After 25 Years of Triumphs and Troubles, a Ballerina Bids Farewell

Ashley Bouder has grit, and that’s good. Since the pandemic, this New York City Ballet principal has been dealing with a lot: injuries, weight issues and sporadic performance opportunities.

They have fueled one another. There was the time she tore her plantar fascia onstage during a performance of “Western Symphony.” She made a full recovery, but it took a while. There was weight that wouldn’t come off, which resulted in infrequent casting and just a smattering of shows.

With few scheduled shows, there weren’t many chances to rehearse. Then came another injury, this time in “Vienna Waltzes”: She tore her posterior tibial tendon.

“My dancing feet weren’t there,” she said in an interview at Lincoln Center. “That’s kind of been the up and down. It’s like trying to come back, but not getting enough to do and then hurting myself again.”

But she wasn’t ready to give up. “I just kept waiting to dance again,” she said. “I’m like, all I want to do is dance. Like, get me out there, let me dance, let me dance.”

This season, Bouder, 41, got to do that, before closing out her 25-year City Ballet career. On Thursday, her farewell performance, she’ll dance in George Balanchine’s “Firebird.” She first danced the role at 17, when she was thrown into at the last minute.