The wind whipped down 56th Street outside New York City Center in Midtown Manhattan on Wednesday night, but on a red carpet inside the venue, dancers, actors and designers showed skin in strapless leather gowns, one-shoulder jumpsuits and suit jackets worn over bare chests.
It was the opening night gala for the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater’s 67th anniversary season, the first under its new artistic director, Alicia Graf Mack.
“My young daughter and I watch dance videos on TikTok,” Ms. Mack said. “But there’s such a joyful energy to seeing it live.”
The gala was chaired by Ciara, the Grammy-winning R&B singer, and the actor Colman Domingo, who was unable to attend. It honored Daria L. Wallach, the chairman of the Alvin Ailey Dance Foundation’s board of trustees, and drew about 675 guests, including the “Dance Moms” star Holly Hatcher-Frazier, the actress Phylicia Rashad, and the “Orange is the New Black” actress Lorraine Toussaint.
The event, which raised more than $2.7 million for the company, began with Medhi Walerski’s “Blink of an Eye,” a dance performance set to music by Melissa White, a Grammy Award-winning violinist. That was followed by a new production of Judith Jamison’s sensual duet “A Case of You,” which was accompanied by a live rendition of the Joni Mitchell song of the same name, sung by Samara Joy, a five-time Grammy-winning jazz artist.
After an intermission, dancers performed Alvin Ailey’s best-known work, “Revelations,” a 36-minute exploration of grief and joy, featuring spirituals, gospel songs and blues sung by a live choir.
The performances were followed by dinner — citrus carrot salad and pan-seared filet mignon — and dancing at the Ziegfeld Ballroom.
As the clock crept toward midnight, Madonna’s “Like a Prayer” played on the speakers and the ballroom floor, surrounded by blazing candelabras, swelled with professional and amateur dancers.
Sarah Bahr writes about culture and style for The Times.
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