Ailey Dance Class: Horton Technique

This class teaches students the basics of Horton technique, the foundation of choreography performed by Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. The codified modern dance technique was created by Alvin Ailey’s mentor Lester Horton. The class includes detailed studies of locomotion, rhythm, prelude, and fortification exercises. Students are led through introductory movements such as roll downs, flat backs, and lateral Ts. Excerpts of Ailey’s choreography using simple combinations are taught to introduce musicality and dynamics to the beginning dancer’s vocabulary. 

Horton technique is the foundation for many of Ailey’s works, including Revelations, and is a fundamental training technique for The Ailey School, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, and Ailey II.