Friday, March 28 - Ice Dance Free Dance

Musical Chairs


I left the Ladies Short Program to revisit the flower shop in preparation for the Free Dance final. By the time I arrived there, I realized that it had closed down early. It was after 5 p.m., and I wasn't sure where else I could find flowers at this hour. I walked back to the hotel and did some thinking in my room. What should I do? I remembered the phone book that I had looked through in the lobby. So, I got on the elevator and went downstairs. When I asked for a phone book, the employee directed me to the concierge desk across the lobby and said they could help me.

So, I had finally found the concierge and was beginning to discover its usefulness. When I got to the desk, there were about four or five other people waiting in line with needs. A businessman on the way to a conference held up his shoe. 'Do you have a rubber band or something?' he asked. The rubber sole of his shoe was completely detached from the leather, and it would definitely flap when he walked. 'We might have some superglue,' replied a person on the other side of the desk, undaunted by his request. There were two or three people behind the desk, so I pursued someone else. 'I'm looking to buy some flowers,' I told the lady. She called two or three places and had to ask a co-worker where to try next. The calls were either unanswered or the response was that it was too late, and they were closed. At this time, it was just after 6 p.m. The co-worker directed her to one more number. Someone answered the line. The lady gave the receiver to me and told me to talk to the florist directly. I informed the florist that I was interested in a bouquet of yellow roses. The florist told me they would start preparing it, and it would be ready by the time I arrived. The concierge lady wrote down the name and address of the shop on a piece of paper of a tablet and told me to catch a taxi out front. I thanked her sincerely and was happy to comply with the taxi command.

I hopped into a taxi outside. The phlegmatic taxidriver had mellow religious music playing on the radio. He took my tablet paper of the address and barely spoke or reacted to anything during the drive. We passed Dupont Circle, the roads that met in a complete circle. Not far from there, he pulled up beside a flower shop. I asked him if he would wait. He asked how long. I said five minutes. He agreed. I did not want to get stranded out there and didn't know if taxis would readily come along. The flowers were very authentic and looked like they had just been clipped from the garden. They were baby yellow roses. And, the florist was giving me pointers on what to do to assist them in continuing to open, thinking they would be in my possession for a long while. There was a problem with the receipt printer, and she had to go ahead and hand write the receipt. But, it didn't take too long. She was polite and friendly. I collected my flowers and re-entered the waiting taxi. Traffic was starting to build up. But, he began to drive aggressively, and I was soon back at the hotel.

I ran up to the room to prepare my dance booklets and my many accessories. I realized the stems of the roses made the floral arrangement too long and that the tops of the flowers would be visible under my coat. So, I had to have the stems cut down. I finally got myself together and headed off for the MCI Center.

I rolled into the free dance 30 minutes late and had missed the entire first group. Luckily, there was no seating attendant present at the section near Kiss & Cry, so I walked right in. I found Kieran near where we had been sitting for the original dance the day before. Little did I know that was one of nearly five seats I would sit in that night. I decided to try sitting in the front row, for ease of flower delivery, since it was mostly vacant at the time. Then, the inhabitants of the seats came later in the free dance. I backtracked four or five rows to an empty seat on the end where I had hoped to be able to sit for two or three skates. About 5 minutes later, the person for that seat arrived, and I packed up my things once more - flowers, booklets, camera, binoculars, coat, cardigan all loose in my arms. I had been leaving a trail of scarves and mittens in my wake. I finally settled into a seat in the second row, so it would be easy to get up and present. I met Sierra, who told me the inhabitant of that seat hadn't been present most of the week. She was very nice, and we discussed our lists of favorite dance teams, and even the frustrations of the inconsistencies of the talent, Sasha Cohen. Sierra had attended several previous Worlds and really enjoyed them.

Starting with the fifth team to skate that evening.

