Another week, another book-length ode to trees—to their dissemination of good vibes and good seed and to their very long and exemplary lives. But a dance to trees? Kyle Abraham steps out on a limb again. The Pittsburgh transplant regularly aims for overreach, then miraculously closes the distance—whether in witty, deconstructive ballets for the likes of New York City Ballet or in premieres for his own small troupe that take on 200 years of Black liberatory struggle (this was in 2014, after Abraham had just won a MacArthur). For the 15-person premiere Dear Lord, Make Me Beautiful, the challenges begin with the site itself, the cavernous Drill Hall at the Park Avenue Armory—big enough for an army. They end with the vast lessons of aging and empathy that trees extend, with open leafy arms, to humans. With immersive video projections of a floral paradise by AI-era Impressionist Cao Yuxi and an original score from Brooklyn’s hip new-music sextet yMusic. —Apollinaire Scherr