Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, Sadler's Wells Theatre, London

'An improvement on the first, although again relying on Revelations as its climax and chief attraction'

The second of the Alvin Ailey company's London programmes was an improvement on the first, although again relying on Ailey's masterpiece Revelations as its climax and chief attraction. Frankly we could do with a higher proportion of the old master's work in the repertoire, and in this show we did get another short one.

You are not nowadays going to find a perfect cast for Pas de Duke, since it was made as a gala number for the glamorous idiosyncrasy of Ailey's then-leading woman Judith Jamison, contrasting with the classical virtuosity of Mikhail Baryshnikov as guest star. But for those of us who did not experience that unique coupling, Matthew Rushing makes a bravely cheerful shot at his solos, and Linda-Denise Fisher-Harrell, with her cynical smiles, is quite delicious in the other role. It must have been even more fun originally, when the woman towered above the man. Five Ellington numbers provide the ideal inspiration.

Jamison now directs the company, so it's a shame that her ballet Divining is a let-down: thumpy music (which she largely ignores anyway), mostly jumpy dances, and the most hideous costumes imaginable, gaudy vertical stripes flapping over fleshings. Only Jeffrey Gerodias's quiet solo makes a real effect – too bad that his even better solo in Revelations was given to an unannounced and much less good substitute.

The other new work, Bad Blood, is a cut above others I have seen by its choreographer, Ulysses Dove. Based on the aggressive anger that he generally favours, it contains a lot of fierce jumping by, or throwing of, the three women, to be caught by one or another of the four men. The movements are often repetitive, but they are arranged with a welcome clarity, and Dove makes good use of the accompaniment – two songs by Laurie Anderson and one by Peter Gabriel.

The choice of music makes the use of recordings inevitable for most of the season's ballets, but past experience shows that Revelations gains a lot in directness and involvement when its gospel songs and spirituals are played live; surely there are gospel choirs in London that could have been recruited? In any case, the present fancy recording is far too elaborate (like some of the revised costumes). Something to correct another time, please; and on a return visit we need a programme book that is much better thought out. This one tells us nothing of any of the guest choreographers, and has only a derisively brief note about Ailey himself, and not a single picture of him. Come on – as the founder director and chief choreographer he is still more respon-sible than anyone else for the packed houses and cheers.