Monday Memories: Umbrellas of Cherbourg

Quite often, when Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir take the ice, talk will turn to “rivalry.” Will they beat Davis & White? What about the Shibutanis? But maybe the Russians…? This talk isn’t without merit, as past seasons have shown there to be a constant shifting of hierarchy in the ice dance world, but sometimes it would be far more appropriate for the commentators to let the skating speak. Virtue and Moir are so pure in style, so easy and free in their edges, that all of their programs hardly seem to be performed for competitive purposes. Their attention is always fully focused on each other, channeling their emotions into the rise and fall of the music. In 2008, their free program was particularly innovative, as they twizzled and spun to the haunting soundtrack from the Umbrellas of Cherbourg. Though young, they had a subtlety in their style that other teams spent years mastering.

 

Monday Memories: Schindler’s List, revisited

Lyrical, passionate, and poignant. Those are just three of the many adjectives to describe Jonathan Cassar’s skating, because in recent seasons he has revealed himself to be a quietly stunning presence on the American figure skating scene. Though you may not yet recognize his name, you surely know his coach’s name: Frank Carroll. Cassar moved to California in 2010 to train under Carroll, after finishing his undergraduate degree in dance at Oakland University (Michigan).

Cassar’s dance background is clear on the ice, where his soft edges and expressive hands allow the power in his programs to seem nearly effortless—and who could forget his absolutely glorious spread eagles that swoop around the rink?

Perhaps his most memorable program was his 2010-11 skate to music from Schindler’s List which, though an oft-heard selection among skaters, took on new meaning when Cassar competed with it at the 2010 U.S. Nationals.

We here at The Platinum Edge were privileged enough to be in the crowd then, and to experience the total silence that fell over the arena as he executed its intricate, sweeping choreography. It is doubtful that anyone who was there will forget that moment—or that Cassar will forget the standing ovation that followed.

Monday Memories: Kimmie Meissner

For most teenagers, their “sweet 16” is a milestone birthday. For Kimmie Meissner, however, sweet 16 is a good description of her World Championship winning performance in 2006. After finishing fourth at the Junior Worlds the year before, at age sixteen she easily won Senior Worlds the next year with a brilliant technical performance. Besides watching her execute six different triple jumps, the pure joy in her skating is infectious. This performance was likely the highlight of her career, and also a highlight of the 2006 World Championships.

Monday Memories: Tomas Verner

This program may not have been for an official competition, but we can’t help loving the spunk of Tomas Verner’s Pink Panther exhibition. Verner has a flair for showmanship and, while he’s not the most consistent skater on the circuit, he has the charisma to sell a program even when the jumps are falling apart. It also makes us smile to see the heart-shaped pillows that his fans throw! Here’s to hoping Verner’s creativity continues for many years to come, because his suave personality sure won us over.

 

Monday Memories: The Lark Ascending

She is South Korea’s greatest skater to date. Her beauty and eloquence on the ice are matched by few. In just several seconds of a program, she can capture a mood or emotion and sustain it until the last triumphant notes. Yu-Na Kim has had many memorable programs over the years, but the Lark Ascending has been one of her best.

 

Monday Memories: Matt Savoie

Many notable performances came out of the 2006 Torino Olympics. Some of these include: Evan Lysacek’s flawless free skate that rocketed him from tenth to fourth place, Belbin and Agosto’s flamenco free dance that earned the US its first Olympic ice dance medal, and the infamous original dance of Fusar-Poli and Margaglio where after being dropped Fusar-Poli stared her partner down for all to see. One performance that did not make headlines, but is a favorite of ours for its artistic fluidity and musicality, was Matt Savoie’s free program to The Mission soundtrack. The Mission has quickly become a common music selection for the figure skating world, but Savoie’s program sets the standard high for artistic expression. At the Torino Olympics he skated a technically clean program featuring intricate transitions into nearly every element, making it one of our favorite programs.

 

Monday Memories: Delobel & Schoenfelder

Happy Monday, everyone! It’s been a very, very exciting weekend in the skating world, with thrilling finales to all of the Four Continents events. Virtue & Moir narrowly bested Davis & White; two American pairs medaled; Ashley Wagner proved she is “all that”, and Patrick Chan posted more stunning numbers. Hop on over to Icenetwork.com to catch up on all the action.

Today, however, is about remembering a program from years past, and we would like to start out with one of our absolute favorites. This program comes from the 06-07 season, before the days of the “short dance,” when ice dancing was still divided into three sections. One particular French couple was displaying extraordinary innovation and synchronicity in their skating: Isabelle Delobel and Olivier Schoenfelder. They had skated together since a very young age and were quickly gaining international attention with the momentum following their respectable results at the 2006 Winter Olympics.

Their Untouchables program stands out in memory as a free dance that delivered more than razor-sharp elements and musical flow. It told a story and sucked the audience into its power. The ending when she slides under his knees? What a bang with which to close! Or how about that rotational lift? They skate as though they are in a Bourne movie, but with a refreshing lack of cheesiness. The cut of the music is impeccable. It allows them to establish the premise of the program and build and build until the final seconds.

We could watch this program for hours and not get tired of it. We hope you think the same!

Platinum Edge Featurettes

Monday can be a slow day where skating news is concerned. Come Friday, we are certain that your stream of online news (whether it be via blog, Twitter, Facebook, FSO site, or newspaper) will be veritably overwhelmed with practice news or competition results, but this doesn’t solve the problem of slow Mondays.

In order to brighten your day a little bit, Platinum Edge is happy to announce the launch of “Monday Memories,” a weekly post dedicated to reviving some of our favorite programs from the past decade. We’ll feature videos from all senior international disciplines, so if you have a program that you would especially like to see discussed, please speak up and leave a comment! We can’t wait to post these memorable programs and hear your thoughts on them.

Hope you’re enjoying the Icenetwork coverage of Four Continents (and the wonderful time zone that allows everyone to catch the event live!)