Wednesday, March 26 - Ice Dance Free Dance Practice
The Cast of an Afternoon Dance Practice
The setting is the usually somewhat dimly lit Convention Center.
Judge Yuri Balkov is still walking around gingerly to and from the stands.
Sergei Sakhnovski talks to Julia Golovina and Oleg Voiko as he stretches out.
Elena Grushina and Ruslan Goncharov stretch as well. Ruslan begins jogging and Elena begins skipping sideways.
Shae-Lynn Bourne, Victor Kraatz, Marie-France Dubreuil and Patrice Lauzon all stretch in close proximity in the far corner behind the ice surface.
Umbrellas of Cherbourg plays over the sound system for Weina Zhang and Xianming Cao, but they are not in attendance.
Galit Chait jogs inside the barricade down the length of the ice.
Tarasova, Maya Usova and Elena Grushina all talk together. Tarasova has made it over after Sasha Cohen skated in the Ladies Qualifying at the MCI Center earlier.
Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin practice their energetic free dance run-through to the Afro-Latin mix. As the first selection of their ensemble plays, Marie-France dances along to it off ice. For, it is the same musical selection that she and Patrice skated for their original dance during the 1999-2000 season. Incidentally, The Feeling Begins free dance music of Navka and Kostomarov, Domnina and Shabalin's compatriots, also happens to be a free dance music choice of Marie-France and Patrice from the 1998-1999 season.
The run-through of Julia Golovina and Oleg Voiko contains a nice lift where the back of her knee is wrapped around his head. 'Who's There?!' that's the lyrics of the music playing. It is almost gospel sounding in flavor. They do shoulder shaking and dancing together.
Nora Hoffmann and Attila Elek have a bad fall together on the ice. He gets up quickly, but Nora is down for at least five seconds. He helps her up, and she is holding the back of her head. She skates over to the coaches who examine her head. An ice pack is brought from the back. She skates off the ice holding the bag of ice to her head. I hope she is okay.
Nozomi Watanabe and Akiyuki Kido have nice energy and expression in their run-through. They do a lift with her in a splits position. Another nice lift has her knee draped over his shoulder. The spin resembles a pair spin. He jumps over her back when she ducks down on the ice. Their coach, Natalia Linichuk, closely monitors their every move.
Isabelle Delobel is stretching by resting her leg on the highest rung of the barricade. Olivier Shoenfelder comes out from the backstage area, and they talk.
Tanith Belbin and Benjamin Agosto are now warming up on the far side of the room. They are running and bouncing up and down.
Nozomi Watanabe enters the stands in training clothes to watch the practices.
Maya Usova's new long coat is blue as she accompanies Tarasova while Elena Grushina and Ruslan Goncharov are now on the ice.
Naomi Lang and Peter Tchernyshev are now on the far side, near Belbin and Agosto, running and warming up.
Irina Lobacheva and Ilia Averbukh are no shows for their group.
Tatiana Navka joins Isabelle Delobel in jogging down the length of the rink and back.
Isabelle Delobel and Olivier Schoenfelder are stretching ten feet behind Muriel Zazoui while she coaches Marie-France Dubreuil and Patrice Lauzon on the ice. Dubreuil and Lauzon practice their original dance during the run-throughs of the other skaters.
Albena Denkova, Maxim Staviyski, Tatiana Navka and Roman Kostomarov laugh and talk as they stretch out.
Isabelle Delobel has arm muscles and is dancing with an imaginary partner off ice.
On ice, Marie-France and Patrice do their run-through of the free dance. The first section is good. The last section into the ending pose is intense in expression and improved from the Saturday free dance practice. They stay in character until the final bow.
Evgeny Platov and Yuri Balkov share some brief words in passing.
Pair skater Artur Dmitriev walks from the backstage area and up to the ice rink. He gives Roman Kostomarov a handshake over the boards while Roman stands on the ice. Artur takes a seat next to his coach, Alexander Zhulin.
Shae-Lynn Bourne is leaving directly in front of the stands again. She is mobbed for autographs and pictures. She signs for them and smiles and jokes.
Elena Grushina, Ruslan Goncharov, Tatiana Tarasova and Maya Usova enter the stands through the aisle beside me to watch the practices.
A video cameraman comes from backstage to capture Victor Kraatz signing autographs and taking pictures. Victor gives some pointers to the fans who are having a little difficulty with their camera.
Isabelle Delobel and Olivier Schoenfelder had a nice change of edge lift during their run-through. They also do a lift where he is in a spread eagle. They wear red, silver and black costuming.
Naomi Lang and Peter Tchernyshev are in black and white. She a white dress and he a white shirt with black pants. Their free dance music selection is up too loudly over the sound system and is becoming a menace to my nerves.
Benjamin Agosto's practice Elvis suit is light blue with paisley designs, and Tanith Belbin is in a dark blue dress. Their circular footwork is fast. Tanith's hair is flying throughout.
Tatiana Navka and Roman Kostomarov begin with Egyptian swaying. He holds onto her leg for a long time while they turn. Egyptian ninja moves in front of their coach. Zhulin sits where the judges will sit in the MCI Center translation. They do a swinging rotational lift. They gyrate toward each other. Her feet in the lifts get very close to the rink's borders. They must be accustomed to a larger ice surface. Not bad rhythm they have.
Albena Denkova and Maxim Staviyski are in black, blue and gold outfits that are an improvement over their competition outfits from the Grand Prix Series that previously featured a crab on the front of Maxim's costume. Rotational lift where his hands are concealed. He pulls an imaginary string out of her back, and she moves her head from side to side in the music. They come across more dramatically in person. The last two teams' music is up quite loud as well, but it seems to fit with the moves done and expressed.
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