"Alicia Graf Mack's office is filled with ghosts, the benevolent kind. She sits at an industrial metal desk once occupied by Alvin Ailey, the late dancer and choreographer who founded the dance company that bears his name in 1958. In a corner stands a chaise lounge that belonged to the late Judith Jamison, the group's longtime principal dancer who succeeded Ailey as artistic director."
"Graf Mack, who took over that prized role in July, calls them Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater's "founding angels." Her most immediate predecessor was Robert Battle, who stepped down in 2023 after 12 years. It is their vision, one "grounded in bravery, grounded in strength, courage and grounded in our stories" that Graf Mack says she seeks to carry forward as the company kicks off its first season under her leadership."
Alicia Graf Mack occupies Alvin Ailey's former metal desk and Judith Jamison's chaise lounge, invoking the company's founding legacy. She names those items the company's "founding angels." Robert Battle stepped down in 2023 after 12 years, and Graf Mack assumed the artistic director role in July. Graf Mack served twice as a principal dancer with the company (2005–2008 and 2011–2014), earned a master's degree in nonprofit management, and later worked in education. The upcoming season, beginning Dec. 3, features five world premieres, including Maija Garcia's Jazz Island, and presents works by Fredrick Earl Mosley, Matthew Neenan, Jamar Roberts, and others.
Read at www.npr.org
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