Press Coverage

April 23, 2019

New York Magazine "The Cut" - In Her Shoes: The Dance Director Who Loves A Bright Suit

As the director of Alvin Ailey’s public dance and fitness center, Ailey Extension, Lisa Johnson-Willingham is literally on the move, constantly. On any given day she could be teaching a master class to students, taking a dance class herself, meeting with clients about potential partnerships, or all of the above. Add to that two teenage children, and Johnson- Willingham has a packed schedule that takes her from parent-teacher conferences to red-carpet appearances. To ensure she’s always appropriately dressed, her desk doesn’t just house extra shoes, but also workout clothes and the occasional camisole for after-hours events.

April 14, 2019

The New York Times - Special Sunday Insert: Uplift!

By Zadie Smith. When I was about 12, the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater came to town and my mother took me to see them. It was a trip for just us two, and I was a little reluctant, suspecting some species of racial uplift, which I felt I could receive far more easily by staying in my room, listening to Movie Love and watching Cameo's "Word Up" video on repeat. I was suspicious of racial uplift in general. The way it always seemed to point in the same direction, toward the supposed "higher" arts: the theater but not the television, opera singers but not beatboxers, ballet dancers but not body-poppers. No Jamaican mother ever ran into a kid's bedroom, waving a cassette, crying: "Have you heard 'Push It'? It's by some brilliant young ladies from New York!" Yet I couldn't imagine anything on the legitimate stage meaning as much to me as Salt-N-Pepa's bump and grind.

April 8, 2019

W 42 St - Let's Dance!

Remember the first half of Footloose? Where dance isn't allowed and no one does it? That's where I live. I don't want to dance with somebody and my hips do, in fact, lie. That being said, this month someone hit fast forward on my movie and I found myself at the warehouse dance party aka Ailey Dance Extension. With more than 90 weekly classes, I was quite overwhelmed with my choices. I started with salsa.

April 3, 2019

Spectrum News Los Angeles - The Beat On 1: Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater Comes To Los Angeles

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater’s Rehearsal Director and Guest Artist Matthew Rushing discusses his ties to the Los Angeles area, how he started dancing and the programming for Ailey’s engagement at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion April 3-7.

April 1, 2019

Modern Luxury DC - On The Scene: Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater's 20th Annual DC Opening Night Gala Benefit

There were not one, but two anniversaries to toast when the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater sashayed into the District. Case in point: The 20th annual DC opening night gala also celebrated the company's diamond jubilee. And what a soiree it was.

March 25, 2019

Dance Magazine - We Tried It: Afro Flow Yoga - Connecting With The Indian And African Gods Through Dance

Afro Flow Yoga is a body-and-soul awakening. Created by dancer-yogini Leslie Salmon-Jones and multi-instrumentalist Jeff Jones, the dance form melds yoga with West African diasporic dance.

March 21, 2019

NOLA.com - Dancer Who Left New Orleans At 13 Finally Gets To Perform In His Hometown -- With Alvin Ailey

On Saturday evening (March 23), the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater will dance a dance about circles. It's a dance about time, and evolution, and what changes and, of course, what stays the same. It's about destiny and journeys and how fate makes all of those things flop on top of each other in a precise but messy Venn diagram. As the lead dancer in "EN," New Orleans-born Michael Jackson, Jr. will be performing right in the center.

March 17, 2019

NPR - Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater Debuts 'Lazarus' To Celebrate 60th Anniversary

After dance pioneer Alvin Ailey died in 1989, the future of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater was uncertain. It's difficult to keep a dance company profitable after its founder is long gone - many have tried and failed. But 30 years later, the group is thriving, and decided to celebrate its 60th anniversary and founder by commissioning a new work titled Lazarus.

March 12, 2019

Dance Spirit - Meet The Ailey Dancer Who Takes Stunning Photos Of Her Coworkers

Danica Paulos, who's now in her fifth season with the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, moves with captivating grace and power onstage. And when she's not wowing in-person audiences, the multitalented artist is mesmerizing Ailey's online followers: A gifted photographer, she regularly posts beautiful images of her coworkers to the @alvinailey Instagram page, which she's run for the past two years. We caught up with Paulos to talk about her diverse interests— and find out how she's helped shape AAADT's digital presence.

March 10, 2019

The New York Times - Sunday Routine: Spiritual Reset for This Brooklyn Nets Host

Miami-raised and Fordham-educated, Ally Love is the in-area host of the Brooklyn Nets, an Adidas global ambassador, a Peloton instructor, an Alvin Ailey-trained dancer, a certified health coach and the founder of Love Squad, a company that empowers young women through panel discussions and group workouts.