6/5/16 O&A NYC IN MEMORARIUM: Remembering Loretta Abbott

maxresdefault-1

Loretta Abbott was one of three former Ailey dancers in On The Block (After Bearden). The work is a story ballet set on a Harlem neighborhood from the 1950’s through the present day. Loretta, Dudley Williams and Hope Clark shared their exstensive character development expertise with the cast. I gained the artistic respect and friendship of Loretta and Dudley, which lasted throughout the balance of their lives.  Continue reading

6/5/16 O&A NYC IN MEMORARIUM: Remembering Loretta Abbott

 

maxresdefault-1

Loretta Abbott was one of three former Ailey principle dancers to perform in the On The Block (After Bearden). The work is a story ballet set on a Harlem neighborhood from the 1950’s through the present day. Loretta, Dudley Williams and Hope Clark shared their exstensive character development expertise with the cast. And I gained the artistic respect and friendship of Loretta and Dudley, which lasted throughout the balance of their lives.  Continue reading

(REPOST) 4/12/16 O&A NYC DANCE- Celebrating the 90th Anniversary Season Of The Martha Graham Dance Company- Clive Thompson The Graham Years

By Walter Rutledge

graham Jack Mitchell 001 copy

The life of a bank clerk at the Government Savings Bank in Kingston, Jamaica was not going be Clive Thompson’s fate; he had been a performer for most of his life. Clive and his sister Norma had been childhood favorites in the local talent shows and were part of the “opening act” in Children’s Corner Club at the Saturday matinees. After seeing the Katherine Dunham Dance Company perform and a chance encounter with modern dance teacher Ivy Baxter he began formal dance classes. Continue reading

5/26/23 O&A NYC SHALL WE DANCE FRIDAY: Dudley Williams- Alvin Ailey’s Love Songs

Shall We Dance

d90704264383da96da61f51bc870f967In 1972, Alvin Ailey created the elegiac solo Love Songs for dancer Dudley Williams. The  sixteen minute solo, composed in three sections includes A Song for You by Donny Hathaway; Poppies by Nina Simone; and He Ain’t Heavy, He’s my Brother by Donny Hathaway. Many  thought of the work as the male equivalent of the female solo Cry (1971). Continue reading

12/3/15 O&A NYC DANCE: Linda Celeste Sims- Pure Light

By Walter Rutledge

Ailey_Headshots_LCSims

Outstanding performers have always been the hallmark of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. Dancers that consistently test the technical and artistic boundaries of modern dance remain a fundamental part of founder Alvin Ailey’s continuing legacy. Artists Carmen DeLavalallade, Dudley Williams, Judith Jamison, Miguel Godreau, Linda Kent, Sara Yarborough, Sarita Allen, Gary deLoatch, Desmond Richardson, and Renee Robinson all possessed an innate ability beyond technique, a God given gift that unfortunately cannot be taught. When the stage lights hit these special individuals it is refracted into dazing, flawless, pure light that pulls you in… moth to flame. Celeste Linda Sims is pure light. Continue reading

9/27/15 O&A NYC Dance : From The Horse’s Mouth- Celebrating New York’s Clark Center for the Performing Arts

By Walter Rutledge

0953791a-d86b-4eed-97b7-0a5ab44d41a4

Clark Center NYC will present a week of dance and related activities Monday September 28 through Friday October 2 at City College Center for the Arts, Aaron Davis Hall. The event is part of the “rebirth” of the Clark Center for the Performing Arts; the venerable New York City dance institution that closed 26 years ago. The new Clark Center NYC returns as a virtual dance center instead of a brick and mortar facility. Its mission is to not just honor past accomplishments but to offer opportunities to the next generation of dancers and dance makers. Continue reading

8/21/15 O&A NYC Shall We Dance Friday- REVIEW: Earl Mosley’s Diversity of Dance presented Hearts of Men Celebrates Dudley Williams

By Walter Rutledge

Dudley Williams

Earl Mosley’s Hearts of Men Celebrates Dudley Williams August 10 and 11 at the Manhattan Movement Arts Center. The evening was a testosterone charged tribute to modern dance’s Lyric Crown Prince- Dudley Williams. Mosley presented fourteen works and vignettes. The large cast was predominantly male with the right “dash “of female performers, similar to the wisp of vermouth in William’s trademark classic dry Bombay Blue Sapphire Martini.

