US-DANCE-AILEY-CIVIC-RIGHTS
The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater troupe is paying tribute to late folk singer Odetta, a symbol of the civil rights movement.
Robert Battle, artistic director at Ailey, quipped that he’d like to take credit for the timing of “Odetta,” but said the piece was planned long before the recent killings of Michael Brown and Eric Garner.
Battle says he got the idea for “Odetta” when he attended a memorial for the singer, who sang at the 1963 March on Washington and influenced singers like Bob Dylan, Joan Baez and Janis Joplin.
On opening night this week at New York City Center, guests included singer Harry Belafonte, opera singer Jessye Norman, folk singer Suzanne Vega and a more recent luminary, actress Laverne Cox of “Orange Is the New Black.” (The Associated Press)
