For nearly 70 years, the famed Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater has been showcasing Black talent and culture through dance. The troupe, which features Afro Latino talent and dance elements, is bringing its robust program to L.A. this week. Founder Alvin Ailey’s technical approach to dance combined modern dance, ballet and jazz — among other dance forms — in an attempt to blur the traditional boundaries of the dance world.
Sebastian Garcia is celebrating his first season as a member of the world-renowned Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. When the company returns to Philadelphia this weekend, audiences will see Garcia stepping onto a stage that feels like familiar ground. The Bronx native — who once trained at Philadelphia’s Rock School for Dance Education under the direction of Bo and Stephanie Spassoff — began his formal training at the Harlem School of the Arts and continued at the ABT Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School. His dedication to the craft also led to him receiving the En Avant Award, which allowed him to work with choreographers including Jessica Lang and Alexei Ratmansky. Previously, Garcia has danced for the Black Iris Project and has worked on Broadway projects with the Lyric Opera of Chicago and at Carnegie Hall. Now, as he takes on two key roles in 'Revelations', as well as world premieres of new works 'Difference Between' and 'Jazz Island,' Garcia’s return to Philadelphia marks a new chapter — and a bold new era under Artistic Director Alicia Graf Mack — with the influential dance company.
The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater’s holiday season is underway at New York City Center through Jan. 4. This season marks more than just another year of the artistic phenomenon that uses dance as a catalyst for spiritual and cultural expression. It also marks the dawn of a new chapter under the guidance of Artistic Director Alicia Graf Mack, whose inaugural season embraces both the company’s foundational Black roots and its evolving commitment to diversity, now including the Afro-Latino diaspora.
