1938 Copland then wrote Lincoln Portrait , which presents the words of Abraham Lincoln with a musical background. It usually features a celebrity speaker who reads the words while the orchestra plays the music . Celebrities from Charlton Heston to Carl Sanberg have read the words of Lincoln during its many performances. In 1942, The Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, the company that produced Billy the Kid , commissioned Aaron to write another 'cowboy' ballet. The plot for the ballet was created by the Ballet Russe's choreographer, Agnes de Mille.
Rodeo tells the story of a young cowgirl who has always been a tomboy.
With her sudden awareness of the opposite sex, she attempts to attract the attention of the Head Wrangler and the Champion Roper. Her prowess as a rider does not impress the m, and when they ride off after ignoring her exhibition she is left behind in tears. A group of girls from the city in pretty dresses arrives at the invitation of the Rancher's daughter. They are an instant success with the men, much to the angry dismay of the cowgirl, still dressed in dungarees and riding boots. She rushes from the scene, to return in the middle of the Saturday Night Dance in a party dress.