Dancer to give farewell hometown engagement

On the phone from Chicago where he is on tour with the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Dorchester native Kirven Douthit-Boyd, a principal dancer with the company, spoke of new turns in his life and career.

Two years ago, Kirven Boyd married fellow Ailey principal dancer Antonio Douthit, and the couple will leave the company this fall to become co-directors of the dance program at the Center of Creative Arts in St. Louis, MO.

When the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater performs from March 26-29 at Citi Wang Theatre, its 45th visit with the Celebrity Series of Boston, Kirven Douthit-Boyd’s performances will mark his farewell hometown engagement with the company. He will perform in all five shows from Thursday through Sunday.

Back in May 2009, Douthit-Boyd spoke with this newspaper about becoming a dancer with the Ailey Company, which he joined in 2004 at age 19 as its youngest member, and his hometown circle of support. He began his formal dance training as a member of the first four-year graduating class of the Boston Arts Academy and also studied dance at Boston Youth Moves, a pre-professional dance program for teenagers.

“The combination of the Boston Arts Academy and Boston Youth Moves got me where I am now,” Douthit-Boyd said then. “Everyone expected so much from me. So I expected more from myself.”

Next steps

Where he is heading now, six years later, as a dance educator will draw on what he learned as an aspiring student as well as his rich stage experience.

“I feel passionate about doing this,” says Douthit-Boyd. “I think now is a great time to make this transition in my career. I could dance a lot more years, but I think it’s important to leave on a high note. I’ve gotten so many great opportunities, I’ve been trusted with a lot of work, and I’ve grown a lot and learned a lot. I want to share that while I’m in this space of my life.”

The dance program at COCA, the region’s largest multidisciplinary arts institution, offers classes for students of all ages and levels of dance, from beginners to pre-professionals; and runs two dance companies, one devoted to jazz and another to ballet.

“This relationship we’re taking on in St. Louis is something we’ve been building for years,” says Douthit-Boyd, 30. During annual breaks from the Ailey touring season, the couple have been guest choreographers at COCA where Antonio, 34, a St. Louis native, trained as a teenager.

“We’re going to bring something completely different to the program,” says Douthit-Boyd. “We’re very fortunate in St. Louis, where the amount of support for dance is great, and the knowledge of the field we have will be a great asset in how we train dancers and help them in their careers.”

Douthit-Boyd brings to his new role the same openness to opportunities that has served him well throughout his career.

“I have a lot of friends in the field of dance,” he says. “I’ll be able to call on them to work with kids and give them different opportunities than they’re experiencing now. Kids never know what they’re capable of until you show them.”

Douthit-Boyd and his husband look forward to bringing change to the program’s dance training, which puts dancers’ relationships with their bodies first.

“Once we change it, and structure it in a different way,” he says, “we can bring in classical, modern or jazz experiences that breed a different kind of dancer. It’s important for kids to first learn how their bodies work. Every body is different.”

Asked what it means to leave the company at the peak of his career, Douthit-Boyd says, “Of course I will miss the stage. But Ailey is not an easy job. The touring and all the different kinds of repertory we do have been rewarding, but also very physically demanding and challenging. I’m happy to have had all this at the capacity I did. I do feel it’s OK to leave this behind now, especially because I have other career ambitions for what I want to do, many, many years from now. What we’re doing at St. Louis is an enormously great career opportunity for both of us.”

Acknowledging an abiding tie with the company, Douthit-Boyd adds, “I want to always have a connection with Ailey.”

Reflecting on his career as an Ailey principal dancer, Douthit-Boyd says, “The trust of the artistic staff to take on all the different roles I’ve had is what has been the most rewarding. I’ve built my career up to a place where they feel I can handle these roles. Not a lot of dancers get to feel that in their careers, and I’m very excited and happy that I’ve gotten to this point.”