Bacharach "Tribute On Ice" live show vs. the broadcast

**Jaana** · 12-17-2003, 09:40 AM

The show was in September and the skaters were Brian Boitano, Ilia Kulik, Brian Orser, Nicole Bobek, Yuka Sato, Caryn Kadavy, Jenni Meno & Todd Sand, Yuka Sato & Jason Dungjen, Renee Roca & Gorsha Sur.

Besides comments from the broadcast it would be especially interesting to hear also opinions about the live show vs. the broadcast, please.

Many times the skating suffers in the broadcast as the skaters perform in a show with live music. Let´s hope this will be different!!! The show will be broadcasted on NBC, Dec 20 4-6 pm EST.

Marjaana

**IDLERACER** · 12-17-2003, 11:10 AM

I'm just anxious to get a good look at Nicole Bobek's new upper torso. I wonder if the whole cast is going to throw on some psychedelic clothing and boogie to "Casion Royale."

**Brandenburg** · 12-17-2003, 03:47 PM

You saw her in Ice Wars which was even more recent.

**IDLERACER** · 12-17-2003, 09:16 PM

Yeah, and she looked fabulous. I was a bit disappointed that they didn't show her first number out here in California.

**Jaana** · 12-18-2003, 01:53 AM

Maybe Nicole´s first number at Ice Wars was not shown as she did not do that very well? On the other hand I think it is a bit strange to broadcast a competition or a show and leave one performance out. The same happened with Ilia Kulik in Holiday Ice Dreams broadcast. His second number ("A House Is Not A Home" which was skated wonderfully) was not shown... The more strange it made this, as the number was well placed in the show: Ilia was the last to skate before the closing number.

Marjaana

**IDLERACER** · 12-18-2003, 02:18 AM

Not to worry...If he skated to "A House Is Not A Home" then surely they will show that on the Burt Bacharach special

**Rgirl** · 12-18-2003, 06:27 AM

I wondered why Ilia was only shown skating one program in the "Holiday Dreams" special. I sure hope they show hime skating "A House is Not a Home" on the Bachrach special--so, Idle, I'm going to hold you personallyresponsible if it doesn't get on, lol. That program just GETS me! One of the most moving programs I've seen in a long time, male or female, pairs or ice dance, eligible or pro.
Rgirl

**Brandenburg** · 12-18-2003, 09:10 AM

"A House Is Not A Home" is the only solo program Ilia skated at Bacharach (although he did do some nice ensemble work too) and where it was debuted so it will clearly be shown. I agree that it is an extraordinary program and I hope the Bacharach broadcast allows viewers to see exactly how exceptional that performance was - it was stunning (now maybe that was because it was the first time I saw it but I think it may have been the best of a great series of performances of that program this season).

Why not from Holiday Ice Dreams? There has been continued discussion over at the Krew about that and it is very possible (actually likely) that Disson has the rights to broadcast the program first (as it was created specifically for his special) and he gave Ilia permission to use it in a competitive setting (Ice Wars) in the US but not in another pure entertainment program (Ice Dreams) until it debuted on the Bacharach special. Ilia also used the program in Antwerp (SOI Europe) where it was also taped. I think the issue is who got to debut the program on air in the US and I would guess that Disson Productions controls that. I was sort of surprised that for that reason and for the Christmas-y aspect of it that Ilia did not chose to use a non-competitive version of his Nutcracker program (so well done at Ice Wars) for Holiday Ice Dreams - that clearly would have made to broadcast.

I was at Ice Wars and the fact that Nicole's first program was not shown was a gift to her - it was a wipe out and her jumps were non-existant - she didn't look good. Her artistic program was obviously a great improvement and she looked like a different skater. BTW, she skated very nicely at Bacharach.

**Nadine** · 12-20-2003, 09:08 PM

Crazy Man!

Over here on the West Coast was trying to tape three programs at once.....no lie.....but only have two VCRs. They were ALL on around the same time. Yikes! (8^O

That said, only caught a little bit of this special. But, to be honest, I'm glad I had something else to tape b/c this show didn't particularly appeal to me in terms of music except a few songs. Oh well, I'm just glad that the pros. are getting the chance to skate ~ can't wait till the SOI special in January.

I mainly tuned into the special b/c of Nicole Bobek, someone that has always been a favorite skater of mine (no lie). However, I didn't have the patience to wait for her number. Too bad, does anybody know what she skated to?

Thanks in advance.

Peace & Love, Nadine

**IDLERACER** · 12-20-2003, 09:45 PM

Over all it was a pretty good special, albeit with way too many commercial breaks (no surprise there). I hate it when a skater is in the middle of a routine, and for some reason the director of photography suddenly decides to focus on a saxophone player. When one watches opera or ballet on television, you never see them suddenly aiming the camera at the orchestra pit. Ice skating simply gets no respect. My only other complaint has to do with Burt Bacharach's singing (croaking), but that's a beef that's been shared by everyone who's ever heard him butcher his own material over the last 40 years.

