Displaying items by tag: Alvin Ailey Dance Theater
New Leadership on Display at Alvin Ailey Dance Theater with Alicia Graf Mack
Sustaining legacy is no simple task, especially when considering the arts. How do you preserve continuity of spirit while simultaneously establishing artistic harmony with the past, present and future? Knowledge, skill and vision at the top are always critical. But there are other intangibles that ultimately determine long term success.
When Robert Battle unexpectedly announced he could no longer act as artistic director for Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in 2023 for health reasons, one of the most accomplished and revered dance companies in the United States began a search to fill a pair of epic shoes. Since its inception in 1958, nearly 70 years ago, the company has only had three artistic directors, Mr. Ailey himself, his designated successor and former principal Ailey dancer, Judith Jamison, and Mr. Battle whose initial association with the Ailey company was that of a guest choreographer. He’d go on to distinguish himself as a master in his field.
Late in 2024, Alvin Ailey Dance Theater chose Alicia Graf Mack, at the time director of the dance division at Juilliard, to become its fourth artistic director. She began her tenure as Ailey’s new artistic director in July last year.
Mack’s background and credentials are all exemplary and on their own portend a fruitful stewardship. Born in California and raised in Columbia Maryland, her parents, one Jewish the other African-American, were socially engaged academics who encouraged their children’s creative interests. Mack trained in ballet and by 17 was accepted into Dance Theater of Harlem where, at nearly 6’ tall and willowy, her height and grace contributed to building her celebrity. Consequential injuries necessitated that she quit dance, leading her to acquire a History degree at Columbia University.
After finishing Columbia, Mack returned to the Dance Theater of Harlem where the company’s financial difficulties made her homecoming brief. Applying to the American Ballet Theater and being rejected because of her height, she approached the Ailey company where she was not only accepted into the company, but she was also “embraced” in her totality.
Artistic Director Alicia Graf Mack. Photo by Andrew Eccles.
Her initial time with Ailey, from 2005 and 2008, allowed Mack to explore and hone other dance styles more deeply and to intellectually mature as a dancer. After leaving the company to obtain a degree in non-profit management at Washington University in St. Louis, she returned to Ailey in 2011 where she enjoyed notable success as one of its premier dancers until 2014. Mack then redirected her career and devoted it to education.
At a luncheon held in her honor at Chicago’s Auditorium Theater earlier this year, Mack talked about the people and experiences that led her from being an aspiring teenage dance professional to heading one of the world’s leading dance organizations. As she recounted her past, the emotional intelligence and natural humility she’s noted for were readily apparent. In her remarks, the new artistic director recognized the wealth of experience, knowledge and talent resident in the Ailey staff and stated she would be relying on those resources to help her fulfill her mission. She also credited the mentorship she received from dance titans, including Ms. Jamison, pioneering Black ballerina Lorraine Graves and the legendary Carmen de Lavallade. The advice and counsel they all shared will prove valuable assets for the future.
Just as she balanced the need to adapt to tomorrow while respecting heritage at Juilliard, Mack addressed doing much the same in her new role with Ailey. Not only is she mindful in honoring the “Ailey aesthetic”, but she also shared her interest in bringing in new choreographic voices to complement, expand and enhance the principles and values Mr. Ailey displayed in his work and that of the choreographers he admired.
Providing avenues for dancers to achieve fulfillment in their craft is also central to Mack’s mission. One she’s shown to advance through an ethos of affirmation.
As the climax to the Auditorium’s 2025-2026 Celebrating Women in Dance season later this month, the Alvin Ailey Dance Theater engagement at the theater is a welcome to Ms. Mack. The three-day run will see two programs performed. In addition to Alvin Ailey’s classic Revelations and an excerpt from Judith Jamison’s 2005 Reminiscin’, the remaining five dances are contemporary creations of pioneering luminaries in choreography. All five works saw their world premieres in 2025.
