N.Y. Export: Opus Jazz, on OVID.tv

t was promoted as a ballet celebration of youth, but it was set to a style of jazz, Third Stream, that was considered old and staid by most hipsters, even when it was new. Yet, much of it still swung, albeit in a more polite and respectable kind of way. That was certainly true of Robert Prince’s score for Jerome Robbins’ classic choreography. Decades later, it is still recognized as one of his greatest works. Filmmakers Henry Joost & Jody Lee Lipes moved the ballet from the stage to ultra-New York locations in N.Y. Export: Opus Jazz, which premieres tomorrow on OVID.tv.

The dancers are indeed young. They look like they could be the 2010’s version of the “kids from Fame,” as we watch them move and kvetsch through the city, on their way to each dance segment. They certainly have talent. Each number has all the grace and energy that made N.Y. Export an international sensation when Robbins toured it for the U.S. State Department. Joost and Lipes shrewdly frame each dance with their roving cameras in ways that emphasize the dancers’ long limbs and fluidly funky movement. Featured soloists like Adam Hendrickson and Georgina Pazcoguin are physically poised and dynamic, but they also have screen presences that further elevate their performances.

N.Y. Export represented Robbins’ next logical step after his chorography for West Side Story. Some of the distressed urban locations chosen for the film clearly evoke that “Sharks vs. Jets” vibe. The film was produced during the late Bloomberg era, when this New York grit held nostalgic charm. Unfortunately, these “reclaimed” abandoned spaces have lost their novelty in 2024.

Regardless, the film still looks and sounds great. Frankly, Robert Prince’s music is due for a re-discovery. The big finale, “Theme, Variations, and Fugue” even has a little old school New Orleans in it. The original LP release of N.Y. Export: Opus Jazz was on Warner Brothers, a major label, but not one with a storied jazz history. Frustratingly, there were no credits for the musicians who actually played the music, which always aggravates us jazz fans.

That is why it is so annoying that the film commits the exact same sin. However, it identifies Eddie Barbasch and Jesse Scheinin as the street saxophonists in the opening non-dancing sequence. The supplemental 15-minute documentary “A Ballet in Sneakers: Jerome Robbins and Opus Jazz” packaged after the closing titles also credits its musicians, including Jay Hassler on clarinet and musical director Conor Meehan on drums. (With the doc included, the entire N.Y. Export presentation barely runs past sixty minutes.)

Regardless, it is a shame Prince’s jazz work is not more readily available. He also shared an interesting Third Stream album with Teo Macero that is definitely worth a spin. Poor old Third Stream never gets much love, but the Orchestra U.S.A. (under the direction of John Lewis) is a terrific record if you can find it. At its best, Prince’s N.Y. Export score has a similarly bright and refreshing vibe.

It is weirdly ironic that this meeting of jazz and ballet remains a bigger deal in the dance world than for the jazz community, but that seems to be the case. It is great that Joost and Lipes captured it on film and gratifying that OVID has curated it for their subscribers. Highly recommended for jazz and ballet fans, N.Y. Export: Opus Jazz starts streaming on OVID.tv tomorrow (1/25).