http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/15/arts/dance/city-ballet-presents-masters-at-work.html 2014-10-15 00:17:00 City Ballet Presents ‘Masters at Work’ New York City Ballet’s “Masters at Work” program offers pieces by George Balanchine, Jerome Robbins and Christopher Wheedon. === During New York City Ballet’s program at the David H. Koch Theater on Friday, paired dancers arranged themselves in squares. They promenaded. They gathered in stars. But this wasn’t for the piece titled “Square Dance.” It was for the one with “tomb” in the title, the one with the music commemorating friends lost in the First World War. “Square Dance,” though, came first. This 1957 work by George Balanchine originally featured a square dance caller whose cracker-barrel rhymes underlined the American verve in the choreography’s approach to music by Vivaldi and Corelli. The caller was removed decades ago, but the verve remains — especially these days, when the work is led by Ashley Bouder. Much of “Square Dance” is a steeplechase of tiny, quick steps, and Ms. Bouder is fantastically fast. More important, she’s precise. The sense of speed, of sparkle, has a lot to do with her stillness, the exact stopping that defines each shape. Her control affords play. In the final section, where the music would seem to fit a hoedown, her échappés, going up and down and in and out, almost shout, “Yee haw!” Ms. Bouder gives most of her steps an exclamatory quality, and if her manner is often that of a drill team captain, that’s one mode of American high spirits. As her partner, Anthony Huxley was exact and buoyant, and his reserve suited the inward turn of his solo, but elsewhere, he could have used some giddyup. “The Steadfast Tin Soldier” was adequately cast. The toy soldier role makes use of Daniel Ulbricht’s brilliant, if mechanical, technique, and the part of the cutesy paper doll disguises most of Erica Pereira’s inadequacies. Yet following the frolicsome “Square Dance” with this confection presaged an evening of unrelievedly light fare. “Le Tombeau de Couperin” offered relief. In this 1975 work by Balanchine, eight couples form two parallel squares, or quadrilles. Their steps and configurations resemble square dancing, and some of the moves in the finale even come from more recent American social dances, yet the music, by Ravel, imparts a tinge of loss to the springtime freshness. And Balanchine’s brilliant patterning — it’s more affecting than you would think when the two quadrilles finally merge — gives the work weight and impact. The corps dancers performed it graciously. Jerome Robbins Before “The Concert” came Christopher Wheeldon’s 2012 duet “This Bitter Earth,” moved into this Balanchine and Robbins program from its originally planned place in this season’s overstuffed “21st Century Choreographers” program. In either spot, it’s a vehicle for Wendy Whelan, who retires on Saturday. Every performance of Ms. Whelan this season is another swan song, honored with a standing ovation. “This Bitter Earth,” danced with Tyler Angle, is one of several works made for her that rely upon her unique directness and seem likely to fade without her. Bittersweet.