The three performances sponsored by the Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts (IKSV) will take place at the Lutfi Kirdar International Congress and Exhibition Hall on September 17th, 18th and 19th.

The company's 50th Anniversary tour will begin in Tel Aviv, Israel, in the first week of September. Dancers will take stage in Romania, Greece, Spain and Italy after performing in Istanbul.

Founded in New York in 1958 by choreographer Alvin Ailey and and a group of young African-American modern dancers, the company is currently made up of 30 dancers as well as artistic director Judith Jamison and associate artistic director Masazumi Chaya.

The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater has gone on to perform for an estimated 21 million people in 48 states and in 71 countries on six continents, including two historic residencies in South Africa in the last five decades. The company has earned a reputation as one of the most acclaimed international ambassadors of American culture, promoting the uniqueness of the African-American cultural experience and the preservation and enrichment of the American modern dance.

Tickets will be available through Biletix web-site and at the IKSV Office in Istanbul as of August 23rd.

AA