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—reunite on one stage to celebrate the fifth anniversary of the BAAND Together Dance Festival, sharing the spotlight and a stage for five performances from July 29-August 2 as part of Lincoln Center’s Summer for the City. The Festival began when the performing arts were coming back after the height of the pandemic in 2021 as a new form of collaboration in celebration of the return to live performance.
 
This is a rare chance for audiences to experience five exceptional performances of beloved programming curated collaboratively by the artistic directors of each company, featuring repertory favorites. Performances: Tue-Fri at 7:30pm, Sat at 4pm.
 
PROGRAM:
Dance Theatre of Harlem – Nyman String Quartet No. 2 by Robert Garland
New York City Ballet – After the Rain (Pas de Deux) by Christopher Wheeldon
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater – Many Angels by Lar Lubovitch
American Ballet Theatre – Midnight Pas de Deux by Susan Jaffe
Ballet Hispánico – House of Mad’moiselle by Annabelle Lopez Ochoa
 
This summer, for the first time, audiences will get an off-stage perspective of the extraordinary on-stage collaboration between these five iconic NYC dance companies during a free panel discussion on Tuesday, July 29 at 5:00pm in the David Rubenstein Atrium, featuring the artistic leaders of all five companies: Eduardo Vilaro, Ballet Hispánico; Alicia Graf Mack and Matthew Rushing, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater; Susan Jaffe, American Ballet Theatre; Wendy Whelan and Jonathan Stafford, New York City Ballet; and Robert Garland, Dance Theatre of Harlem, moderated by Shanta Thake, Ehrenkranz Chief Artistic Officer of Lincoln Center.
 
Each afternoon, one of the companies brings its unique teaching style to participants of all ages with free dance workshops in the David Geffen Hall lobby. The series will offer a variety of dance forms, appropriate for all ages and abilities.
 
The Festival is made possible by CHANEL, representing the fifth 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 Ballet Hispánico (Artistic Director & CEO Eduardo Vilaro), Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater (Artistic Director Alicia Graf Mack), American Ballet Theatre (Artistic Director Susan Jaffe), New York City Ballet (Artistic Director Jonathan Stafford, Associate Artistic Director Wendy Whelan), and Dance Theatre of Harlem (Artistic Director Robert Garland):
 
“BAAND Together began as a gesture of hope during a time of crisis. What started as a response to the challenges of COVID has grown into a celebration of what makes New York extraordinary—its creativity, its diversity, and its spirit. These performances remind us that the arts are not just entertainment; they are a vital force that brings people together and lifts us all.”  — BAAND Artistic Directors

To make the arts more accessible, tickets are available on a Choose-What-You-Pay basis here (suggested ticket price $35).

Program Details:
 
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.
 
“This work is dedicated to the memory of two men whom I admire: John Wesley Carlos, former track and field medal winner at the 1968 Summer Olympics, well known for his triumphant salute upon the winners podium that year, and Dance Theatre of Harlem’s Founder and Artistic Director Emeritus, Mr. Arthur Mitchell (1934-2018), whose similar stand for his people, his community, and the arts ‘has brought us thus far on our way’ (Lift Every Voice and Sing)” – Robert Garland
 
New York City Ballet – After the Rain (Pas de Deux) by Christopher Wheeldon
Christopher Wheeldon’s After the Rain premiered in 2005 at NYCB’s annual New Combinations Evening, which honors the anniversary of George Balanchine’s birth with world premiere ballets. The full ballet, which included a preceding section set to Arvo Pärt’s Tabula Rasa, was the last ballet choreographed by Wheeldon for Wendy Whelan and Jock Soto before Soto’s retirement from performing later that year. The second section, presented tonight, is a haunting pas de deux set to Pärt’s Spiegel im Spiegel.
 
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater – Many Angels by Lar Lubovitch
After 60 years as a choreographer, Lar Lubovitch has frequently been asked: “Why do you make dances?”. The 13th-century theologian St. Thomas Aquinas posed several theoretical questions about the behavior of angels, to which no real answers are possible or necessary. “How many angels can dance on the head of a pin?” illustrates that some questions have no logical response but are understood as a question of faith. Something may exist in the world simply for the sake of itself—for example, a dance. Many Angels is a dance to music by Gustav Mahler. It is not really about angels. (Well, maybe a little.)
 
American Ballet Theatre – Midnight Pas de Deux by Susan Jaffe
Choreographed by American Ballet Theatre Artistic Director Susan Jaffe, Midnight Pas de Deux is an introspective and poetic duet, set to the adagio from Alessandro Marcello’s Oboe Concerto in D minor.
 
Ballet Hispánico – House of Mad’moiselle by Annabelle Lopez Ochoa
Originally created in 2010 as her first full-length work for the company, House of Mad’moiselle by internationally acclaimed choreographer Annabelle Lopez Ochoa is a wild romp through the layered symbols of Latin American femininity. It revels in the drama, elegance, and defiance of iconic women who blur the lines between myth and memory.
 
Friday, August 1, 2025 at 7:30 pm – Audio Description
Saturday, August 2, 2025 at 4:00 pm – Audio Description, Relaxed Performance