Auditorium Theatre 2021-2022, Issue 3, Alvin Ailey

AUDITORIUM THEATRE :: ALVIN AILEY | 17 1998, and then worked as Senior Director of Development and External Affairs from 2007 to 2012. In his tenure overseeing Ailey’s development, Mr. Rink led a $75 million capital campaign supporting Ailey’s first permanent home, The Joan Weill Center for Dance which opened in 2005, and established an endowment to support major program areas. When the Company celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2008, Mr. Rink supervised an 18-month celebration, including events, promotions, collaborations, and special performances, bringing public awareness of the Ailey organization to new heights. Mr. Rink also oversaw “The Next Step Campaign,” which grew the organization’s endowment to $50 million. As Executive Director, Mr. Rink launched a five-year strategic plan in 2014 to realize Robert Battle’s creative vision, expand Ailey’s educational offerings, and enhance technology to extend the reach of the organization. Central to the plan has been the expansion of The Joan Weill Center for Dance, which attracts more than 200,000 visitors each year. In the fall of 2017, Ailey unveiled the Center’s Elaine Wynn and Family Education Wing, providing much-needed additional studios and classroom space to meet the growing demand for Ailey’s programs. The building now comprises 87,000 square feet and is the largest destination for dance in New York City. Mr. Rink also conceived The Campaign for Ailey’s Future, a $50 million initiative to support the Center’s expansion and the ongoing implementation of other long-range strategic priorities. During Mr. Rink’s tenure, the Company deepened its presence in New York City by establishing a spring season at Lincoln Center to complement its New York City Center winter season, while also extending its role as America’s “Cultural Ambassador to the World” with tours to Africa, Europe, and South America. In order to reach audiences beyond live performances, the Company has broadened its commitment to creating film and digital content, including its first-ever theatrical movie release as part of Lincoln Center at the Movies: Great American Dance. Mr. Rink is a graduate of Syracuse University and holds a BFA in theater. RONNI FAVORS, Rehearsal Director Ronni Favors is from Iowa City, Iowa. After studying at the National Music Camp in Interlochen, Michigan, with the Camp Scholarship, she continued her training at The Ailey School as a Fellowship student. Ms. Favors was a member of Ailey II, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater and the Lar Lubovitch Dance Company, and a recipient of the Min-On Art Award. Ms. Favors was the ballet instructor at the 1989 inaugural session of AileyCamp in Kansas City and served as Artistic Director of the Camp. She is the Founding Director of Children’s Aid AileyCamp New York and provided guidance in the national implementation of the AileyCamp program. In 1997, Ms. Favors was named Assistant Rehearsal Director of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater and was its Rehearsal Director from 1999 to 2010. She worked with local dance students who performed in Alvin Ailey’s Memoria in Johannesburg, South Africa, as well as in Seattle, Copenhagen, Los Angeles, Chicago, Kansas City and New York. Most recently, she set Alvin Ailey’s Night Creature on TU Dance and Oregon Ballet Theatre. Ms. Favors rejoined the Company as Rehearsal Director in 2019. JAMAR ROBERTS, Resident Choreographer Jamar Roberts is the Resident Choreographer of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. Mr. Roberts has made four works on the Company, all to critical acclaim: Members Don’t Get Weary (2016), Ode (2019), A Jam Session for Troubling Times (2020), and Holding Space (2021). He has also set Gemeos on Ailey II. Mr. Roberts is a graduate of the New World School of the Arts and the Ailey School and has danced for Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Ailey II, and Complexions. Mr. Roberts won the 2016 Bessie Award for Outstanding Performer and has performed as a guest artist with the Royal Ballet in London. Commissions include Vail Dance Festival, Fall for Dance, The Juilliard School, BalletX, MoveNYC, New York City Ballet, and Works and Process at the Guggenheim where he created the film Cooped . The March on Washington Film Festival invited Mr. Roberts to create a tribute to John Lewis and he has also made a film for the LA Opera entitled The First Bluebird in the Morning. Mr. Roberts was a Director’s Fellow at NYU’s Center for Ballet and the Arts and was recently featured on the cover of Dance Magazine, previously having been on the cover in June 2013 and been named one of “25 to Watch” in 2007. He first joined the Company in 2002 and retired from dancing in 2021.