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Alexandra Tomalonis
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DANCE
SOLOISTS ARE THE STARS OF MIDWEEK PERFORMANCES

Alexandra Tomalonis
Special to The Washington Post
February 8, 1993; Page b7

Suddenly, American Ballet Theatre is full of stars. After a long dry spell when the company depended on aging veterans or imports, and rising soloists peaked below star caliber, ABT is bursting with talent, and new director Kevin McKenzie seems to know how to use it Gil Boggs led a dozen gifted dancers in Mark Morris's "Drink to Me Only With Thine Eyes" Wednesday night, darting, soaring, whirling to a stop, his dancing as witty as the choreography. Kathleen Moore and John Selya, especially, were equally deft, as (on Thursday) were Sandra Brown and Wes Chapman.

Boggs also danced his first "Undertow," an Antony Tudor work that once kept ballet fans up nights trying to figure out its mythological references and pondering its misogynist psychology. Boggs was a sympathetic victim-hero, making much of the role's small moments. Of a platoon of temptresses, especially notable were Susan Jaffe as Medusa, Shawn Black as Ate and Marie-France as a Volupia worthy of the name.

Robert Wallace and Paloma Herrera, a 17-year-old from Buenos Aires in her first big part, danced the "Don Quixote" pas de deux Wednesday with star power to burn. Herrera has feet of elastic steel and dances with a fearless, luxuriant virtuosity. Her joy in dancing gives as much pleasure as her double fouettees and heroic balances. She can make you love ballet again. Wallace's enormous jump, and his way of making clearly defined shapes while hovering mid-air, also raised temperatures.e. Like nearly everyone else in the company she seems to be, finally, dancing like herself.