acclaimed dancer was 81 NBC Bay Area [Video]

Judith Jamison, an internationally acclaimed dancer who later served as artistic director of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater for two decades, has died. She was 81.

Jamison died Saturday after a brief illness in New York, surrounded by close friends, Ailey company spokesperson Christopher Zunner confirmed to The Associated Press.

“We remember and are grateful for her artistry, humanity and incredible light, which inspired us all,” Zunner said.

Jamison grew up in Philadelphia and trained there in ballet from a young age. At a time when Black dancers were rare in ballet, she began with the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in 1965.

Tall, graceful and expressive, she became one of the company’s most famous performers and a muse for Ailey. Jamison had star turns in two of Ailey’s signature dances, “Revelations” and “Cry.” She danced with the Ailey company for 15 years before leaving to perform on Broadway …