IMG_0235

Mosley’s mission in many ways echoes the Black Live Matters movement. He has chosen to empower young people by developing artists of color. This noble undertaking included both neophytes and professional dancers and choreographers; the combination produced an evening rich in aesthetic integrity and artistry, and was a fitting tribute to the legacy of Dudley Williams.

Dyane Harvey- Salaam opened the evening by sharing her memories of Williams.  Eleo Pomare (Williams high school friend) introduced the two. Harvey-Salaam and Pomare had a long-standing relationship; he was one of her mentors, and she his muse. Harvey ended with the audience calling Dudley Williams’ name multiple times in a chant to honor his memory.  

Throughout the evening there were works that encapsulated the essence of Williams, an artist whose technical prowess was only superseded by his stage presence. It was his ability to touch an audience, and communicate with a single perfectly phrased gesture that allowed him to perform until months before his passing at age 76.

IMG_8070

Germaul Barnes’ solo I Was Young Once conveyed a thoughtful yet bittersweet elegy to Williams. Using a montage of music for the soundtrack with the focal point consisting of edited excerpts from his 2014 Clark Center conversation with Jennifer Dunning. Barnes’ well-crafted work referenced signatures images from Williams’ performance repertoire including I Want To Be Ready (Ailey/Revelations) A Song For You (Ailey) Toccata (Talley Beatty) and Horton and Graham shapes from movement studies. Shawn Hawkins performed with great sensitivity and a sense of imbued reverence.  

Audrey Lynch choreographed and performed Soul Space. The solo also used dialog and ambient music to tell a story of love and friendship. In this work Lynch narrated, and his soothing voice provided a gentle and profound accompaniment. The work used a strong upper body gestural vocabulary, which had an unabashed honesty and completeness. His presence and deportment was so strong he almost did not need the occasional (and well executed) extension, turn and jump Lynch sprinkled throughout the choreography.

2

Jamal/Darius, a duet choreographed by Mosley and performed by Jamal Story and Darius Crenshaw was a true delight. The two seemed to awake from a peaceful sleep and then perform a loving “good morning” dance. The work possessed a subtle sophistication, it was intimate as opposed to sexual. This was not an encounter, but a relationship. The duet was void of the expected angst and overt sexuality, instead these two accomplished artists communicated affection and mutual respect. This quality transcended gender and evoked the words of Nat King Cole “Just to love and be love in return”.

Joshua Beamish’s solo Adoration for Martha Graham Dance Company Principal dancer Lloyd Knight was art in motion. Set to Haydn’s Concerto in C Major for Cello and Orchestra the choreography seemed to emanate from the performer, fitting him like a tailor-made Savile Row suit. We never saw the choreography, we only saw the message expressed through the performer’s body. It was also refreshing to see Knight perform without his Graham armor; we got a chance to experience the versatility of this truly gifted artist. 

The group works featured the young performers of Diversity of Dance with additional guest artists. These works ranged from vignettes, which expressed simple ideas and movement themes, to complete textural choreographic statements. Many of the works had strong Hip-Hop and vernacular dance influences. These works brought freshness to the performance and received immediate approval from the audience.

15

The most memorable ensemble work was Mosley’s Breaths set to a score by Eddie James. Clifton Brown (former Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater (AAADT) principal dancer) and Matthew Rushing (Former Ailey principle and presently AAADT guest artist and rehearsal director) lead a cast of 18 dancers. Brown technical prowess and crystalline attack did not disappoint. Rushing, the central figure, performed in the role originated by Dudley Williams.

