2017 Internationaux de France Free Dance

[humbaba]

And of course, too much of an ask for both Andrew and Evan to hit twizzles.

Yep, I feel for Andrew, Evan and Zach. It's tough for tall people to control rotation around the long axis.

 

[college pat]

great job Papakis/Cizeron, keep improving, CHock and bates, weaver & poje, stepanova & bukin for medaling as well s those who qualifed for gp fina. Great job, nice way to progress for this year. keep it up. keep working out kinks and improve

 

[Alba]

It would be ironic if V&M don't win the OGM this time around as well. Losing yet again to another teammate. lol

 

[lauravvv]

No, I think she is right. I can appreciate their FD inspite of the music. Why add the vocals? It kills the mood!

They did not add the vocals by themselves, and neither did anyone do it especially for their FD. If you looked at their ISU bio, you would see that the Liebestraum with a male vocal part that they are using is called 'Love's Dream by Rick Wakeman'. It's from a 70s movie called 'Lizstomania' for which Rick Wakeman did his own arrangements of several classical music pieces by Lizst and other composers. If you are wondering who this Rick Wakeman is, which you most likely are if you are not interested in/have no knowledge of classical rock music - he is a famous classical rock pianist and composer and one of the leaders of the legendary band 'Yes'. And the male singer on the piece is Roger Daltrey, the lead vocalist of another legendary rock band, 'The Who'. He was one of the most notable/best known vocalists on the rock scene at the time, so no wonder that Wakeman invited him to sing on this piece. Although I must say that he sounded better and different when singing together with 'The Who', and I have no idea what happened to make him sound like and old man with a trembling voice. Also, I don't know/recognize who the female singer is.

 

[slider11]

Really....Chock and Bates get higher goe's on their twizzles than Weaver and Poje?

 

[Barb]

Really....Chock and Bates get higher goe's on their twizzles than Weaver and Poje?

no, it is not true

 

[Bcash]

The British commentators were talking about similarities in some choreographic touches in P/C and C/B's FD. TBH I noticed that in CoC too. Could this be Chris Dean being lazy lol?

 

[Winnie]

The point is nobody was talking about they would dominate this quad. It was all about I/K. So, I don´t think is sure that P/C will continue dominating the next 4 years

Well yes I do agree that is unpredictable what will happen and I tend to think another team will rise. Injuries, etc can always happen. Plus, there will be scoring changes and adjustments to the rules. However, the way you stated it made it seem like PC just came out the blue when that's not really happened. I think a lot of people felt they had potential back then, they just got to the top much more quickly than was expected.

 

[Ophelia]

Now that was a masterpiece

I still think their Mozart FD was by far their best and iconic.

 

[Anyasnake]

The British commentators were talking about similarities in some choreographic touches in P/C and C/B's FD. TBH I noticed that in CoC too. Could this be Chris Dean being lazy lol?

Dean did P/C's SD only. The FD was done by Marie-France and Jeffrey Cirio an American ballet dancer.

 

[Alba]

really....chock and bates get higher goe's on their twizzles than weaver and poje?

c&b 0.10
w&p 0.60

 

[Ophelia]

What is Cizeron's background? I have never seen an ice dancer move the way he does. He could skate by himself and win all the gold medals.

 

[Ender]

It would be ironic if V&M don't win the OGM this time around as well. Losing yet again to another teammate. lol

It seems very likely that way. Judges are on P/C side all the way now. V/M have to count on their mistakes which I doubt will happen.

 

[avantgardener]

I adore P/C and this program is magnificent but I actually think it's their weakest FD of the quad....it just doesn't stand out to me in comparison to their others.

It's funny… I simultaneously agree that Moonlight Sonata is their weakest FD of the quad in terms of the emotion it stirs in me (vs. all three other programs, which = *ALL the FEELS*) —> while ALSO believing that this actually *is* their best / most accomplished program of the quad—and could very well become *the* iconic program we'll eventually look back on as career-defining (à la Bolero + Torvill/Dean).