**Rgirl** · 12-20-2003, 10:29 PM

High five, Idle. ITA. My favorite cut in the Bacharach special was when Ilia was skating "House is not a Home" and the camera focused on the singers doing nothing. Great direction, lol. And great point about ballet and opera. Imagine a televised performance of "Swan Lake" or whatever and during the pas de deux focsing on the violinist.

I can understand the energy and sound of having live singing and music to skate to, and I don't mind the musicians and singers being shown, but why not put in segments when the skaters aren't doing anything, or anything much, and show the singers/musicians then?

Anyway, I could only watch the first hour of the Bacharach special because the first part of the GPF came on. Some nice ensemble work. Yuka was beautiful and skater extraordinaire as usual.

Brandenburg,
Nice to meetcha. I've seen "A House is Not a Home" before--Ice Wars?--I'm not sure. Anyway, I was prepared for stupid cuts on this one, but there weren't too many, IMO. In any case, the impact of the program still came through for me. When I was growing up--kid through teens--Bacharach songs were those things on the radio you just had to put up with and ended up humming to yourself all day anyway, lol. Now I can appreciate some of them as being not only emotionally true but also very difficult to sing well--as was demonstrated awfully well (and I do mean awful) on "American Idol." Anyway, I think Ilia's choreography and performance of "House" shows just what an amazing artist he is.

On other threads we've been talking about great skating basics--edges, speed, flow, etc.--vs. great dance ability--line, musicality, extension, amplitude, movement quality. Then there's the "X" factor of charisma or ability to connect to an audience. Anyway, for me, Ilia's got it all not only in spades, but diamonds, clubs, and aces as well. He can take overdone pieces of music, such as "Waltz of the Flowers" from "Nutcracker" and elevate it to the point where the whole program transcends itself. I've always loved his skating, but "House" is the first time I feel he's shown us his mature soul. In the SOI duet with Katia back in 2000, I felt we saw his young man's heart, but with "House" I felt I was seeing the heart of a husband and father. Kulik just impresses the hell out of me (big surprise to regular GSers, lol) and to be moved the way I am seeing "House" is something I find very rare in any art form. Nicely done, Ilia.
Rgirl

**Jaana** · 12-21-2003, 02:47 AM

> Rgirl
I've always loved his skating, but "House" is the first time I feel he's shown us his mature soul. >

WOW, you put it exactly right! The same I would also say about Ilia´s second Ice Wars programme, "Nutcracker"...

(I have followed Ilia´s skating starting in Europeans 1995, but if only speaking of his pro career now) it has the whole time been so great to watch "a new Ilia" with different kinds of skating programmes, ideas and approaches to his programmes appearing and getting better and better every season. Every season I have felt positively surprised. I also think that he is very blessed to have the artistic and musical talent for choreographing his own programmes.

Marjaana

**Rgirl** · 12-21-2003, 04:10 AM

Originally posted by Jaana
Rgirl: <I've always loved his skating, but "House" is the first time I feel he's shown us his mature soul. >
WOW, you put it exactly right! The same I would also say about Ilia´s second Ice Wars programme, "Nutcracker"...

(I have followed Ilia´s skating starting in Europeans 1995, but if only speaking of his pro career now) it has the whole time been so great to watch "a new Ilia" with different kinds of skating programmes, ideas and approaches to his programmes appearing and getting better and better every season. Every season I have felt positively surprised. I also think that he is very blessed to have the artistic and musical talent for choreographing his own programmes.
Marjaana

Thanks, Jaana.

And I agree with what you said both about Ilia's Ice Wars "Nutcracker" program as well as your whole other paragraph. I won't get started on "Why, why did SOI drop one of the greatest and most creative skaters they've ever had?" except to say I miss getting to see more of Ilia every season and especially miss getting to see him in person. Really a very unique and tremendous talent, IMO, and as you said, he seems to make more of it every year. To me, that's part of what defines a true artist.
Rgirl

**Joesitz** · 12-21-2003, 08:37 AM

Bacharach wrote such pleasant melodies and the entire show (although I didn't see it all due to NHK on ESPN) looked pleasant.

As for Ilia, I was pleasantly surprised to see him skate so lyrically. I had thought of him as a pure technical skater in the "look at my tricks" style. But no, he phrased every move perfectly to the music with beautiful line and masculine grace.

Cheers for Ilia Kulik

Joe

**Rgirl** · 12-21-2003, 01:04 PM

Glad you saw Ilia in his pro form, Joe. I think a lot of people got the "pure technical skater" impression of Ilia from the Olympics, where he was stone-faced with concentration. But in his first season with SOI, even I was impressed with how expressive he was both facially and with his whole body. And like you said, superb musical phrasing. He's been skating like this in exhibitions even from before SOI, though he wasn't as fully formed as he is now. But now you know that some of us gush over Ilia for his skating and that his looks are just the icing on a magnificent cake--at least IMO.
Rgirl