The male ensemble danced with a unified spiritual verve. And Rushing, a consummate artist, seemed to channel the late Williams. His performance was not an imitation rather an homage; honoring Williams in his own voice. Throughout, Mosley’s abstract narrative displayed strong choreographic structure and originality.

The concert was a celebration of the male dancer, and featured a bevy of young men honing their craft. Three standouts were Randall Riley, Isaiah Harvey and Daniel Moore. Riley’s physical appearance and height made him impossible not to notice, but his physicality made him a pleasure to observe. Isaiah Harvey’s clean line and technical proficiency was well-balanced by his on-stage intensity. And Moore’s assured and committed execution allowed his movement intent to immediately communicate to the audience. 

In addition to the strong male presence there were also female performers who distinguished themselves. Imani Johnson has a powerful earth women quality that was equally effective in the Hip Hop material and the West African based movement. Aqura Lacey provides the perfect juxtaposition with her effervescent demeanor that charmed the audience without ever becoming overt.

Fana2014_690x389 2

Fana Tesfagiorgis is in her own stratosphere. Tesfagiorgis possesses that rare on-stage quality I describe as pure light. In Homer’s Iliad it is the quality that made King Menelaus launch his armada to retrieve Helen of Troy. She has an innate ability to make you want to watch her, even when she is doing nothing. This quality cannot be learned- it is a birthright, a gift from God.

The performance proceeds went to establish the Dudley Williams Scholarship Fund for student of the Hearts of Men and Manhattan Youth Ballet. This is a fitting tribute to Williams, passing on the gift of dance to the next generation of movers. If you had ever met Dudley Williams you soon realized he was a humble servant of dance.

Williams lived most of his life dancing, teaching and sharing his gift with anyone with an appetite for learning. A genuinely good and gentle soul Williams would have been proud of this celebration in his honor. And I am sure he is still dancing somewhere above the clouds.

Hearts of Men will hold a Summer Dance Intensive August 23 through September 6 as part of The Ailey Extension. The workshop is open to the public. For more information visit EMIAdance.org or email info@EMIAdance.org. 

In Photo: 1) Dudley Williams 2)Earl Mosley’s Diversity of Dance 3) Shawn Hawkins 4) Darius Crenshaw and Jamal Story 5)Cameron Evans and Randall Riley 6) Fana Tesfagiorgis 

Photo by: 2-5) Saya Hishikawa 6) Andrew Eccles

6/5/15 O&A Shall We Dance- A Tribute To Dudley Williams: A Song For You (1986)

Shall We Dance d90704264383da96da61f51bc870f967

In 1972, Alvin Ailey created the elegiac solo Love Songs for dancer Dudley Williams. The  sixteen minute solo, composed in three sections includes A Song for You by Donny Hathaway; Poppies by Nina Simone; and He Ain’t Heavy, He’s my Brother by Donny Hathaway. Many  thought of the work as the male equivalent of the female solo Cry (1971). Continue reading

6/3/15 O&A: A Conversation With Dudley Williams- Three Black Kings and more (2011)

10000002

Three Black Kings was the last dance and music collaboration between choreographer Alvin Ailey and composer/musician Duke Ellington. The work premiered during the 1976 Ailey season with a cast that included Elbert Watson as King Balthazar, Clive Thompson as King Solomon and Dudley Williams as Martin Luther King Jr. King was a close friend of Ellington and his widow Coretta Scott King attended the première. In this 2011 interview Dudley discusses his role and Ailey’s choreographic process. Continue reading

6/2/15 O&A NYC Magazine: Dance Legend Dudley Williams Has Passed

DudleyWilliams-690_0

The dance world mourns the loss of its Lyric Prince; Dudley Williams has passed. The details are still unfolding; but more important than the circumstances surrounding his death, is how he inspired everyone who ever met him through his giving, humble spirit. Over the last twelve years Dudley became a colleague, friend, and confidante. We shared an appreciation for many things, two that were always paramount: dance that could reach beyond the footlights and touched your soul, and a very dry martini. Continue reading