Whitney Museum and Ailey Host a Free Dance Class in Gansevoort Plaza July 23

AILEY’s Revelations Celebration Dance Workshop. Photo by Rosalie O’Connor

The Whitney Museum of American Art and AILEY are partnering with the Meatpacking District Management Association (Meatpacking BID) for a special free outdoor dance class to celebrate Edges of Ailey, an exhibition opening at the Whitney Museum this fall. On Tuesday, July 23, from 5:30–6:30 pm, dancers of all ages and abilities can get in the groove in Gansevoort Plaza with Ailey Extension instructor and famed former Ailey Company member Linda Celeste Sims. Learn excerpts from Alvin Ailey’s timeless signature masterpiece Revelations and enjoy special giveaways. Registration is not required to participate.

Tickets for Edges of Ailey, a once-in-a-lifetime exhibition celebrating art, dance, history, and music through the lens of Alvin Ailey, go on sale July 23 and are available at whitney.org/tickets.

Edges of Ailey, opening September 25 at the Whitney, is the first large-scale museum exhibition to celebrate the life, creativity, influence, and enduring legacy of visionary artist and choreographer Alvin Ailey. This interdisciplinary showcase brings together art, history, live performance, and music to capture the full range of Ailey’s passions, curiosities, obsessions, and creative output in a museum context for the first time. From his early years as a dancer and choreographer in Hollywood and on Broadway to the formation of his world-renowned, multi-faceted organization, Ailey enriched the field of dance and shared the Black cultural experience through performances, training, classes, and community programs, making him one of the most culturally and historically impactful artistic figures in the United States and around the world.

Event Details

AILEY Revelations Dance Celebration with the Whitney
Tuesday, July 23, 2024
5:30–6:30 pm

Join the Whitney Museum and AILEY in partnership with the Meatpacking BID for a free outdoor dance class to celebrate Edges of Ailey, an exhibition opening at the Whitney Museum this fall. Led by Ailey Extension instructor and famed former Ailey Company member Linda Celeste Sims, participants will learn excerpts from Alvin Ailey’s timeless signature masterpiece Revelations.

Since its premiere in 1960, Revelations has been a lasting cultural treasure beloved by people from around the world. This enduring classic was born out of the choreographer’s “blood memories” of his childhood in rural Texas and the Baptist Church. Revelations has been performed continuously around the globe, transcending barriers of faith and nationality, and appealing to universal emotions, making it one of the most recognized ballets in the world.

Participants will learn excerpts of choreography from Revelations in Gansevoort Plaza in celebration of the moment when tickets go on sale for the Whitney exhibition Edges of Ailey. All ages and all levels are welcome. This event is free. Registration is not required.

Location: Gansevoort Plaza (38 Gansevoort St, New York, NY 10014)
Event Link: whitney.org/events/ailey-dance-class-july-2024

Edges of Ailey Exhibition and Performance Tickets
Starting Tuesday, July 23, visitors can purchase timed tickets for the in-gallery exhibition Edges of Ailey, on view September 25, 2024–February 9, 2025. Member previews run from September 19–23. More ticketing information is available on whitney.org. Performance tickets for Edges of Ailey will be available starting September 8. Performance tickets include same day access to the exhibition and will be available on whitney.org. Theater space is limited.

ABOUT THE WHITNEY

The Whitney Museum of American Art, founded in 1930 by the artist and philanthropist Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney (1875–1942), houses the foremost collection of American art from the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. Mrs. Whitney, an early and ardent supporter of modern American art, nurtured groundbreaking artists when audiences were still largely preoccupied with the Old Masters. From her vision arose the Whitney Museum of American Art, which has been championing the most innovative art of the United States for ninety years. The core of the Whitney’s mission is to collect, preserve, interpret, and exhibit American art of our time and serve a wide variety of audiences in celebration of the complexity and diversity of art and culture in the United States. Through this mission and a steadfast commitment to artists, the Whitney has long been a powerful force in support of modern and contemporary art and continues to help define what is innovative and influential in American art today.

Whitney Museum Land Acknowledgment
The Whitney is located in Lenapehoking, the ancestral homeland of the Lenape. The name Manhattan comes from their word Mannahatta, meaning “island of many hills.” The Museum’s current site is close to land that was a Lenape fishing and planting site called Sapponckanikan (“tobacco field”). The Whitney acknowledges the displacement of this region’s original inhabitants and the Lenape diaspora that exists today.

As a museum of American art in a city with vital and diverse communities of Indigenous people, the Whitney recognizes the historical exclusion of Indigenous artists from its collection and program. The Museum is committed to addressing these erasures and honoring the perspectives of Indigenous artists and communities as we work for a more equitable future. To read more about the Museum’s Land Acknowledgment, visit the Museum’s website.

ABOUT AILEY

Founded by Alvin Ailey in 1958 and forged during a pivotal moment in the civil rights movement, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater uplifts the African American experience while transcending boundaries of race, faith, and nationality with its universal humanity. Recognized as a vital “American Cultural Ambassador to the World,” it is one of the most acclaimed dance companies worldwide having performed in more than seventy countries on six continents. The AILEY organization also includes Ailey II (1974), a second performing company of emerging young dancers and innovative choreographers; The Ailey School (1969), one of the most extensive dance training programs in the world; Ailey Arts In Education & Community Programs (1992), which brings dance into a wide range of classrooms and communities of all ages, and lives of people of all ages; and Ailey Extension (2005), offering dance and fitness classes to the general public, which began with the opening of AILEY’s permanent home in New York City—The Joan Weill Center for Dance—the nation’s largest building dedicated to dance. For more information, visit alvinailey.org.

ABOUT THE MEATPACKING DISTRICT

The Meatpacking District is a neighborhood like no other: a fusion of grit and glam, where old New York meets the frenetic pace of the 21st Century. It has a magnetic appeal. The Meatpacking District Management Association is a business improvement District (BID). It serves the businesses, residents, and visitors of the area with a common goal: to program, promote, and take care of the Meatpacking District. There is a broad community that makes the District distinct. The BID organizes community events and entertainment. It is the partner with the City to maintain and keep clean over 30,000 square feet of plazas and four Open Streets. The teams are on the ground seven days a week sweeping the sidewalks and engaging with visitors. The work, at its core, is to ensure that businesses succeed and the characters who work, live, and play here enjoy it and are happy to return. For more information, please visit meatpacking-district.com.

VISITOR INFORMATION

The Whitney Museum of American Art is located at 99 Gansevoort Street between Washington and West Streets, New York City. Public hours are Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday, 10:30 am–6 pm; Friday, 10:30 am–10 pm; and Saturday and Sunday, 10:30 am–6 pm. Closed Tuesday. Visitors eighteen years and under and Whitney members: FREE. The Museum offers FREE admission and special programming for visitors of all ages every Friday evening from 5–10 pm and on the second Sunday of every month.