Misty Copeland inched toward the front of the stage with her powerful back leading the way. It wasn’t the only time that Ms. Copeland, one of ballet’s brightest stars, showed her fans a different side of herself in “Ash,” a new solo by Kyle Abraham. But it set the tone.

Ms. Copeland was strong in “Ash,” and breathtakingly so. Rarely has she seemed as womanly, as self-assured — as towering (she’s smaller than you might imagine) — as she was in this soulful, sophisticated performance, unveiled at the first program of City Center’s Fall for Dance Festival on Tuesday.

Wearing a gold leotard under a gossamer tunic by the talented designers Reid Bartelme and Harriet Jung, Ms. Copeland shimmered as if in a cloud. Her arms rose and fell as she retreated to the back of the stage and, for a brief moment, undulated like a swan’s wings.

As she glided across the stage, advancing with spins that came to sudden stops or extending a leg to the side in développé, her progression through the steps could be read as an unwavering journey, refined and forthright.