I had one of the best times of my life last night!

My friend and I had fourth row seats (well, it was more like fifth row because the second row was Row 1) and we both had a great time.  The skating was less than I thought it would be, but the show as a whole was phenomenal.  I really loved the live performances with the skaters skating.  And I'm a big Sarah Brightman fan, so seeing her live for the first time ever  was such a treat, too.  Taylor Dane surprised me with her stage presence as did Keiko Matsui (who I had never previously heard of).  I liked all of the stage performers and loved watching the skating and looking at them singing at the same time.  That was a totally new experience for me.

Others have described a lot of the skating, so I'll just add a few things. During the opening act, Kristi was skating in that pink outfit and a dog started barking at her! There was a seeing eye dog with its owner in the seats about a foot from the ice and that dog didn't care much for Kristi!  The barking was loud and continued through about 1/4 of her program and started right before she fell on that triple toe. When she came out to do the re-take at intermission (without the music interesting enough) she landed the jump perfectly, then jumped off the ice and shook her finger at the dog and pet it. I wonder how they'll edit the barking out of her program?  ;o)

I really loved Roz and was thrilled she landed a huge beautiful double axel in her first program.  I thought both of her programs were beautiful.  But I'm a big Roz fan, so I'm rather biased...

Katia was smooth and her dresses were exquisite.  Her footwork just astounds me.  I've been skating for ten years and I would split my chin open if I tried some of those steps....

I was sad to see her fall.  She struggled a lot jump wise in SunValley when I saw her earlier this summer, too.  But she got up quickly, smiled bright, and continued with such grace....

I absolutely loved Katarina's Carmen!  Her costume was great (she looked a lot slimmer to me) and the choregraphy was perfect.  Her attitude really made this program and I look forward to seeing it on tv.  I also liked her other program a lot, too (the old one from last year), and that is unusual since I usually don't care much for her skating....

Tara had a new dress for Second Element and this is the only program she's done so far in her entire skating career that I kind of like.  She skated it well and landed everything, but seemed  without emotion and not really into it.  I think I enjoyed Sarah Brightman a lot more than Tara during this number! ;o)  I kept looking up at the big screen of Sarah and watching her instead. Second Element is one of my favorites.....

Kristi was exquisite and I was surprised to see her fall twice, but hey, it happens. I really enjoyed her concluding program to "Time To Say Goodbye".  Of course, having Sarah right there to sing it was just incredible....

I thought the finale was wonderful, too (can you tell I liked this show a lot?).  Seeing all five of the ladies out there together was a treat. A children's choir was singing the music for the finale and their voices were a little weak, but that was kind of cute....

As far as the speeches and things go, Scott Hamilton's was by far the best. Peggy's talk was okay and this woman who was a local tv news anchor (and had breast cancer and was currently undergoing therapy) gave an excellent talk, too.  They also had some doctors and other speakers like Brian Boitano and a local radio guy, and Kristi Yamaguchi, of course.  I thought at first, that it was a little too much about breast cancer over and over again, but by the end of the night it all seemed appropriate and it was definitely in good taste. The talks, just like the live music, added so much to the show....

Anyway, I was thrilled with the evening and my friend and I actually saw the entire second half from the other side of the arena in the very front row.  So I hope my pictures turned out as good as I think they will.  It was fun to applaud the skaters and have them just a few feet away.  Maybe I'll see myself on tv when they broadcast it!

So I felt the show was great and it was a very different skating show experience then I've ever had, but the best part was yet to come!  My friend and I managed to get VIP passes (and I never thought for a second we would, but we did!) and we went to the party afterwards!  That was truly awesome!  We got to meet everyone! And everyone who skated and sang was so nice to us and gave autographs and pictures (except Peggy Fleming, who signed, but was rather snotty, maybe she was overtired?).  Oh, and Katerina Witt signed when we were somewhere else at the party and when we spotted her sitting with Brian Boitano and Renee Roca (who I immediately recognized and no one else in the whole place had, I went up to her and she was nice and  seemed surprised that I knew her and she signed for me, too).  Anyway, Katerina was literally facing the wall and eating and Brian was hiding her.  We stayed back, but some people were pushing for autographs and Brian told them to come back later.  We did come back much later and she was gone.  By the way, Brian is sporting some rather long sideburns and everyone was talking to him about them....

Isabelle Brasseur and Lloyd Eisler were the sweetest.  Lloyd has blonde hair on top!  Isabelle looked so pretty and they were just sitting by the bar and I looked down and there they were.  No one was paying any attention to them!  But I was thrilled to have them two inches away....

Meeting Rosalynn was definitely a highlight of the night.  And Scott Hamilton was so happy and joking around with her.  They all seemed cheerful and like they were having a good time.  And everyone was so formal!  I was glad I'd dressed up in a black slinky skirt and a nice clingy sweater.

Anyway, this was the first time I've ever gotten to go to one of these things and it was very cool.  Kristi Yamuguchi was definitely the queen of this party and she was every bit the gracious host. She had on a long burgundy tight evening gown and her hair was all swept up.  The burgundy choker was really a nice touch.  And people kept bringing her gifts!  I patiently waited while all the more important people dropped loot on her and I thought, "I feel like I'm waiting to be seen by the Queen, but I forgot to bring a present!" She actually apologized profusely for keeping me waiting!  That was nice.  She was so nice and friendly.  She signed and mingled with everyone and smiled the entire time.  She must have been exhausted, but she never let it show...

They were also having a silent auction on various skating items like framed pictures of the skaters that were signed and signed skates.  One that I remember was a milk add of Katia and Daria that was autographed, framed, and matted.  The bidding started at $1500 for a lot of things!  But it was all for charity....

There was free food and drinks everywhere and music and a giant ice sculpture in the shape of the breast cancer ribbon with skates (like the pin).  On our way out, they gave my friend and I gift bags filled with all sorts of good stuff like Kristi's hardbound book "Always Dream", skating magazines with Kristi on the cover, a pin from the show, a candle in a silver case, a large chocolate medallion with the show's symbol, large 8x10 of Kristi, Mervyn's magazine, and other little stuff.  That was pretty cool!  I love free gifts! On our way in, they were also handing out programs to everyone (and of course I'd already purchased one for an outrageous $20!  But I took a second one, since they were free.  I'd also purchased a pin for $8, not knowing we'd be going to the show and get a free one of those, too.)

My friend and I ended up being one of the last ones to leave around 1am or later.  We followed Roz and Scott out of the party (they were leaving at the same time) and then went to our car and  back to the hotel.  What a great night! It was truly memorable and I can't wait to re-live part of it while watching it on tv.  I hope that all those pictures with me and the skaters turn out perfect!

Oh, and I started asking questions of the skaters and telling them things after the intitial shock of being there wore off.  I told Kristi how exquisite her programs were and how I liked the finale, I told Roz how she was my favorite skater ever, I told Scott how inspiring he'd been to me, and I asked Tara about her injury.  She told me it wasn't all that bad and played it off.  Of course, the big bad agent was looming at an arm's length away and being very protective of her.  I don't like her hair now, it's so light and kind of  matted looking. I didn't tell her that part though!  ;o)  Oh, and I asked Isabelle Brausseur how she was feeling and if they were going to skate more this year.  She said she was feeling better than ever and they were going to skate a lot more this season.  Lloyd was friendly, too, and they sandwiched me with their arms around me for the picture (I really hope that one comes out!).  They seemed so sweet and genuine and were really not getting much attention from the crowd at the party.....

So that was my night.  Guess my post wasn't as short as I thought it would be, but I'm still on an adrenaline rush.....  What a night!