Alexander Godunov, Judith Jamison, Alvin Ailey

Staging, rehearsing, performing, celebrating “Spell“ , a fusion of jazz, modern and ballet, in this slide show. Choreography by Alvin Ailey, music by Keith Jarrett. Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre Gala on December, 3rd, 1981, City Center, New York. Anna Kisselgoff, NYTimes, December, 5, 1981: ’’Spell,’’ as the Jamison-Godunov premiere is called, stands to make the history books on more factual than artistic grounds. This was a one-time-only performance, and of course, it recalled the pairing in 1976 of another Soviet ballet defector, with Miss Jamison, at another Ailey gala in Mr. Ailey’s Ellington duet, ’’Pas de Duke.’’ Mr. Godunov, who left the Bolshoi in 1979, was given a somewhat more difficult task. Although ’’Pas de Duke’’ was mostly ballet steps coated with a jazz veneer, ’’Spell’’ actually engages