Meoima, Please read the following excerpt from the Vaytsekhovskaya (EV) interview with Ilya (IA):
EV: How badly do you have to adjust yourself to a skater you are working with?
IA: The most interesting work was with Elena Radionova. She feels the music so well and sometimes would add some great gestures which integrated perfectly into the programme. It's much harder when the skaters says `I need my arms to go this way, my head that way and am going to skate this direction'. There is no room left for creativity, as you can imagine. A lot depends on the coach as well. For example working with Lipnitskaya it wasn't her I was choreographing for, but Tutberidze, so she would understand what I mean to do, so she would like it. Just that the skater is not always willing to take orders, just like Julia. But what can you do?
With these words Ilya tells us he had no use for Yulia's upper-body work. He says he found Yulia's upper body work to be anti-creative. For him Yulia was a head-strong girl who would not take orders, who would insist, "I need my arms to go this way, my head that way and am going to skate this direction." He prefers Radionova, who added touches here and there, a few embellishments to enhance his program. Eventually he gave up on Yula so he choreographed for Eteri, hoping Eteri would intercede (which didn't happen). Essentially, he confesses that he could not work with Yulia because he did not respect her efforts regarding upper body movement, and she would not let go of her method in favor of his. It's that two artists problem, where they get nowhere when attempting to work together. Remember also, Eteri said upper body movement is Yulia's creation, it is very special to her. She will take suggestions, but she decides. Upper body movement is the heart of Yulia's method of self-expression, it is a major reason why she skates. It is the only reason I watch her. Almost nothing of what I have been talking about came from Ilya.