Maria Kowroski (front, center) was particularly impressive in “Mozartiana,” in which four children were among the dancers. (Paul Kolnik)
The spills on Tuesday’s opening night at New York City Ballet didn’t chill the festivities. There was one fall in each of the three pieces that introduced the company’s two-week Tschaikovsky Celebration. But the biggest splat of them all paved the way for a great performance.
Usually you fall because the step is difficult. The soulful “Mozartiana,” from 1981, was Balanchine’s last major ballet — and one of his trickiest.
The male lead, Tyler Angle, was stylish as usual, but stamina is his challenge and “Mozartiana” is a marathon. When he came to a turning jump to close a variation, he fell out of the final pose, putting his hand on the stage to steady himself. But he finished the ballet unruffled.
Both leads, Angle and Maria Kowroski, were stretched technically, though she fared better. Her opening, dancing with four small children dressed like miniature reflections, was particularly lovely. Like Kowroski’s outfit of black tulle over white, she was delicate, yet with overtones of sorrow.
1935’s “Serenade,” Balanchine’s first American ballet, opened the evening in a slightly jittery performance, but its only fall was intentional, where Balanchine turned a misstep in rehearsal into choreography. Now, Megan Fairchild heads softly to the ground while the women around her flick their arms up and down as if making mysterious signals.
The finale, “Tschaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 2,” starred Ashley Bouder, the mistress of onstage falls. She usually tumbles at the simplest moments, and she even jokes about it on Twitter. This time, she was just traveling backward when she hit a slippery spot and did a face-plant.
Anyone else could have completely lost her composure, but Bouder’s fallen — and gotten right back up — so many times, it has the opposite effect. The opening-night tension left her.
From that point on, her dancing was gloriously in the moment, grand-scale and regal as she played the queen bee to a hive of chiffon-clad ladies. Even technically she was more secure, easily nailing risky balances and turns.
Falling isn’t the mark of a bad dancer. Balanchine liked it when dancers fell; it meant they were dancing with energy. From Bouder’s great recovery, perhaps a fall is just a sacrifice to the dance gods.