Five of the leading dance companies in New York City will perform together for this first time this August, sharing an outdoor stage at Lincoln Center in a festival that consists of five free shows, with four different slate of works on offer.
Presented under the auspices of the ongoing series Restart Stages, the BAAND Festival will take place from August 17 through August 21 and will include live performances by (in acronym order) Ballet Hispánico, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, American Ballet Theatre, New York City Ballet and Dance Theatre of Harlem. All five will perform an identical mixed bill at the first and final show; the middle three feature different lineups from four companies per night.
See below for a full list of the dance works that are scheduled to be presented.
"Through the challenges of this past year, we made a commitment to meet weekly to act as a structure and a support for one another, our companies, and our community," said the companies' artistic directors in a joint statement. "This festival is a celebration of the glory of our art and the power of unity.”
Although the BAAND Festival is free, advance reservations are required, and seats are being distributed through a lottery system on the TodayTix app. You can apply for a single ticket or a pair, but you'll need to time it right: Each show has a separate lottery that opens two weeks before the performance date and closes at 1pm three days before the performance. Between 1pm and 5pm on the day the lottery closes, you'll get a text or email telling you if you're succeeded in landing tickets; if so, you have just half an hour to claim them.
If you don't win seats in the lottery, don't give up hope: Ten minutes before each show begins, non-ticketed guests waiting at Lincoln Center can snag any seats that have not yet been claimed.
New York City Ballet in In Creases | Photograph: Paul Kolnik
Here is the full schedule for each night of the BAAND Festival:
Tuesday, August 17:
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater: Lazarus (excerpt) by Rennie Harris
New York City Ballet: Ces noms que nous portons by Kyle Abraham
Dance Theatre of Harlem: Harlem on My Mind (excerpt) by Darrell Grand Moultrie
American Ballet Theatre: Let Me Sing Forevermore by Jessica Lang
Ballet Hispánico: 18+1 by Gustavo Ramírez Sansano
Wednesday, August 18:
New York City Ballet: In Creases by Justin Peck
Dance Theatre of Harlem: New Bach by Robert Garland
American Ballet Theatre: Songs of Bukovina (excerpts) by Alexei Ratmansky
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater: Revelations (excerpt) by Alvin Ailey
Thursday, August 19:
Dance Theatre of Harlem: New Bach by Robert Garland
Ballet Hispánico: Línea Recta by Annabelle Lopez Ochoa
American Ballet Theatre: Songs of Bukovina (excerpts) by Alexei Ratmansky
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater: Revelations (excerpt) by Alvin Ailey
Friday, August 20:
Ballet Hispánico: Tiburones by Annabelle Lopez Ochoa
New York City Ballet: In the Night by Jerome Robbins
Dance Theatre of Harlem: Change by Dianne McIntyre
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater: Lazarus (excerpt) by Rennie Harris
Saturday, August 21:
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater: Lazarus (excerpt) by Rennie Harris
New York City Ballet: Ces noms que nous portons by Kyle Abraham
Dance Theatre of Harlem: Harlem on My Mind (excerpt) by Darrell Grand Moultrie
American Ballet Theatre: Let Me Sing Forevermore by Jessica Lang
Ballet Hispánico: 18+1 by Gustavo Ramírez Sansano
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater | Photograph: Andrew Eccles