Veronika Moravkova and Jiri Prochazka of Czech Republic - Hello Dolly soundtrack:
vocals to Hello Dolly musical - one of the voices is Louis Armstrong
interesting concept
red dress for her, tux for him
They hugged at the end.
Tech: 4.3-4.8
Pres: 4.4-5.0

Pamela O'Connor and Jonathon O'Dougherty of Great Britain - Funeral for a Friend:
navy blue outfits
howling in the background score
dark, organ music
twizzles - a little slow
neat balance move with Jonathon on one leg and Pamela wrapped sideways across his midsection
Tech: 4.1-4.5
Pres: 4.2-4.8

Nozomi Watanabe and Akiyuki Kido of Japan - Sing, Sing, Sing/Baby It's Cold Outside/Sing, Sing, Sing:
black and white costumes
opening lift where he spins her on the level of his shoulders
lift that changes directions
rotational lift
lunges by Kido
spin
lift with good stretch by Nozomi
circular footwork
twizzles
lift where she steps up and swings her leg over his shoulder and down his back, he drops her between his legs
spin
return to Sing, Sing, Sing
lift
Kido jumps over her back
final lift into final pose
A lively and playful performance. They really pull off this music and choreography well. Nozomi is able to keep up with Kido in the expression of the music.
Tech: 3.9-4.6
Pres: 4.3-4.8

Nora Hoffmann and Attila Elek of Hungary - Lovely Sunset:
white and gold costumes
music is Egyptian - drums with little melody
Attila fell in the straight line footwork
At the end of the performance Nora kissed his cheek. She was crying by the time they arrived at the Kiss & Cry swinging door. They waved while sitting in Kiss & Cry.
Tech: 3.9-4.7
Pres: 4.3-4.9

Weina Zhang and Xianming Cao of China - Far and Away soundtrack/The Umbrellas of Cherbourg:
black costumes
Far and Away is the perky part
Umbrellas of Cherbourg - slower and more romantic
neat rotational lift
Tech: 4.3-4.7
Pres: 4.4-4.8

Kristin Fraser and Igor Lukanin of Azerbaijan - Cha-Cha-Cha/Rhumba/Samba:
I like the beat and sound of the music choices
Cha-Cha-Cha - fast
Rhumba - slow and romantic
Samba - energetic
Kristin smiled throughout the program. At this stage of the free dance, I was sitting near a teenage girl who was distributing gifts to this team when they came by after their performance. I asked her if she was an ice dancer. She answered that she did freestyle. She asked me if I was an ice dancer. I said, 'No. I wish.' She had some friends that were flower girls on the ice. She told us that the items thrown on the ice were being thrown out in the back.
Tech: 4.5-5.0
Pres: 4.7-5.2

Natalia Gudina and Alexei Beletski of Israel - Notre-Dame de Paris (soundtrack):
During their warm-up group, I was sitting in the front row talking to someone. I heard a loud boom and had no idea what on earth had happened. Gudina and Beletski had had a bad fall into the boards right in front of me, which had created the noise. They both stayed down for about four seconds. They managed to get up without assistance, but had pained expressions on their faces. The impact was so intense that several spots of paper labeling on the wall of the boards had fell off in shreds to the ice. The flower girls had to come out to pick up the pieces. Gudina and Beletski seemed to be all right, and skated fine in the free dance.
Tech: 4.4-4.8
Pres: 4.6-5.2

Federica Faiella and Massimo Scali of Italy - Ayer/Demaniado/Volveras/Demaniado:
They received a large audience response to their dance. Somebody threw a rubber chicken at Massimo when he exited the ice. He picked it up and was swinging the chicken around by the neck in the Kiss & Cry area.
Tech: 4.6-5.2
Pres: 4.7-5.3

Megan Wing and Aaron Lowe of Canada - Starting Over/I'm Losing You/Dear Yoko/Imagine:
tie died orange and hot pink costumes
bells ringing
Megan does a spin independently
lift with changes of position
twizzles
lift
spin
lift with one of her knees between both of his knees
rotational lift
circular footwork
neat spin with the top of her head touching his waist and her leg outstretched
Too many music cuts and too rock n'roll for my free dance tastes. Megan has strengths, and it showed in some nice highlights. More distinguishing moves could help them. The connections leading to the highlights okay, some room for improvement. The speed was fairly good.
Tech: 4.5-5.1
Pres: 4.7-5.3

Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin of Russia - Afro-Latin Mix:
green costumes
music with danceable beats
They had good energy.
Tech: 4.3-4.9
Pres: 4.5-5.2

Tanith Belbin and Benjamin Agosto of U.S.A. - Elvis Presley medley:
Heartbreak Hotel
lift
spin - he in a low position
Hound Dog
back to Heartbreak Hotel
slower section
low hydroblade-like lift
twizzles
lift
lift with Ben in a spread eagle and Tanith hanging forward from his thighs
spin
Jailhouse Rock
posing
rotational lift
Again, too many different song choices and cuts. And, rock n'roll not my free dance preference. I don't know, and it really has nothing to do with whether or not I like the rock singer or the song. This was a spirited dance. The timing and connections of the dance reminded me of a jive - a rhythm sometimes used for the original dance - next year. The lead ins to the highlights nice, a little hand in hand. They seem to enjoy what they do and each other.
Tech: 5.2-5.6
Pres: 5.4-5.7

Marie-France Dubreuil and Patrice Lauzon of Canada - Dance With My Heart:
blue and maroon costumes
start separated with backs turned to each other
they meet and he swings her by her hips on the level of his knees
fast spin
push ups to the heartbeats of the music
twizzles
she rolls along on his back with her eyes closed
circular footwork
lift where he is on one leg and is balancing her weight on his free leg
lift where Marie-France is standing up in front of Patrice and turns around to stand up facing him
rocking to the heartbeats of the music
Patrice appears to nibble Marie-France's neck
lift that appears to start like a spin with their legs intertwined and she faces down to the ice
spin
twizzles
more turning in each other's arms
back to back lift with his lifting arms extended away from his body
butterfly lift
final pose lift
My personal favorite dance of the night. Choreographically and by degree of difficulty, it is the best free dance they've ever done. They have upgraded their connections between highlight moves and do more turning within each other arms from their previous dances. I appreciate how the positions in their highlight moves are unique to them. Marie-France is very strong in these positions. Patrice is a very gentle partner in the way he guides and lifts her, and has a nice line. They had good speed and flow. I find the music tranquilizing and entrancing. The expression portrayed by both is duly passionate.

I stood up after their bow and made my way to the boards. They were on their way to Kiss & Cry, and Marie-France was collecting gifts thrown on the ice. Patrice saw me and started to skate over. Then, Marie-France saw me standing and came over. I held out the yellow roses over the boards for her to take. Her eyes lit up and grew intense. 'Ohhhhhhh!' She exclaimed and accepted the flowers. I didn't want to leave Patrice out, so I handed him a 'Hooray' card to accompany the flowers. I also gave up the two 4 inch by 6 inch Canadian flags I had remaining to him, since he had free hands. They both said thank you to me and were smiling. The next thing I know, Marie-France and Patrice were giving me the kiss on both cheeks. At some point, he shared a Canadian flag with her because I saw one in her hand as they entered the Kiss & Cry area. Some ladies were discussing the quality of Patrice's body and cheekbone structure after they headed for Kiss & Cry.
Tech: 4.9-5.3
Pres: 5.1-5.3

Isabelle Delobel and Olivier Schoenfelder of France - Mythodea:
start with a nice spin
interesting entrance into a lift where he elevates her by the knee
lift where Olivier holds Isabelle in front of him - holds her from her underarms
balance move
spin
lifts her by her knee up to his shoulder level, changes positions where she is upside down
lift where he is in a spread eagle and she is upside down balancing on his thighs
twizzles
rotational lift
lunge together
final lift into the closing pose
This is an intense and good dance. The dramatic music and mood suits their long line and style. This is another team that has improved. They are well matched in ability and fluid in motion. I felt both of Muriel's top ten teams could have been awarded higher marks.
Tech: 5.0-5.3
Pres: 5.1-5.5

