Leg Work

Ailey II Blues Suite: Aisha Mitchell brings her years of dance experience home on Thursday to Syracuse University’s Goldstein Auditorium.

Mitchell received dance training locally through her mother Cheryl Wilkins-Mitchell’s Onondaga Dance Institute and Dance Centre North. During her senior year at Ailey-Fordham University, Mitchell was asked to be an apprentice for Ailey II and in July 2007 she became a full member of the company. Alvin Ailey and other black modern dancers formed the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in 1958 in New York City. Ailey II was formed in 1974 as a means of giving promising young dancers an opportunity to begin a career in dance.

Mitchell will perform along with other dancers in a piece entitled “External Knot,” which chronicles a young man’s struggle to belong and his ultimate discovery of his true self. “It’s a very relatable piece, so in a university setting, definitely college kids will be able to pull some inspiration from it,” said Mitchell.

Syracuse will also be privy to a world premiere performance entitled “Requiem,” which is a male duet. “There are moments when it’s very peaceful and moments when it’s very athletic,” said Sylvia Waters, artistic director for Ailey II. Waters added that the piece is meant to depict two different aspects of the same person.

Ailey II will perform at Syracuse University’s Goldstein Auditorium inside the Schine Student Center, 303 University Ave., on Thursday, Feb. 28, 8 p.m. Tickets are available for $20 at the Schine box office. Call 443-4517.

—Nichole Nichols