Mary Lou Williams News

New Orleans Ballet Association (NOBA) presents the return of the iconic Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater (AAADT) for two main stage performances on March 22 and 23 at 8 p.m. at the Mahalia Jackson Theater.

Acclaimed Jazz harpist-pianist-vocalist Corky Hale will present a 102nd Birthday Show honoring Billie Holiday on Thursday, April 6, at 7:30 PM, at the Catalina Jazz Club in Hollywood. Hale is one of the few people still performing who was actually a close friend of Holiday's, playing for her on the 'Stars of Jazz' TV show, and on several recordings and live appearances, and was the only female pianist to regularly accompany her.

The Cleveland Orchestra and Music Director Franz Welser-M st announced details of their 2019-2020 season which encompasses 76 concerts over 26 weeks. One significant highlight includes a festival designed to explore music and art that was banned, marginalized, and destroyed during the Nazi's Degenerate Art movement, and the continuing impact of censorship on creative expression in society today. The festival will center on Alban Berg's Lulu, one of the 20th century's most influential operas, and includes partner programming with the area's notable arts institutions.

Principal Guest Conductor David Charles Abell returns to his hometown of Philadelphia for Cole Porter's Broadway: Too Darn Hot, the explosive penultimate performance of The Philly POPS 40th Anniversary Season, April 12-14 at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts. 

Segerstrom Center for the Arts welcomes the Center debut of Grammy Award-winning vocalist Catherine Russell for two performances on March 23, 2019 at 7:00pm and 9:00pm. Her repertoire features a selection of gems from the 1920s through the Present; vital interpretations, bursting with soul and humor. With an off-the-beaten-path song selection, sparkling acoustic swing, and a stunning vocal approach, Catherine Russell has joined the ranks of the greatest interpreters and performers of American Popular Song.

Brooklyn Music School (BMS) presents the 6th Annual Middle School Jazz Festival today, March 2, 2019 from 12pm to 6:30pm, with a concert at 4:30pm, followed by a jam session with students, faculty, and guest artist. BMS is located at 126 Saint Felix Street, Brooklyn. Concert tickets are a $10 suggested donation.

When Ellen Rowe was a young girl growing up in Ridgefield, Connecticut, there weren't many women making jazz music.   Through her success as a world-renowned jazz pianist, composer and pedagogue, she's spent the better part of the last 35 years trying to change that.  

The Music Center welcomes one of America's most popular dance companies, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, back to Los Angeles with the dance company's 60th anniversary celebration tour at The Music Center's Dorothy Chandler Pavilion from April 3 - 7, 2019. Led by Artistic Director Robert Battle, Ailey's remarkable dancers including Danica Paulos of Huntington Beach and Rehearsal Director and Guest Artist Matthew Rushing of Los Angeles, who has been with the Company for more than 25 years will perform four different programs of diverse repertory featuring West Coast premieres, new productions and returning classics. Part of the 2018/2019 season of Glorya Kaufman Presents Dance at The Music Center, which is curated by The Music Center's artistic division The Music Center Arts (TMC Arts), the engagement includes four special programs: Trailblazers, featuring the West Coast premiere of Lazarus by Rennie Harris the company's first two-act ballet; Bold Visions, featuring West Coast premiere of Wayne McGregor's Kairos and the Los Angeles premiere of The Call by Ronald K. Brown, alongside Jawole Willa Jo Zollar's Shelter; a Timeless Ailey program with rarely seen gems by one of America's greatest cultural leaders; and a Musical Inspirations program featuring the Los Angeles premiere of Ailey star Jamar Roberts' Members Don't Get Weary, a new production of Robert Battle's Juba, and his tour-de-force duet Ella.

Brooklyn Music School (BMS) presents the 6th Annual Middle School Jazz Festival on Saturday, March 2, 2019 from 12pm to 6:30pm, with a concert at 4:30pm, followed by a jam session with students, faculty, and guest artist. BMS is located at 126 Saint Felix Street, Brooklyn. Concert tickets are a $10 suggested donation.

