Three pas de deux follow this postmodern “Firebird,” with each exploring a different dynamic between a couple. “L’Abandon” from Angelin Preljocaj's “Le Parc” is Marchand’s first performance in the program, and—as to be expected—it’s a moving piece. The 6’3"-plus dancer towers above his partner, fellow étoile Dorothée Gilbert, yet they connect easily in the yearning, passionate work. When he lifts her, around a leg, floating horizontally, or, in the pas de deux’s climax, in a kiss with both legs extended out behind her, there is a sense of effortlessness to his partnering. In moments of unison, the dancers stay in lockstep while stretching to meet every note of the Mozart score.

Where the pas de deux from “Le Parc” deals in total abandon, “Trois Gnossiennes,” by Hans Van Manen, is all about structure. There is a sense of humor within this more rigid work, especially when Marchand lifts partner Baulac with her feet flexed, Swanhilda-style. Here, some of the simplest steps stand out with space to breathe—as when Marchand and Baulac take two steps in each direction with a rond de jambe forward, their arms outstretched in a V.

“L’esprit de Bleu,” a pas de deux from “Signes,” one of Paris Opera Ballet’s signature works, created by Carolyn Carlson in 1997. Gilbert and Louvet join together for this slow and searching piece, which finds a release as the dancers float across the stage in a partnered chassé. Their arms, more often than not, seem to dictate the way they shift directions and move around one another, as their expressive reaches outward help them fill the space. Where the pas de deux from “Le Parc” is a work in which the dancers appear to want to completely fuse together, this is one that seems to suggest more restraint or estrangement as the dancers repeatedly come together and part, often spiraling in on themselves. At the end, they separate.