Patrick Coker

WPIX11 - Ailey American Dance Theater closes landmark tour with performances at NJPAC

WPIX11 - Ailey American Dance Theater closes landmark tour with performances at NJPAC

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater returns to New Jersey Performing Arts Center for Mother’s Day weekend tradition. The company, a longtime favorite of tri‑state audiences, returns for its 27th engagement as NJPAC’s Principal Resident Affiliate. The performances feature new works by Maija García, Fredrick Earl Mosley, Matthew Neenan and Jamar Roberts, along with the company premiere of Medhi Walerski’s “Blink of an Eye.” Each program closes with Alvin Ailey’s acclaimed 1960 masterpiece “Revelations.”

The Virginian-Pilot - Virginia dancer who fulfilled dream of joining Alvin Ailey’s company to perform in Hampton Roads this week

The Virginian-Pilot - Virginia dancer who fulfilled dream of joining Alvin Ailey’s company to perform in Hampton Roads this week

Patrick Coker sat mesmerized in a cushy chair in an audience watching the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater perform. The 12-year- old saw a celebration of the human experience in those dancers’ movements. Struck by their beauty, he had never felt such awe. The feeling soon turned into longing and a revelation. He knew what he wanted for his future: to be an Alvin Ailey dancer on the stage, instead of in his seat. And although it took a little over 12 more years to achieve, Coker will perform in Hampton Roads this week as a member of Alvin Ailey.

San Francisco Chronicle - Review: Classic ‘Revelations’ Feeds The Soul As Alvin Ailey Company Returns To Cal Performances

San Francisco Chronicle - Review: Classic ‘Revelations’ Feeds The Soul As Alvin Ailey Company Returns To Cal Performances

Alvin Ailey’s “Revelations” is back in the flesh — and Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater is dancing it as rousingly as ever. If you’ve never seen “Revelations,” or haven’t gotten a dose in a few years, make haste to the Ailey company’s current run at UC Berkeley’s Cal Performances, where this eternal and indestructible 1960 classic is slated to cap every program (there are five of them) on offer through Sunday, April 3. And brace yourself; as one longtime fan was heard telling a newcomer on opening night Thursday, March 29, “You’re about to go to church.”