Ha, so I find myself a bit conflicted… P&C's last three programs moved me profoundly, in a way no other ice dance programs have ever made me feel. The last two programs, in particular, sort of wear their hearts on their sleeves—and the emotion the programs evoke = so immediate and accessible and unfettered… It's exuberant but delicate and so, so, lovely (…again, #AllTheFeels). Moonlight Sonata, I think, represents a more mature, sophisticated, grown-up version of P&C —> it's their trademark heart-on-the-sleeve etherealness + a more intellectual *formalist* approach… In many ways, it's the polar opposite of last year's rather avant-garde program —> which I think embodies P&C at their most free-form + abstract + emotion-based style of storytelling. Moonlight Sonata is much more controlled and focused—and I think it's absolutely genius —> the most cohesive, thoughtful, nuanced program they've ever done.

That said, while their other programs speak to me on an almost purely emotional level, Moonlight Sonata engages me on a more *intellectual* level—which isn't to say it doesn't also stir me on an emotional level… it's just this more mature, formalist + structured approach makes that emotional engagement with the program fundamentally different from how I engage with their earlier programs. It's hard to really articulate well —> but I feel like their earlier [heart-on-their-sleeve-ier] programs take you on this journey of emotions from moment to moment as you progress through the program—whereas Moonlight Sonata's emotional wallop is less immediate / in-the-moment-to-moment —> but rather, its power comes from the *cumulative* effect of the program / their interpretation of this music that hits you really as the program builds toward the end. And my *heart* of course wants another program in the same vein as their last three (yay, accessible-emotional-joy[et al.]ride!) —> while my *brain* appreciates the complexity and maturity of this program that still does generate its own (but *different*) emotional power. [That moment, post-lighthearted-piano-tinkering, when Gabriella collapses onto Guillaume with the piano 'crash' = *swoon*… —> probably among my, like, top-three all-time favorite choreographic moments… (ha, you know—just after Sotnikova's Olympic gold-winning choreographed hand wave… :handw: :-D )

Anyway! I apologize for the long + ramble-y post! And I hope my attempt to articulate in words these rather complex emotions hasn't resulted in *total* gibberish … But your comment really helped to crystalize my thinking feelings about Moonlight Sonata in comparison to P&C's other programs of the quad… And I'm *really* curious to hear anyone's thoughts on this—and whether you might have a similar (or entirely different) take on P&C's Olympic-year free dance.

Cheers...

—Michael

 

[Ophelia]

I can't tell who is hotter - Cizeron or his coach Roman.

 

[Alba]

It seems very likely that way. Judges are on P/C side all the way now. V/M have to count on their mistakes which I doubt will happen.

Hummm Idk. We'll have to see how the judges react when they'll compete together, in GPF.

I can't tell who is hotter - Cizeron or his coach Roman.

Roman, for me. But only cause Cizeron is too beautiful.

 

[peepsquick]

Thanks Lauravvv for the background infos on the music. Mine was more of a rhetorical question. This could be so much better if they'd skate on Lizst original piece!

 

[Bcash]

Dean did P/C's SD only. The FD was done by Marie-France and Jeffrey Cirio an American ballet dancer.

I know Cirio worked on movement quality with them but he's not listed as their choreographer. Is MFD the only one listed for their FD on official documents?

 

[Moxiejan]

G/P didn't medal at their first Grand Prix, they have no chance of making the final. The tie breakers (highest total combined score, etc.) kick in only for teams who have the same amount of qualifying points due to earning similar medals, 2 silver, 2 bronze, etc.

I didn't say they got a medal; they got 9 points for 4th. It's not true that the GPF is open only to those who win 2 medals; if that were the case, there wouldn't be a standings table that keeps track of points awarded down to 6th place in dance.

So, yes, if they somehow won 1st at SA, they would have 24 (9 + 15). In that case, the combined score tiebreaker wouldn't even come into play because the 1st-place finish (highest placement) is the first tiebreaker. Total points is second.

 

[Bcash]

I still think their Mozart FD was by far their best and iconic.

Looking back though, they were very unpolished in that program compared to now. Their precision and consistency have increased dramatically since then, each small move with more impact. I personally liked their 15-16 FD the best.