Judith Jamison and Billy Wilson
Like Billy Wilson, Judith Jamison grew up in Philadelphia and, also like Wilson, was taught to dance by Marion Cuyjet and Antony Tudor. Wilson and Jamison’s paths first met when Wilson was a choreographer at the Philadelphia Cotillion, where Jamison danced when she was 11. Their paths crossed again when Jamison was 34, and the star of the Alvin Ailey Dance Company. At this time, Billy Wilson invited Jamison to make her Broadway debut in his The Only World in Town, an all-Black show. Robert Colby, one of the songwriters for the performance, said about Jamison, “There is no one in dance like Judy, and she will have a chance to showcase her other talents.” On her end, Jamison said about Wilson, “Billy said all the right things to me. He said sing, he said dance, he said comedy, he said acting. He said the things [I] wanted to hear, and so far I still like hearing them.” Jamison hired Wilson to choreograph for Alvin Ailey, including the vibrant show Winter in Lisbon in 1992 and Concerto in F in 1981 which was set to Gershwin’s music.
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More about Judith Jamison
Judith Jamison was born in Philadelphia in 1943. She began training in dance at the Judimar School of Dance where she studied classical ballet and modern dance under Marion Cuyjet. She was also taught by Antony Tudor and Delores Brown Abelson. Jamison made her debut in the Alvin Ailey Dance Theatre in 1965, and after a hiatus, she rejoined the Alvin Ailey Dance Theatre in 1967 and spent the next 13 years as a member. In 1980, she left the company to pursue other opportunities, but returned in 1988 as an artistic associate. After the passing of Ailey, she assumed the role of artistic director for twenty one years, bringing the company immeasurable amounts of success, and she serves as the artistic director emerita to this day.
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Jamison, MoBBallet
Jack Mitchell, Getty Images
Ethan Richmond
