Choreographer Alvin Ailey’s “Revelations”

One of the leading choreographers of his era, Alvin Ailey (1931-1989) helped to popularize dance in America with works that frequently incorporated elements of modern dance, ballet, and jazz infused with the blues, Negro spirituals, and aspects of the African-American experience.

Taken in 1988, a studio portrait appears on this 2004 stamp alongside a 2000 photograph showing members of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater performing Revelations. Drawing on Ailey’s childhood experiences, Revelations is a groundbreaking work that celebrates the cultural heritage of African Americans, which Ailey described as “sometimes sorrowful, sometimes jubilant, but always hopeful.”