African American decent and was best known for his modern dance moves. Many of his dance moved combined elements of Jazz and African rhythm. He had a very unique way of expressing the meaning of being African American through his dance. The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater was a famous dance studio that focused primarily on the African dance technique. It became well known by many because Alvin Ailey would take his dancers on tours which were usually funded by the US State Department. His dance took him to many places. In addition to dancing, he was also involved in directing a production. He directed; Langston Hughes’s Jericho-Jim Crow in 1964. He died of AIDS in 1989.
