The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater wrapped up its Teatro Real engagement on 18 October 2026, returning to the Madrid venue for the first time in 24 years. The final programme brought together four works, led by the celebrated Revelations. The company’s 30 members performed there from 14 to 18 October.
Alvin Ailey founded the company in New York in 1958, during the civil rights movement. He wanted to expand opportunities for African American performers and present modern American dance as a language that could cross racial and religious boundaries, regardless of nationality. The company later became a cultural ambassador for the United States.
Artistic director Alicia Graf Mack selected 10 works from a repertoire of nearly 300 for the Madrid engagement. The programme included historical works, with excerpts from Night Creature and Cry; A Song for You also appeared alongside Revelations. The company’s musical style draws on classical traditions and African American music, including gospel and jazz, with blues and spiritual music also in the mix.
The final programme featured four pieces. Blink on an Eye is set to music by Johann Sebastian Bach. Maurice Ravel’s music accompanies Song of the Anchorite, while Many Angels features the fourth movement of Mahler’s Symphony No. 5. A Case of You is performed to a song by John Mitchell, interpreted by Diana Krall.
Revelations anchors the programme. Ailey created the work in 1960, dedicating it to African American cultural heritage and the human pursuit of hope and liberation. It moves from individual expression towards a collective finale. Light and joy mark the closing scene; harmony and elegance shape its mood. The traditional music includes spirituals, among them Pilgrim of Sorrow and Take Me to the Water. The piece combines modern dance with ballet, while drawing on jazz.
Ailey also used Move, Members, Move in the piece. Described as the company’s best-known work, Revelations is also its most frequently performed. It remains in the touring repertoire and was part of the Madrid programme. Artistic director Alicia Graf Mack has described the work as being passed down from generation to generation.
Born in Texas in 1931, Ailey grew up amid poverty and racial segregation. He invited dancers from different backgrounds into his vision of modern dance and humanity, rooted in the idea that dance should be accessible to everyone. He died in New York in 1989, aged 58. His honours included the Kennedy Center Honor. He also received the Presidential Medal of Freedom posthumously in 2014 for his contributions to civil rights and dance.
Madrid’s dance calendar has also included a separate event at Teatros del Canal: a protest before Batsheva Dance performed Sadeh21.
