Celebrate Mother’s Day at AILEY as we honor Judith Jamison on what would’ve been her 83rd birthday and is now recognized as Judith Jamison Day in New York City.
Led by Ailey instructor and former Ailey dancer Linda Celeste Sims, participants will learn choreography from one of Judith Jamison’s most iconic roles in Alvin Ailey’s ballet Cry as well as excerpts from Ms. Jamison’s choreographic work Divining.
Alvin Ailey choreographed Cry as a birthday present for his mother and dedicated it "to all Black women everywhere—especially our mothers." In the three-part solo, the dancer, clad in a white leotard and long ruffled skirt, brings the audience on a journey of bitter sorrow, brutal hardship, and ecstatic joy. Divining was Judith Jamison's first choreographic success and displays the musical sophistication and complexity of movement that marked her as a promising dancemaker.
This workshop is open to dancers of all levels over the age of 13.