Lincoln Center Presents 3rd Annual BAAND Together Dance Festival

Five of NYC's most iconic dance companies-Ballet Hispánico, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, American Ballet Theatre, New York City Ballet, and Dance Theatre of Harlem-return for the third annual BAAND Together Dance Festival, sharing the spotlight and an outdoor stage as a part of Lincoln Center's second annual Summer for the City.

From July 25-29, audiences will be treated to exciting evenings of programming curated collaboratively by the artistic directors of the companies, featuring works that are quintessential of each company's style and brilliance, as well as the World Premiere of Pas de O'Farill by Pedro Ruiz, a new duet featuring dancers from Ballet Hispánico and New York City Ballet, commissioned by Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. All performances are free.

Each afternoon, one of the companies will bring its unique teaching style to campus with a daily Education Workshop. The series will offer a variety of teaching styles and dance forms, appropriate for all ages and abilities.

The Festival is made possible by CHANEL, representing the third year of the House's support of the BAAND Together Dance Festival. This partnership reflects CHANEL's long-standing patronage within the world of dance, which has continued for over a century.

Statement from the artistic directors of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater (Artistic Director Robert Battle), American Ballet Theatre (Artistic Director Susan Jaffe), Ballet Hispánico (Artistic Director & CEO Eduardo Vilaro), Dance Theatre of Harlem (Artistic Director Robert Garland), and New York City Ballet (Artistic Director Jonathan Stafford, Associate Artistic Director Wendy Whelan):

"The BAAND Together Dance Festival is a testament to the vibrancy and diversity of the New York City dance community. We are thrilled to be returning with a spectacular program that features the city's most internationally revered repertory companies. This year's program highlights the innovative visions that have made New York City our nation's dance capital."

- BAAND Artistic Directors

In addition to the performances and workshops, Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts will hold pop-up engagement tables before the July 26 performance, as part of the recently announced participatory planning process to help reimagine the Amsterdam Avenue side of its campus to create greater access. Input from all New Yorkers is encouraged!

LincolnCenter.org/planningprocess

Program:

Ballet Hispánico - Línea Recta by Annabelle Lopez Ochoa

American Ballet Theatre - Other Dances by Jerome Robbins

Dance Theatre of Harlem - Nyman String Quartet No. 2 by Robert Garland

World Premiere of Pas de O'Farill by Pedro Ruiz, a collaboration between Ballet Hispánico & New York City Ballet

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater - excerpt of Dancing Spirit by Ronald K. Brown

New York City Ballet - The Times Are Racing by Justin Peck

There are two ways to access this FREE event: 1. General Admission, first-come, first-served. 2. Fast Track, opening the Monday before the event at noon.

Program Details:

Ballet Hispánico - Línea Recta by Annabelle Lopez Ochoa

From one of today's most sought-after choreographers comes a powerful and resonant work exploring an intriguing flamenco dance aspect: the conspicuous absence of physical partnering. While maintaining the integrity and hallmark passion of the genre, Annabelle Lopez Ochoa imagines an original and explosive movement language premised upon the theme of partnership and performed to flamenco guitar by Eric Vaarzon Morel. Línea Recta was commissioned in part by The Apollo Theater and Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival.

American Ballet Theatre - Other Dances by Jerome Robbins

Other Dances was created by Jerome Robbins specifically to showcase the legendary technique and artistry of Natalia Makarova and Mikhail Baryshnikov, who premiered the pas de deux in 1976, and it has since been performed by leading dancers in other major companies. Set to a waltz and four mazurkas by Frédéric Chopin, Other Dances features a series of Polish folk-inspired choreography that pays homage to Chopin's romanticism and the purity of classical ballet technique.

Dance Theatre of Harlem - Nyman String Quartet No. 2 by Robert Garland

Set to Michael Nyman's String Quartet No. 2, Robert Garland continues his signature exploration of the intersection of cultures that is contemporary America. Complex and witty, this sophisticated work shows off the unique capacity of the company's artists to code-switch with abandon.

Pas de O'Farill by Pedro Ruiz

In tribute to the music of Latin Jazz sensation Arturo O'Farill, Pedro Ruiz takes on the classical ballet form and fuses it with the movement and essences of the Afro-Cuban diasporic legacy. The duet seeks to immerse the classical technique with the Latinx voice and expand the idea of what ballet is and can be.

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater - excerpt of Dancing Spirit by Ronald K. Brown

Ronald K. Brown pays tribute to Judith Jamison's profound influence with a work that echoes the title of her autobiography. Set to music by Duke Ellington, Wynton Marsalis and War, Brown's evocative choreography uses movement from Cuba, Brazil and the United States to conjure dancing spirits who embody Jamison's elegance, vision, dignity and generosity.

