Jeroboam Bozeman, whose broad shoulders and velvety fluidness give him a singular, rugged grace, has been having a breakout season with Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. So far, he has triumphed in lead roles in works by Robert Battle and Rennie Harris. His “Sinner Man” variation in the company’s signature “Revelations” was reckless, desperate, taut. Many Ailey dancers know how to sell a dance with sizzle, and that’s fine, but Mr. Bozeman’s steely performances are more of a slow burn, and that’s even better.

Apparently, he needed time to grow into himself. Now it’s hard to fathom that Mr. Bozeman auditioned for the Ailey company five times before landing a spot. And that as a teenager, he was turned down for a summer program at the Ailey school.

“Didn’t get in,” he said with a grin during an interview at City Center, where the company is in residence through Jan. 3.

When Mr. Bozeman was finally offered a place in Ailey II, the group’s second company, he didn’t hesitate. Others in his position might have. He had already been a member of Philadanco, or the Philadelphia Dance Company, led by Joan Myers Brown, for about three years; from there, he moved to Seattle to join Donald Byrd’s Spectrum Dance Theater. In terms of pay and, to a degree, clout, Ailey II was a step down. At 22, Mr. Bozeman was older than most of the other dancers — in both age and in life experience.