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater returns to Chicago March 6-10, commemorating the company's 60th anniversary and the 50th anniversary of its first performances at the Auditorium, its Chicago home. During these special engagements, Ailey gives Midwest premieres to Rennie Harris' Lazarus, the company's first ever two-act ballet; Wayne McGregor's Kairos; and Jessica Lang's EN. The company also performs the Timeless Ailey program, a curated selection of classic pieces by company founder and visionary Alvin Ailey.

The Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, along with Resident Company support, celebrates Black History Month this February with an array of programming honoring African American artistic expression and culture.

The groundbreaking Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater returns to the Kennedy Center for its annual engagement with seven performances on the Opera House stage from February 5 10. Celebrating its 60th Anniversary season, the company has had a long-standing impact on modern dance and uniqueness in promoting the African American cultural experience. Led by Artistic Director Robert Battle, the company's performances include Lazarus, the newest work by choreographer Rennie Harris co-commissioned by the Kennedy Center and premiered to acclaim during the company's recent New York season; three D.C. debuts; one new production; and a special Timeless Ailey classics program. Alvin Ailey's American masterpiece Revelations will be performed as the finale for all seven programs.

Ronald K. Brown's joyous mix of modern and African dance-seen previously in Grace, Open Door, and other works-fits the Ailey dancers perfectly, and his themes of spiritual awakening and redemption never fail to inspire.

The Auditorium Theatre announces programming for Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater's return to Chicago March 6-10, commemorating the company's 60th anniversary and the 50th anniversary of its first performances at the Auditorium, its Chicago home. During these special engagements, Ailey gives Midwest premieres to its first ever two-act ballet, Rennie Harris' Lazarus; Wayne McGregor's Kairos; and Jessica Lang's EN. The company also performs the Timeless Ailey program, a curated selection of classic pieces by company founder and visionary Alvin Ailey.

Last night, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater's 60th Anniversary holiday season at New York City Center kicked off with a star-studded Opening Night Gala Benefit performance and party led by Artistic Director Robert Battle, with iconic film stars Angela Bassett and Cicely Tyson as honorary chairs. Prudential Financial received the Ailey Legacy Honor for their generous support and commitment to Ailey, especially its education and community programs. The award was presented by Battle and Christopher Taylor, an alumnus of the inaugural AileyCamp Newark (2011) and a current scholarship student at The Ailey School, and accepted by Lata Reddy, Senior Vice President of Diversity, Inclusion and Impact at Prudential Financial.

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, New York City Center's Principal Dance Company, returns to the theater's stage from November 28 - December 30, 2018 for a milestone season. During the Company's Ailey Ascending 60th Anniversary celebration, Artistic Director Robert Battle leads Ailey's 32 extraordinary dancers during this five-week holiday engagement that will elevate a legacy of excellence in artistry with premieres by some of today's most revered and prolific choreographers, including world premieres by Rennie Harris and Ronald K. Brown; a company premiere by Wayne McGregor; a new production of by Robert Battle; the return of a recent premiere by Jessica Lang, and special performances of rarely seen works by Alvin Ailey himself.

Refusing to end their 2017/2018 season, Delaware Theatre Company reprises their hit production Maurice Hines is Tappin' Thru Life. Happy to be performing for Wilmington audiences again, tap dancing legend Maurice Hines will wow audiences for one weekend only, Friday, June 1 to Sunday, June 3, 2018.

Acclaimed Jazz harpist-pianist-vocalist Corky Hale will present a 103rd Birthday Show honoring Billie Holiday on Sunday, April 8 at the Catalina Jazz Club in Hollywood.  Hale is one of the few people still performing who was actually a close friend of Holiday's, playing for her on the 'Stars of Jazz' TV show, and on several recordings and live appearances, and this will be her fourth annual birthday salute to the singer.

The Highlights In Jazz 46th Season continues Thursday, March 22, 2018, at 8 P.M., when The Millennials Meet The Masters.

National Endowment for the Arts Chairman Jane Chu has approved more than $25 million in grants as part of the NEA's first major funding announcement for fiscal year 2018. Included in this announcement is an Art Works grant of $35,000 to the Monterey Jazz Festival in support of the Monterey Jazz Festival's 2018 Commission Piece, to be composed and performed by Oscar Hernandez and the Spanish Harlem Orchestra.