New Jersey Dancers Join Alvin Ailey’s Return To Newark In Its Nationwide Tour

Alvin Ailey will return to the Garden State with three performances at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center for Mother’s Day from May 9-11. Having danced at NJPAC’s opening night in 1997, Alvin Ailey will host its annual recital with a celebration of its African-American heritage.

Among Alvin Ailey’s 32 dancers are Montclair’s Chalvar Monteiro and Newark’s Christopher Taylor.

Growing up in New Jersey, Monteiro was an energetic child whose mother put him in tap classes and the church dance ministry to focus his energy. However, Monteiro was first “enamored and attracted” to the performing arts when he watched Ben Vereen in the musical Fosse. 

After seeing Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater perform at NJPAC before going to high school, Monteiro realized that dancing would be his career.

He trained at Sharron Miller’s Academy for the Performing Arts before studying at The Ailey School in the summers, eventually receiving his BFA in Dance from SUNY Purchase. 

Monteiro finally joined the Ailey Company in 2015. “Working with Alvin Ailey is great,” said Montiero. “I really love the rhythm as, joining the company 10 years ago, I was really attracted to not only the work and the ballets that we get to perform, but I was also really drawn to the mission of a touring company and taking our African-American experience and these ballets that tell our stories around the world and connecting with different cultures and really doing our best to really steward this mission to be culture ambassadors of the world…”

Meanwhile, Taylor began his dance training at 11 after he was introduced to music by his grandmother. He claims to have found dancing the best way for him to connect with music and tell people’s stories.

He eventually graduated from Arts High School and studied on a scholarship in The Ailey School Professional Division. 

After a stagnant period in between jobs during the COVID-19 pandemic, Taylor was hired to train with Ailey’s second company before working his way up to the first company in 2022.

Taylor described training to become a dancer as a child as a “sacrifice” to do what he loves doing. 

Meanwhile, Taylor began his dance training at 11 after he was introduced to music by his grandmother. He claims to have found dancing the best way for him to connect with music and tell people’s stories.

He eventually graduated from Arts High School and studied on a scholarship in The Ailey School Professional Division. 

After a stagnant period in between jobs during the COVID-19 pandemic, Taylor was hired to train with Ailey’s second company before working his way up to the first company in 2022.

Taylor described training to become a dancer as a child as a “sacrifice” to do what he loves doing. 

Having grown up with the company and perfected his skills with years of hard work, he has seen himself become a different person and is grateful to Alvin Ailey for the experience.

“I feel very different from 11 to 25 in the school…,” said Taylor. “I feel like I’m in a totally different body from when I was younger, and I feel that’s my biggest thing right now. It’s learning my new body, learning who I am becoming mentally and physically, learning what to keep and let go, as far as life, because I feel like…since I’m older now…and this is a job…I feel like I’m a real artist.”

Overall, Montiero and Taylor have had incredible journeys as professional dancers, and Alvin Ailey’s final performance on their U.S. tour will make for a spectacular homecoming for them. 

Montiero is especially thrilled to end this annual tour in his home in New Jersey, as the recital usually falls around Mother’s Day, his father’s birthday, and his parents’ wedding anniversary.”

“For me, it’s very poetic. I love finishing the tour in New Jersey…,” said Montiero. “It’s a really fun, celebratory weekend where I get to successfully finish a tour. I get to celebrate my mom and my parents: the two people who really invested all that they could to make sure my dreams came to fruition.”

Similarly, Taylor had attended several NJPAC performances with his grandmother as a child and feels joy being able to perform for his home and show how far he has gone as a Black man from Newark.

“Newark is a rough city, but it’s also lovely at the same time,” said Taylor. “There’s a duality to it. It’s beautiful, and it’s lovely to show that, as a Black man, you can do other things in life, and you can be successful, and you can do whatever you want to do. 

“And I hope that it has touched people by showing them my success, my achievements, and showing that I do what I love to do.”

Alvin Ailey’s recital at the NJPAC has proven to be a special occasion for its dancers and the community of Newark. With all their hard work paying off, Montiero and Taylor continue to express themselves through dance and connect with their audience with stories of freedom, spirituality, transformation, and joy.