New York City Ballet - The Times Are Racing by Justin Peck

Justin Peck's The Times Are Racing is a sneaker ballet that sees its dancers in streetwear, drawing inspiration from a variety of dance styles while matching Dan Deacon's electronic score with youthful impulse and vigor. The work is set to the last four tracks of Deacon's expansive 2012 album, America,marks Peck's second collaboration with fashion designer Humberto Leon of Opening Ceremony and has lighting design by Peck's frequent collaborator Brandon Stirling Baker.

When Alvin Ailey and a small group of African American dancers took the stage on March 30,1958 at New York City's 92nd Street Y, the engagement was for one night only, but it turned out to be the start of a new era in the arts. Ailey envisioned a company dedicated to enriching the American modern dance heritage and preserving the uniqueness of the African American cultural experience. He became one of the trailblazers of modern dance, and the Ailey organization grew to encompass education, community outreach, and cultural diplomacy. To date, the Company has performed for an estimated 25 million people at theaters in 48 states and 71 countries on six continents as well as millions more through television, film, and online. More than 270 works by over 100 choreographers have been part of the Ailey repertory. In 2008, a US Congressional resolution designated the Company as "a vital American cultural ambassador to the world." Before his untimely death in 1989, Ailey named Judith Jamison as his successor, and over the next 21 years, she brought the Company to unprecedented success. Jamison, in turn, personally selected Robert Battle to succeed her in 2011, and The New York Times declared he "has injected the company with new life." During the upcoming months, Battle will lead the Company on their first international tour since the pandemic shutdown, which launches a 65th anniversary season.

American Ballet Theatre is one of the greatest dance companies in the world. Revered as a national treasure since its founding season in 1940, its mission is to create, present, preserve, and extend the great repertoire of classical dancing for the widest possible audience. Headquartered in New York City, ABT is the only cultural institution of its size and stature to extensively tour, enchanting audiences for eight decades in 50 U.S. states, 45 countries, and over 480 cities worldwide. ABT's repertoire includes full- length classics from the nineteenth century, the finest works from the early twentieth century, and acclaimed contemporary masterpieces. In 2006, by an act of Congress, ABT was designated America's National Ballet Company.

Ballet Hispánico is the largest Latinx/Latine/Hispanic cultural organization in the United States and one of America's Cultural Treasures. Ballet Hispánico's three main programs, the Company, School of Dance, and Community Arts Partnerships bring communities together to celebrate the multifaceted Hispanic diasporas. Ballet Hispánico's New York City headquarters provide the physical home and cultural heart for Latinx dance in the United States. It is a space that initiates new inclusive cultural conversations and explores the intersectionality of Latine cultures. The Ballet Hispánico mission opens a platform for new social dialogue, and nurtures and sees a community in its fullness. Through its exemplary artistry, distinguished training program, and deep-rooted community engagement, Ballet Hispánico champions and amplifies Latine voices in the field. Ballet Hispánico has provided a place of honor for the omitted, overlooked, and othered for over fifty years.As it looks to the future, Ballet Hispánico is pushing the culture forward on issues of dance and Latine creative expression.

Dance Theatre of Harlem is a leading dance institution of unparalleled global acclaim, encompassing a world class company, a professional studio school, a leading arts education program - Dancing Through Barriers, and community engagement activities. Each component of Dance Theatre of Harlem carries a solid commitment towards enriching the lives of young people and adults around the world through the arts. Founded in 1969 by Arthur Mitchell and Karel Shook, Dance Theatre of Harlem was considered "one of ballet's most exciting undertakings" (The New York Times, 1971). Shortly after the assassination of The Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Mitchell was inspired to start a school that would offer children - especially those in Harlem, the community in which he was born - the opportunity to learn about dance and the allied arts. Now in its fifth decade, Dance Theatre of Harlem has grown into a multi-cultural dance institution with an extraordinary legacy of providing opportunities for creative expression and artistic excellence that continues to set standards in the performing arts.

New York City Ballet, one of the foremost ballet companies in the world, was founded in 1948 by the legendary choreographer George Balanchine and arts patron Lincoln Kirstein, and quickly became world-renowned for its athletic and contemporary style. Jerome Robbins joined NYCB the following year and, with Balanchine, helped to build its extraordinary repertory. Today NYCB continues to be inspired by its founders who envisioned an authentically American expression of ballet with a company that reflects the rich cultural diversity of our city and nation. Under the leadership of Artistic Director Jonathan Stafford, Associate Artistic Director Wendy Whelan, and Executive Director Katherine Brown, NYCB is deeply committed to creating and sustaining an organizational culture that values diversity, inclusion, and equity, promoting creative excellence, and nurturing a new generation of dancers and choreographers.

Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (LCPA) is a cultural and civic cornerstone of New York City. The primary advocate for the entire Lincoln Center campus, our strategic priorities include: fostering collaboration and deepening impact across the Lincoln Center resident organizations; championing inclusion and increasing the accessibility and reach of Lincoln Center's work; and nurturing innovation on stage and off to help ensure the arts are at the center of civic life for all. LCPA presents hundreds of programs each year, offered primarily for free and choose-what-you-pay, including many specially designed for young audiences, families, and those with disabilities.