There are occasions as a dance lover when one's greatest pleasure comes not from the brilliance of the choreography or the splendour of the music, but from the sheer delight of watching highly trained dancers doing something that you could only dream of doing.
They're young, talented, athletic and - for the first time in almost 40 years - they're over here. About to make its UK debut at Glasgow's King's Theatre, Ailey II is the youth wing of the hugely popular Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.
Sometimes I wake up in my hotel room in the middle of the night and wonder if it's all a dream - the rare locations, the lights, and the crowds pleading for encores. Am I really a professional dancer? Indeed, I remind myself before rolling over to fall back asleep...I am a profesional dancer with Ailey II!
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater performed 39 times in December to enthusiastic packed houses at New York City Center, but there was a special quality to the cheering with which an equally large - but significantly younger - audience responded one Thursday morning during the season.
If you prefer to cut a more modern rug, you can try a free class at the Ailey Extension. It's Ticket-to-Dance program allows anyone with an Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater or Ailey II ticket stub purchased this season to participate in one of 80 classes offered at the Midtown Manhattan studio.
Although Alvin Ailey II might be considered the "junior" version of the prominent dance company, selected to showcase its younger, up-and-coming talent, don't let the name mislead you. The Ailey II company delivers a top-notch performance.
Ailey II composed of some of the country's best young dancers, will perform this week at the Folly Theater. Alvin Ailey, the founder of the Alvin Ailey Dance Company, always wanted a separate company to allow students of the Ailey School to get a taste of the professional dance world before they embarked on their own dance careers.
Usually when you’re watching second companies perform you anticipate small mess-ups: slips, nervousness, unclean pirouettes, lack of confidence. However, this was far from the truth with Ailey II at the Joyce Theater.
On the road and out of town for many months of the year, ABT II, Ailey II, and Taylor 2 perform a signal service for the arts by bringing live dance to cities and schools across the U.S.
Dance is a renewable resource, whose passions will never run dry. To sample this abundant energy, audiences need only visit the “1, 2, 3 Festival”, and greet the next generation of youngsters discovering an irrepressible urge to soar.