AILEY II: THE NEXT GENERATION OF DANCE is Coming to Westport Country Playhouse
The performance will take place on Thursday, September 24.
Westport Country Playhouse will present “Ailey II: The Next Generation of Dance,” on Thursday, September 24, at 7 p.m. Ailey II, the Second Company of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, is universally renowned for merging the spirit and energy of the country's best early-career dance talent with the passion and creative vision of today's most outstanding and emerging choreographers.
For the 2026-27 touring season, Ailey II welcomes back dancers Kamani Abu, Jada Ammons, Christian Butts, Adanna Smalls, and Eric J. Vidaña—along with seven new dancers: Julie Colotroc, Daijia Monaé, Vic E. Davis, Jaydin Javier De Jesús, Michelle Osanya, Jalyn Postadan, and Dominic A. Roberts.
Ailey II's repertory at Westport Country Playhouse includes Artistic Director Francesca Harper's In the Moment, a meditation on presence, transformation, and the profound impact of being truly seen; Ronald K. Brown and Arcell Cabuag's Open Door, an enlivening work set to recordings by Arturo O'Farrill & the Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra; and Alvin Ailey's Night Creature, a bubbly champagne cocktail of a dance, a perfect fusion of Mr. Ailey's buoyant choreography and Duke Ellington's sparkling music.
Founded in 1974 as a bridge between The Ailey School and the professional dance world, Ailey II embodies Alvin Ailey's pioneering mission to establish an extended cultural community that provides dance performances, training, and community programs for all people. Ailey II flourished into one of the most popular dance companies in the country under the leadership of Sylvia Waters from 1974–2012, combining a rigorous touring schedule with extensive community outreach programs. With artistic director Francesca Harper at the helm, Ailey II is forging a new path for modern dance—one that's inclusive, experimental, and transformative.
Photo Credit: Nir Arieli
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