Galit Chait and Sergei Sakhnovsky of Israel - Variations on the Theme of Paganini:
begins with her stepping on his thigh into opening lift
spin
lift
circular footwork to the staccato sounding section of the music
rotational lift
twizzles
lift that ends with Galit draped back over his knee - into her toe steps from this position to the runs of the piano
he turns her briskly in pirouettes
spin
fierce lift
lift
he turns her in more pirouettes
twizzles
final lift with the hidden hand clasp and Galit hanging upside down
Again, they have speed, intensity and drama. Maybe, at the expense of some more smooth edging. They sure have a presence on the ice and attack in their skating.
Tech: 5.3-5.6
Pres: 5.5-5.7

Naomi Lang and Peter Tchernyshev of U.S.A. - Still Loving You:
began separated
what looks like the start of a spin becomes a lift
he turns her into slow pirouettes
double spread eagle
Peter does death drop type move into a short, individual spin
circular footwork - slow turns and tentative by Naomi
lift with her knee by his shoulder
lift that turns into a balance move
spin
rippling lift where he holds her like a baby
twizzles
hand and hand into more twizzles
rotational lift with stretch by Naomi
straight line footwork - music doesn't help the flow
low hydroblade where he supports her weight
final lift - held a long time
This performance was an improvement from Nationals. Still, I saw a good deal of hand in hand in position holds. The rocky music doesn't support the smooth style they want to achieve. A bit of a showpiece to me.
They received a standing ovation and huge applause. Naomi was crying from the bow through their trip to Kiss & Cry. On the trip there, they stopped to collect stuffed animals and flowers. Someone near our section had a bouquet for them.
Tech: 5.1-5.5
Pres: 5.3-5.6

Shae-Lynn Bourne and Victor Kraatz of Canada - Adagio of 21st Century:
she begins shaded over him while he is crouched down
opening lift with their legs intertwined
skating a little off the beat of the music - they get back on
synchronized knee slides on the ice
lift where Victor raises Shae with both of his hands on her knees and she rests her head over his head before returning to the ice
side by side running in place on the ice
twizzles - might have missed unison a little
backward stroking into the lift where Victor is in a low glide and Shae's legs are in a star position with her body resting on his knee
killian into spread eagles - they are back to back and his spread eagle is high while hers is low
he holds her up from under her arms while she runs in place in front of him
circular footwork with a variety of moves
trademark hydroblading where they do synchronized stroking to one side, then the other
lift
hydroblade move where he leans on her for support
spin
she pulls him by a string while he chases her
rotational lift
twizzles
fast final footwork
final lift where he is in a spread eagle and her legs are outstretched over his - this becomes the final pose when he lays backward on her legs to stop
I'm not typically big on Bourne and Kraatz free dances - just a stylistic preference. I'll admit that it was a refreshing change to see them pursue a more dramatic, abstract piece than usual.

More on my preferences - dance teams known for strong, inventive highlights and interpretive expression of the music and choreography active from late 1980's to present. To name a few examples, Marina Klimova and Sergei Ponomarenko and Marina Anissina and Gwendal Peizerat stand out to me.

Back to the Bourne/Kraatz free dance analysis. I thought they had good and more difficult lifts than some of their previous free dances. I did have the concern that the highlights were mostly from low positions as opposed to more of a variety of highs and lows. They seemed to be using mostly killian holds in the stroking into the highlights, which is designed as more difficult than hand in hand. The techno beats and synthesized mood created by the music fit better with Shae-Lynn's upright posture, and make her movement seem a bit more natural. Overall, interesting music and free dance.
Dagmar Kraatz, Victor's mother, sat in our section during the free dance. She had a seat right on the Kiss & Cry wall. She was in anticipation for part of the evening, and had to go out and come back some. Bourne and Kraatz received a standing ovation. People were yelling out, 'Thank you Shae and Vic. Thank you for 10 years,' and related comments of appreciation since it was the last competition before their upcoming retirement.
Tech: 5.7-5.8
Pres: 5.8-5.9

