Should Ashley Wagner Keep Her Swan Lake LP Another Year? | Golden Skate

Should Ashley Wagner Keep Her Swan Lake LP Another Year?

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drivingmissdaisy

Record Breaker
Joined
Feb 17, 2010
Watching the performance from WTT, it seems like she is continuously improving small details of this program. I know not everyone likes the program, but those of us that do REALLY enjoy it. I think with another year she could have one performance that could really rank among the all-time great programs. The choreography really is genius, especially the end of her step sequence where the music quiets and she does her swan posing. This always gets a great reaction from the crowd and really engages them.
 
Like you, I love the program. I think Ashley has grown up. However, I would rather she move on to a new long program for the season. I do want her to revisit this program as an exhibition, free from the confines of COP.
 
I would say no. The program is good, but certainly no masterpiece. And I've seen it enough at this point.

I think skater shouldn't keep a program more than one season unless it's truly exceptional.
 
Judges generally don't like repeated programs, and few top skaters keep the same programs from one year to the next.

I recall Contesti kept both his SP and FS for a number of years and his marks went down; this year he had two new programs. Cynthia Phaneuf also repeats her programs and it doesn't help her marks.

Patrick Chan does repeat; his SP this year was a repeat of last year's and Aranjuez was his new one. The judges don't seem to hold it against him. I hope he doesn't keep Aranjuez and debut a new SP---I'd rather see two new programs.
 
The only person who benefited from keeping a program for a long time was Viktor Petrenko, when he had the same long program for almost a whole quadrennium! Then again, his biggest competition was injured during the Olympics.
 
blue dog said:
The only person who benefited from keeping a program for a long time was Viktor Petrenko, when he had the same long program for almost a whole quadrennium! Then again, his biggest competition was injured during the Olympics.
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different eras, I think. Scott Hamilton wrote in his book that for most of his senior years he used the same program layout and changed only parts of the music. Always ending with a piece from Swan Lake... Kurt Browning used several pieces over several years over and over... I don't think Viktor was out of the norm for it...
 
I guess I'm just nervous for Ashley because she hasn't ever had a program she skated this well and will be unhappy if she comes back next year with something underwhelming. I don't like her SP much and if she skates something like that for her LP I'll probably be disappointed.
 
Ashley can skate to "Tosca", "Scheherzade", "Firebird" or "Samson and Delilah"- perfect for her powerful and beautiful skating!

When will someone skate to Lament de Arianne?
 
It's best for her to try a new program next season. She can go back to Black Swan in the Olympic season if the new programs aren't working for her.

Tonichelle said:
different eras, I think. Scott Hamilton wrote in his book that for most of his senior years he used the same program layout and changed only parts of the music. Always ending with a piece from Swan Lake... Kurt Browning used several pieces over several years over and over... I don't think Viktor was out of the norm for it...
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Scott skated during the figures era. The figures had dwindled in value over the years but were still a significant part of the total score and required hours of practice. IIRC, the long program around that time was about five minutes in length. It was a lot of effort to learn a new long program and give the short program and compulsory figures the attention they deserved. A lot of skaters put together different pieces of music for the long program and rotated certain pieces out after each season.
 
I never, ever like it when skaters repeat music choices. 'Black Swan' for Ashley really was a 'breakthrough' program and yes, I'm going to miss it and it's going to be hard coming up with something equally exciting for next year but not impossible. I think she's still growing as an 'artistic' skater and it'll be very exciting to see what she comes up with!

I didn't like it when she kept her 'Once upon a time in America' SP for the 2010-2011 season and I don't think she really enjoyed skating the same SP two years in a row either but I think she had lots of health issues that off-season so she probably lacked time perfecting a new short. I think she's said frequently that she doesn't repeat programs because she'd get bored. That's the spirit!

'Black Swan' was good for her because of the drama, the intensity and the fact that she could really embrace being a character. The SP was good in that it was new music, I appreciate the originality but I think she could come up with a more exciting SP: make it something she really likes to perform too, like Yu Na was a master of the interesting short programs with Danse Macabre and Bond, I hope Ashley can come up with something snappy as well. For the long, I wonder if it's going to another familiar piece or something different. I wasn't a big fan of her Malaguena. The thing is if you skate to something everyone know and everyone has skated to, you have to really be good. Ashley got away with Swan Lake because of the 'twist' to the original and Chan got away with Aranjuez because.. well he's Chan.

Last but not least: Ashley really *enjoyed* skating to 'Black Swan'; if she finds something she enjoys just as much, I'm sure the performance will be great :)

Music ideas for Ashley?
Maybe 'Atonement' for the short, another soundtrack and I know it's her favourite book :D
 
Ashley's team did a great job this year. I love her sp. It ws quirky and interesting and as good as Caro' SP. I'd like to see her rework her LP it as an exhibition skate, but new programs are better for viewers and judges are viewers. Her WTT Swan performance was excellent. She Caro and Akiko were in a league f their own this year. They really are great performers now.
 
ashley's black swan is one of my favorite programs of all time. you could tell she loved skating that program and it was beautiful every time. i would rather remember this program just for this season and the success she had with it, so i would like her to have a new one next season.
 
macy said:
ashley's black swan is one of my favorite programs of all time. you could tell she loved skating that program and it was beautiful every time. i would rather remember this program just for this season and the success she had with it, so i would like her to have a new one next season.
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yes, it was great, but time to be even better.
 
Tonichelle said:
different eras, I think. Scott Hamilton wrote in his book that for most of his senior years he used the same program layout and changed only parts of the music. Always ending with a piece from Swan Lake... Kurt Browning used several pieces over several years over and over... I don't think Viktor was out of the norm for it...
Click to expand...

Evan Lysacek skated to Espana Cani for four seasons and the judges didn't seem to mind....

But, like many others here, I too hope that Ashley gets a new LP next season.
 
christinaskater said:
Ashley can skate to "Tosca", "Scheherzade", "Firebird" or "Samson and Delilah"- perfect for her powerful and beautiful skating!

When will someone skate to Lament de Arianne?
Click to expand...

I suppose but such a cliche hasn't Slutskaya and Rochette among others done these songs over and over. Can't Ashley find osmehting a little different. These four pieces are like sure to be used as Brittany Spears is to screw up; as it rains in England; as the Canadian ladies will tumble...okay I am getting melodramatic but why can't ashley do something a bit different.
 
I've never cared for the Black Swan program from Ashley, outside of the inventive and evocative spiral sequence. Black Swan was a nasty and gruesome movie about a horrible little person who hurts herself and others around her terribly just to put on a mediocre staging of Swan Lake. I'd rather not be reminded of it. And trying to make Ashley into a ballerina, even an edgy one, is a silly exercise. The part in the footwork where she imitates being en pointe is so awkward and stilted it's a laugh out loud moment every time she does it. Ashley is not a dainty ballerina and she doesn't have to be one.

The most convincing I've seen Ashley do in a style of dance is the club dancing in her On the Floor exhibition number. That seems to be the range of style that she should be going for: something modern and upbeat and aggressive. She should forgo traditional symphonic music entirely.
 
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