SARITA ALLEN, Artist in Residence (Seattle, WA). Ms. Allen began her professional dance career with Agnes DeMille after which she joined the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater where Mr. Ailey choreographed roles for her in two of his Duke Ellington classics, Night Creatures and The Mooche. Under the aegis of Ailey she was recognized for her interpretive performances of his masterpieces Blues Suite and Revelations. Interspersed with her work at the Ailey, she performed with Elisa Monte and The Jamison Project. Ms. Allen danced on television in CBS’s Ailey Celebrates sEllington, NBC’s Bill Cosby Salutes Alvin Ailey and PBS’s Great Performance of For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is Enuf. During her years with the Ailey she was also invited with Elisa Monte to dance at Robert Redford’s Sundance Institute, and in the movies The Cotton Club, Angel Heart, The Last Dragon and Beat Street. She also participated in setting original ballets choreographed by Judith Jamison for numerous companies, including The Washington Ballet, Jennifer Muller, Ballet de Nuevo Mundo de Caracas, and Maurice Bejart’s Ballet of the XXth Century.
Ms. Allen recently appeared as Bess in the first all dance version of Porgy and Bess at the Kennedy Center for the Gershwin Centennial and subsequently toured throughout Europe. She also danced the role of Venus in the American premiere of Venus and Adonis at The Santa Fe Opera’s summer festival.
Ms. Allen has guest with RhythMEK including its premier at Jacobs’ Pillow, Forces of Nature, Paradigm, the Philadelphia Opera and Dance Brazil’s International Dance Festival of Bahia.
Ms. Allen has brought her professional knowledge of dance and performing arts to other settings including serving as Artist in Residence and member of faculty of The Leadership Institute of National Council of Negro Women and staging and directing opening ceremonies of the Delta Sigma Theta.
Ms. Allen currently teaches the Gyrontonic Expansion System and Pilates. She also teaches dance at Harbour Conservatory and Ifeytayo Cultural Arts in New York City, and the University of Salvador in Bahia, Brazil. She would like to thank Kathy Grant for her brilliance and inspiration
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