The 92nd Street Y, New York’s 2024/25 Harkness Dance Center season continues with Harkness Dance Center – Celebrating 90 Years, a multi-night slate of performances and more honoring the center’s trailblazing place in modern dance history and commitment to the future of the art form. Events take place throughout the Harkness Dance Center, in the recently renovated Arnhold Center spaces – Buttenwieser Hall, Buttenwieser Lounge and Arnhold Studio – the historic Kaufmann Concert Hall, as well as the New York Public Library.

Harkness Dance Center – Celebrating 90 Years
Schedule of Events

Art Bath x 92NY
Curated by Mara Driscoll, Elizabeth Yilmaz, Art Bath; and Alison Manning, 92NY
Xin Ying and Katherine Crockett (Martha Graham Dance Company); John Manzari & Dancers; Joey Arias; Roderick George, Flower Shark, Christopher Williams; and more TBA.
Thu, Fri, Mar 6 & 7, 7:30 pm, from $65 / $35 students

A fusion of past, present, and future, Art Bath x 92NY is an immersive performance salon like no other. For two nights only, this event transcends traditional performances, offering a sensory journey through the historic halls of 92NY and its celebrated Harkness Dance Center.

The night unfolds through 92NY’s iconic spaces — The Hall of Mirrors, Arnhold Center, Buttenwieser Lounge, and Arnhold Studio — culminating in performances at Buttenwieser Hall. Expect cutting-edge choreography, historical film footage, live DJ sets, and craft anniversary cocktails, all woven into a two-hour experience celebrating dance history and its thrilling future.

DEL Movement Sentence Choir
Baye & Asa and DEL Facilitator Randi Sloan
Sat, Mar 8, 1-4 pm, FREE with registration
Buttenwieser Hall

Join us for a special DEL Movement Sentence Choir celebrating the Harkness Dance Center's 90th Anniversary with Amadi ‘Baye’ Washington and Sam ‘Asa’ Pratt of Baye & Asa, and DEL Facilitator Randi Sloan. Baye & Asa were 92NY Future Dance Festival selected artists in 2021, and a 92NY Artist in Residence in 2021-2022

The DEL Movement Sentence Choir combines two concepts, Laban’s famous movement choirs and the DEL Movement Sentence, to create a joyful dance experience that brings together dancers of every genre, age and ability. Participants explore the DEL model and create new choreography with the artists that will be performed and live streamed. To learn more about DEL, visit www.danceedlab.com.

Ronald K. Brown/EVIDENCE, A Dance Company – Upside Down
PHILADANCO! – Talley Beatty’s Pretty Is Skin Deep, Ugly Is to the Bone
In Person – Sat, Mar 8, 7:30 pm, from $40 / $15 student
Online – Sun, Mar 9, 12 pm – Tue, Mar 11, 12 pm, $20
Kaufmann Concert Hall

A landmark evening in dance history, this extraordinary performance brings together two influential companies, each rooted in deep cultural traditions and celebrated for their transformative artistry, whose roots are entwined with the Harkness Dance Center.

Ronald K. Brown/EVIDENCE: Ronald K. Brown and his company EVIDENCE return to The 92nd Street Y with Upside Down, a work that blends African diasporic rhythms with contemporary dance. Originally created in 1998 in collaboration with Rokiya Kone and her Jeune Ballet d’Afrique Noire, the piece is driven by the vibrant music of Nigerian singer Wunmi, accompanied by both traditional and modern instruments.
 
Upside Down highlights family lineages that reach from the past into the future. Its early sections channel communal grief — moving seamlessly from introspective gestures to full-bodied group sequences. The 92nd Street Y holds special meaning for Brown: it was here that the legendary Judith Jamison first witnessed his rehearsals and asked him to create a work for the Ailey organization. Now, more than two decades later, Upside Down returns to the place where its journey began, a testament to Brown’s enduring vision and creative roots.

PHILADANCO!: In their 92NY debut, Philadelphia’s renowned PHILADANCO! brings a stunning performance of Talley Beatty’s Pretty Is Skin Deep, Ugly Is to the Bone. Beatty, a pioneering figure in American modern dance, first graced our stage in 1937 with Katherine Dunham and later collaborated with Alvin Ailey, shaping the future of dance right here. Now, nearly 60 years since the piece was last performed at 92NY, it returns as a testament to Beatty’s enduring legacy. With its vibrant blend of innovation and tradition, PHILADANCO!’s precision, passion, and performance promise a “stunner” (The Philadelphia Inquirer). Celebrated for their dynamic dancers and their elevation of African American dance traditions, PHILADANCO!’s performance is an unforgettable celebration of the past, present, and future of American dance.

Graham, Limón, Ailey: Tracing Three Generations of Titans of Dance at 92NY
A Conversation with Janet Eilber, Dante Puleio, David Dorfman, Yin Yue, Doug Varone, Hope Boykin, and additional guests to be announced, moderated by Joan Finkelstein
Mon, Mar 10, 6 pm, FREE with registration
New York Public Library

Join us at the New York Public Library — the largest and most comprehensive dance archive in the world — for an evening that celebrates the rich legacy of modern dance at The 92nd Street Y, New York through the lens of three iconic pioneers: Martha Graham, José Limón, and Alvin Ailey. Moderated by Joan Finkelstein, Executive Director of the Harkness Foundation for Dance and former Director of the 92NY Harkness Dance Center. This star-studded panel brings together a who's who of dance titans representing three generations of the field.

From the trailblazing work of Graham and Limón to the revolutionary contributions of Ailey, the conversation will trace the profound influence these artists have had on the world of modern dance. Featured panelists include luminaries like Janet Eilber (Graham) and Dante Puleio (Limón), alongside renowned choreographers and dancers like David Dorfman, Yin Yue, Doug Varone, Hope Boykin, and more — a not-to-be-missed gathering of those who have shaped and continue to shape the world of dance.

About the Harkness Dance Center
The Harkness Dance Center was founded at 92NY in May 1935, with Doris Humphrey as the first director. Right from the start, the center focused on the power of art to promote self-expression, creativity and societal engagement. The original faculty, including Martha Graham, Charles Weidman, Hanya Holm and Anna Sokolow, both performed and taught classes in modern dance techniques to 92NY members, expanding the art’s reach to non-professionals.

For the past 90 years, the Harkness Dance Center has been a hub for a global community of dancers who gathered here to explore fundamental questions of identity, society and humanity through dance. Katherine Dunham, Pearl Primus, José Limón, Paul Taylor, Merce Cunningham, and Alvin Ailey are just a few of the legendary artists who created and premiered work on 92NY’s stage.

Today, the Harkness Dance Center, housed in the new Arnhold Center at 92NY, continues to connect artists, audiences and students of dance. World-class dancers and choreographers in our Performances season lead classes and workshops for students. Our School of Dance is a destination for holistic dance instruction in New York City for students of all ages. Our artist-in-residence program provides space for dancers and choreographers to explore cutting edge ideas in movement. Our Dance Education Laboratory (DEL) leads the way in dance education by providing training and support so educators can experiment, create, learn and innovate.
(from )

• March 6
  and every day until March 10th

  March 6, 2025
• 92NY
  1395 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY

  Directions to event · Directions from event
• This listing has not been linked to an event on Facebook.
  Suggest a Facebook event for this listing