Guest’s New Andy Warhol Play A Study in Primo Theater
08 June 2026 in Theatre in ReviewWhen Terry Guest left Atlanta and arrived in Chicago ten years or so ago, a bracing reality check caused the…
Intimate and Unflinching: The Last Five Years at Oil Lamp Theater
07 June 2026 in Theatre in ReviewWhen Jason Robert Brown’s The Last Five Years premiered at Chicago’s Northlight Theatre in 2001, it flipped the traditional rom-com…
Chicago Shakespeare's Brokeback Mountain Soars
06 June 2026 in Theatre in ReviewSome stories refuse to fade with time, and Brokeback Mountain is one of them. What began as a modest short…
Poetry in Motion: Joffrey's Eugene Onegin enraptures at the Lyric Opera
05 June 2026 in Theatre in ReviewThere’s something magical about stories. Stories have the power to transcend time, reaching across the centuries to share their thoughts,…
Redtwist Theatre presents Anatomy of A Suicide August 12-30
04 June 2026 in Upcoming TheatreProduced in partnership with JunkHeart, The Metal Shop Performance Lab is proud to announce the cast and creative team for Anatomy of a Suicide, August…
Juneteenth Prelude: Celebrating Freedom and Black Expression, an evening of entertainment and community
04 June 2026 in Upcoming TheatreBlack Ensemble Theater Founder and Executive Director Jackie Taylor proudly announces Black Ensemble's Juneteenth Prelude: Celebrating Freedom and Black Expression, as part of…
4 Chairs Theatre's Good People coming to Theater Wit July 17th through August 23rd
03 June 2026 in Upcoming TheatreWelcome to Southie, a Boston neighborhood where a night on the town means a few rounds of bingo, this month’s…
REDTWIST THEATRE’S 21ST SEASON, “DEFIANT FEMMES,” CONTINUES WITH THE WORLD PREMIERE OF DESERTED JUNE 14 - AUGUST 2
03 June 2026 in Upcoming TheatreAward-winning Redtwist Theatre presents Deserted, playing June 14 through August 2, a world premiere by Melanie Coffey and directed by Laura Sturm*, at Redtwist Theatre, 1044 W. Bryn…
Black Ensemble Theater continues its 50th Anniversary Season with the revival of the hit musical revue Men of Soul
03 June 2026 in Upcoming TheatreBlack Ensemble Theater continues its 50th Anniversary Season with the return of the celebrated musical revue Men of Soul, written and directed by Artistic…
Collaboraction Theatre announces June shows and events in its new House of Belonging in Humboldt Park
03 June 2026 in Upcoming TheatreNow fully activated, Collaboraction Theatre Company’s new House of Belonging in the Kimball Arts Center, 1757 N. Kimball Ave in…
keerah - Lost Between Myth and Reality
03 June 2026 in Theatre in ReviewDefinition Theatre's Amplify New Play Program exists to elevate emerging voices, and Netta Walker's keerah certainly arrives with ambition. Loosely…
Metropolis Performing Arts Centre presents The Wizard of Oz July 8th through August 9th
03 June 2026 in Upcoming TheatreMetropolis Performing Arts Centre, located in the heart of downtown Arlington Heights, 111 W. Campbell St., is proud to announce the cast…
No Dogs in the Kitchen Theatre Company Presents 'The Importance of Being Earnest' July 9-26
01 June 2026 in Upcoming TheatreNo Dogs in the Kitchen Theatre is thrilled to continue its third season with The Importance of Being Earnest, written by…
Kokandy Productions Presents SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE - August 13 – November 1, 2026 at The Chopin Theatre
01 June 2026 in Upcoming TheatreFollowing is critically acclaimed productions of Sweeney Todd and Into the Woods, Kokandy Productions once again celebrates the great Stephen…
'The Last Word' - A Cocktail of Comedy, Mystery, and Heart
01 June 2026 in Theatre in ReviewSome theatrical experiences ask you to sit back and watch. "The Last Word" invites you to pull up a chair,…
Paramount’s smash hit, immersive Million Dollar Quartet returning to rock Aurora’s Stolp Island Theatre, March 4-May 31
30 May 2026 in Upcoming TheatreParamount Theatre’s smash hit, immersive musical Million Dollar Quartet wrapped its spring run at downtown Aurora’s Stolp Island Theatre this…
The Second City's Laughing For All The Wrong Reasons - Paramount's Copley Theatre - Through June 20th
28 May 2026 in Now PlayingParamount Theatre is proud to host the world’s most influential name in comedy, The Second City, back for for a…
Award-winning musical Mexodus makes Chicago premiere at Studebaker Theater in November
28 May 2026 in Upcoming TheatreStudebaker Theater (Erica Berger and Jacob Harvey), P3 Productions (Ben Holtzman, Sammy Lopez, and Fiona Howe Rudin) and Audible, in collaboration with Teatro Vista…
About Face Theatre announces 2026-2027 season