Elena Grushina and Ruslan Goncharov of Ukraine - Quixote:
they began in a hug - choreography
spin with her leg arched high
twizzles
low moves by Elena
toe steps
lunges by Elena
rotational lift
toe steps
lift/balance move with Ruslan on one leg
circular footwork
lift
another lift with Ruslan on one leg and in a low glide
lift with Elena stepping on his knees with one foot and her free leg extended
twizzles
more knees to the ice moves by Elena
upside down balance lift into ending pose - Elena dipped back over Ruslan's knee
This free dance fits the intense style I like. It resembles the overall 'Year of the Dirge' (2000-2001 season) ice dance teams' free dances that were actually fun for me. Elena and Ruslan had good attack and mostly good speed. Elena probably has the most technically varied footwork of the ladies this year with all of the lunges, steps, low and high movements woven in the choreography. I did notice some hand in hand holds in the dance to build speed as connections into the highlights. They had good highlights and balance moves.
Tech: 5.3-5.6
Pres: 5.4-5.7

Irina Lobacheva and Ilia Averbukh of Russia - Rock 'n' Roll medley:
Ilia motions for the crowd to pump up the cheering as they take the starting positions
musical score intro with a low voice talking, chanting, then screaming - not sure if it sounds scary or fun
turns by Ilia
high lift with Irina swinging at his shoulder level
side by side footwork
jive flavor in turning in each other's arms
'Having me some fun tonight' from Little Richard's Tutti Frutti
posing into music change
Rip It Up
twizzles
lift with Irina in a star position with her hip resting on Ilia's head - fast rotations in difficult connection
posing into Fever selection
dance spin
twizzles
side by side dancing to the beat of the music
foxtrot position holds
pirouettes
lift where she starts completely upside down, Ilia drops one hand and catches her legs down by his knees
dance spin - slow, fitting the current song tempo
'Baby, baby it looks like it's gonna hail' - Jump Jive An' Wail music
another lift around his shoulders - has many changes of position
Too many music choices, and I'm uncertain how some of them go together. Little Richard's song and Fever aren't so similar. I know they're both in an oldies music time period. I know Irina and Ilia want to bring a lighter side to dancing this year versus the dramatic, but it almost seems like a reach to the American audience at Worlds, which is a good intention. Ilia is good with this music, but I'm not sure Irina skates as comfortably to it. I felt they could have done even more skating within each other's arms in place of some of the individual side by side footwork with their hips adjacent in synchronized dance moves. Still, Ilia is the ultimate entertainer, and probably singly the best skater and performer of the evening. He just has a reckless abandon, high energy level and a varied expressive, yet genuine presentation.
The crowd went wild when it was revealed that Bourne and Kraatz were still in first after Lobacheva and Averbukh's marks were read.
Tech: 5.7-5.9
Pres: 5.8-6.0

Albena Denkova and Maxim Staviyski of Bulgaria - Afrah Baladi:
Middle Eastern music theme
side by side synchronized moves
spin that becomes a lift
interesting lift where they face each other, Albena anchors herself to Maxim's shoulders and he holds onto both of her legs that are bent backward
fast circular footwork
moves with interlocking arms
lift where he swings her while she is anchored to his side
they stop to do movements - she shakes her neck from side to side
twizzles
lift with some changes of position - begins with her kneeling on his waist, then flipping upside down while he does a spread eagle
spin with her knee touching his waist
lift
jump by Albena, leading into the final pose
I wish I understood better the concept of this free dance, and accompanying costuming. I enjoy these more abstract, conceptual, theme free dances and would like to know the snake significance. Albena and Maxim are well matched in terms of the technical content and execution of the footwork. They had a lot of nice dance holds. The highlights are very interesting. The execution of positions could have a little more fluidity. Maxim shows some pizzazz in the expression of the choreography.
Tech: 5.4-5.8
Pres: 5.5-5.8

