Superman
It’s a bird, it’s a plane—nope, it’s Daniel Ulbricht.
I am convinced that the New York City Ballet principal must be superman. Last night, I saw Ulbricht perform in Youth America Grand Prix’s star-studded gala. The music accompanying his solo was drowned out by the shrieking audience more than once. Simply put, his jumps are not human! At one point he basically did a swan-dive head-first into a somersault. What was that? And how did he do it without breaking himself? My jaw was dropped pretty much the entire time. And I couldn’t help smiling back at the effortless charm he exudes onstage.
Then this morning I open my inbox to an email from Daniel Ulbricht and Erin Fogarty inviting me to Dance Against Cancer, a performance they’re producing to benefit the American Cancer Society. It takes place on April 25 at the Manahattan Movement & Arts Center. They’ve gathered principals from New York City Ballet, Alex Wong, dancers from Keigwin & Co, Alvin Ailey’s Matthew Rushing, and others to perform work by Balanchine, Wheeldon, Millepied, Lubovitch—and Daniel Ulbricht. Like I said, superman.
For more about the 2011 Dance Against Cancer, go here.