28 May 2026 in Upcoming TheatreAbout Face Theatre is proud to announce its 32nd season featuring the Pulitzer Prize winning musical A Strange Loop and the Midwest Premiere of i…
Announcing the 2026 Broadway In Chicago Summer Concert
27 May 2026 in Upcoming TheatreBroadway In Chicago will bring its free annual SUMMER CONCERT to Millennium Park on Monday, August 10, 2026. Sponsored by…
YI Love Jewish and Arts Judaica Chicago Premiere of A PEOPLE at Theater Wit June 18 – July 5
27 May 2026 in Upcoming TheatreThe South Florida based YI Love Jewish and Chicago-based Arts Judaica proudly join forces to present a limited engagement of the Chicago…
HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH Coming to Chicago July 9th
27 May 2026 in Upcoming TheatreJK Entertainment is proud to announce the final production of their inaugural season: HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH, the cult-classic created…
Porchlight Announces Felicia P. Fields and Anthony Rapp join its Artistic Advisory Board
27 May 2026 in Theatre BuzzAward-winning Porchlight Music Theatre announces today that the recent stars of Porchlight in Concert’s production of Follies, Tony Award-nominee Felicia P. Fields and Broadway’s…
Kokandy Productions Presents HAIR - July 2 – September 13, 2026 at The Chopin Theatre
27 May 2026 in Upcoming TheatreHot off their record-breaking, award-winning runs of Jekyll & Hyde and Amélie, Kokandy Productions is pleased to launch its 2026 Season with the revolutionary "love-rock"…
Babes With Blades presents the world premiere premiere of yo ho., July 19 - August 29
27 May 2026 in Upcoming TheatreBabes With Blades Theatre Company’s (BWBTC) 2026 season opens with a world premiere, yo ho., by playwright SMJ, directed by JD Caudill and fight choreography by Carly…
PrideArts to present BEHIND THE CURTAIN: UNTOLD STORIES FROM CANADA’S TEAM BROADWAY on Monday, July 6th
27 May 2026 in Upcoming TheatrePrideArts announced today that Craig Ramsay and Catherine Wreford will bring the magic of Broadway to the Hoover-Leppen Theatre at…
Music Theater Works presents WEST SIDE STORY, August 13 - 30
24 May 2026 in Upcoming TheatreMusic Theater Works is proud to announce the cast and creative team for the second production of its 2026 season, West Side…
Whammy, Indeed: Koechner’s Stand‑Up Evolves at The Den
24 May 2026 in Theatre in ReviewDavid Koechner stormed into The Den Theatre’s Mainstage this weekend with the kind of unruly, big‑hearted presence that instantly reminded…
League of Chicago Theatres welcomes the summer theatre season
22 May 2026 in Upcoming TheatreChicago continues to produce some of the most exciting work in the country this Summer, offering a wide variety of plays…
Spaceman: Into the Quiet Terror of the Void
22 May 2026 in Theatre in ReviewSpaceman, presented by [producingbody], touches down at The Edge Off-Broadway with a quiet, unnerving force, pulling audiences into the fragile…
Latest Articles
-
Guest’s New Andy Warhol Play A Study in Primo Theater
Written by Mitchell OldhamWhen Terry Guest left Atlanta and arrived in Chicago ten years or so ago, a bracing reality check caused the young actor to make a bold pivot. Three years of auditions and zero bites on the acting front, he turned… -
Intimate and Unflinching: The Last Five Years at Oil Lamp Theater
Written by Angelo CamposWhen Jason Robert Brown’s The Last Five Years premiered at Chicago’s Northlight Theatre in 2001, it flipped the traditional rom-com musical blueprint on its head. Off came the rose-colored glasses, and what was presented was an intimate, searing, and structurally… -
Chicago Shakespeare's Brokeback Mountain Soars
Written by Wesley DavidSome stories refuse to fade with time, and Brokeback Mountain is one of them. What began as a modest short story by Annie Proulx in The New Yorker in 1997 grew into an award-winning literary work, an acclaimed film, and… -
Poetry in Motion: Joffrey's Eugene Onegin enraptures at the Lyric Opera
Written by Kendall RoyzenThere’s something magical about stories. Stories have the power to transcend time, reaching across the centuries to share their thoughts, ideas, and emotions. Tales of heartbreak, anguish, squandered youth, and missed chances written in the 1800s have a way of…
Does your theatre company want to connect with Buzz Center Stage or would you like to reach out and say "hello"? Message us through facebook or shoot us an email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
*This disclaimer informs readers that the views, thoughts, and opinions expressed in the text belong solely to the author, and not necessarily to Buzz Center Stage. Buzz Center Stage is a non-profit, volunteer-based platform that enables, and encourages, staff members to post their own honest thoughts on a particular production.