Tatiana Navka and Roman Kostomarov of Russia - The Feeling Begins:
he mimes like he's turning her, without touching her
snaky movements
spin
twizzles
upside down lift with Tatiana' s body in an upside down 'U' shape
twizzles
stop to make Walk Like An Egyptian and other arm movements and dancing
circular footwork
lift where he is in a spread eagle and she's facing him, sitting on his lap
he pulls her by the knee
he weaves from side to side behind her
they skate backward in synchronized movements
lift where he is in a spread eagle and she in an upside down splits position
interlocking besti squat - they both do besti squats at the same time facing each other, so her besti squat is below his
rotational lift - several rotations
they stop face to face, join hands and shake it
diagonal dance sequence
more synchronized dance steps
final rotational lift into ending pose
These two are great performers. They are very aggressive in execution and immersed in the character throughout the dance. Their last year's free dance introduced me to the rhythm and danceability they have. The heavy beats and percussion nature of their current music supports this.
Tech: 5.4-5.8
Pres: 5.6-5.8

I'm still okay with Denkova and Staviyski's bronze medal over Navka and Kostomarov. It's likely the right choice. My quip that I discovered later is with ABC and ESPN for not showing more teams. They showed neither of the above. To omit a medal winning team is bordering on the preposterous.

My minimum deep thought on the judging is this. Is it possible that Teams 3 through 16 have equal strength in their original dance as their free dance? For example, what if Team Apple and Team Orange are very similar in skill, but have different styles. Isn't it possible that Team Apple might have an outstanding original dance, but a so-so free dance while Team Orange might have a sensational free dance and a mediocre original dance? The original dance rhythm selected for that year may not be a comfortable one for Team Orange. Team Apple may have picked a free dance theme that doesn't suit them. How, then can Team Apple still get higher grades for both the original dance and free dance and place higher than Team Orange who received lower grades for both the original dance and free dance? And, the free dance in theory still counts for a greater percentage of the final score than the original dance. By the way, Apple and Orange don't have particular surnames. They're listed for illustration. I realize there was likely a variance in the judges ordinals, but the overall standing of so many teams stationary - it's just a thought. And, I'm still trying to learn so much technically on what separates the men from the boys, so to speak.

Everyone in the audience stood again for the medal ceremony, like the previous two medal ceremonies. Shae-Lynn was crying on the medal podium and wiping her eyes. She sang along to the Canadian anthem. Victor not as visibly emotional, but likely just as moved.

After the podium photos and as the victory lap had begun, Albena Denkova and Maxim Staviyski skated over to the boards of the Kiss & Cry area. Off ice, on the other side of the boards, stood Margarita Drobiazko and Povilas Vanagas, there to congratulate them. Albena gave the flowers she had received from the medal ceremony to Margarita, and they shared a hug. I was reminded that it was Albena Denkova who had helped to start the petition appeal on behalf of Drobiazko and Vanagas's placement at last year's Worlds.

After the skaters exited the ice from the ceremony, I had climbed the steps and just entered the hallway. I had just said goodbye to Sierra. I spotted Patrice Lauzon, then Marie-France Dubreuil, stepping out from behind him. They were waiting for the elevator in the main hallway. They were in training clothes and Team Canada jackets and had their red carry-on bags on wheels alongside. Patrice was smiling and waving at me. I waved back. Marie-France was cradling the yellow roses in her arms. 'Thanks for the flowers,' she called to me in a lively voice, with a smile. My bumbling idiosyncrasies returned, and I was speaking inaudibly low again. 'Huh?' Marie-France inquired and took a few steps forward. I walked over to where they were standing. 'Be careful with the flowers. They're thorny. I don't want you to get cut,' my voice trailed off at the end. Well, duh! A typical characteristic of the stem of a rose is thorns, I thought to myself. 'Thank you,' Marie-France stated to me again. 'Thank you,' I said. They were always so gracious, accepting, and happy that I am their fan. I really enjoyed them.

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