an artist and the creative director for the company who also lost a partner to AIDS, the fashion designer Patrick Kelly. The couple have been together since 1993, living in the downstate New York house that Jones purchased with Zane in 1980.
“ Our home is filled with the artwork and photographs of and by our former partners,” Jones says, describing three photos of Arnie in front of him,“ one of him as a child, another showing him gender non-conforming at the beach, and a final one taken shortly before his death. And we have artwork from Patrick, in our highly aestheticized environment. They remain part of our story, just as Arnie’ s name remains part of the company. The past informs the present, but it doesn’ t define our future.” In 2010, Jones became a Kennedy Center honoree alongside Paul McCartney and Oprah Winfrey, and in the same year, he received the Pillow Award and a best choreography Tony Award ® for Fela!. These honors recognize not just his artistic achievements but his role as a cultural force.
As the Bill T. Jones / Arnie Zane Dance Company prepares to take the stage at Jacob’ s Pillow once again, audiences will witness not just dance performances but a living history— a testament to Jones’ enduring vision of dance as a vehicle for social commentary, personal expression, and transformative experience.“ Ahead of the times” is a term that is often overused, but in the case of Bill T. Jones, it seems most appropriate, and it may very well be what keeps his work alive, his company thriving, and his legacy secured. n
Alexandra Eidenschenk DESIGNS
Jacob ' s Pillow ' s 93rd season kicks off on June 25 and runs through August 24, with the Bill T. Jones / Arnie Zane Dance Company performing August 6-10 in the Ted Shawn Theatre. The festival will feature nine weeks of diverse performances, spanning indoor, outdoor, and digital experiences, and marks the grand opening of the technologically advanced Doris Duke Theatre. The 2025 season also celebrates significant milestones with Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater returning as a full company for the first time in 62 years and the Stephen Petronio Company presenting its 40th anniversary and final performance. For complete festival information, visit jacobspillow. org. Look for continued coverage in our upcoming summer issues.
May Holiday / June 2023 2025 BERKSHIRE MAGAZINE // // 27