Very Interesting Article

Princess Leppard

<blockquote><strong><em>Quote:</em></strong><hr>Evgeni does the same thing[/quote]

ITA, I like Evgeni. I hope you don't mind that I think Evgeni and Tara may look cute together

Patriotism...

Sorry if this is off-topic but I feel it relates to this thread somewhat...

Been doing a lot of thinking lately in general about patriotism & skaters and how each represents his/her country. And just need to say that even though I'm an American, my favorite skaters are not based on that, rather it's based on whether s/he touches my soul (regardless of country). <em>However</em>, I do feel differently about a skater that is supposed to represent one country, yet by actions, words, & conduct it seems that s/he is representing another country. And I honestly have qualms about supporting such a skater.

The following are a couple of skaters that I am a fan of and that I feel best represents his/her country with pride always:

<span style="text-decoration:underline"><strong>Midori Ito</strong></span> - <em>everything</em> she does bespeaks pride on behalf of her country and that she is proud to be Japanese.......from the shroud of humility that she constantly wears to the unnecessary apology she made to her country when she didn't win Olympic Gold in 1992........to the honor of lighting the Olympic Cauldron in 1998 in her homeland. And not to forget she tours exclusively year-round in her home country and is also a part-time commentator for them.

<span style="text-decoration:underline"><strong>Alexei Urmanov</strong></span> - from what I can recall, he gave up moving to the USA for potentially better offers of $$$, rather he stayed true to his homeland and decided to bring skating there instead. Also, he never deviated from his unique Russian vision of skating........rather he stayed true to his ideals........and didn't compromise them by doing more Western-oriented audience pleasing routines.

<span style="text-decoration:underline"><strong>Michelle </strong></span>[/b] - always represents her country with pride........though she may be of Chinese heritage (but American by birth)..........you don't see her surrounding herself with Chinese citizens only (i.e. coach, choreographer, agent, music, et al). No, rather Michelle has always taken pride in being an all-American girl......from her Beatles inspired medley to her FOG routine.......and lastly to her wearing of an American-flag inspired costume at the 2002 Olympics during the Finale.

<span style="text-decoration:underline"><strong>Evgeni Plush</strong></span>[/b] - he comes right out & says how proud he is to be Russian......and his actions & conduct prove it........not to mention his training takes place in Russia, though the West may offer him better facilities. No, he stays true to the land of his birth and doesn't sell out. BRAVO, Evgeni!

There are more, but the aforementioned ones stand out in my mind the most. BTW, I would have added Maria Butyrskaya to the list b/c she has always made it known how proud she is to be Russian, but the way in which she does it does not reflect favorably on either her or her country. JMHO.

Peace & Love, Nadine

P.S. I also admire how Lu Chen has brought skating to her country (China) and is always there when her country calls upon her (i.e. Nationals).

Re: Responses to Skaters

Re Sasha--Just to show different strokes, when Sasha skated at 2000 Nationals, I was watching it with my sister, her husband, and her husband's brother. The two guys were hardly figure skating fans, lol. But when Sasha skated, we were all enthralled. My brother-in-law said she reminded him of a hummingbird, skating with great speed and purity. I found her emotionally compelling in a similar way--the quiet, internally focused, purity of movement way. My sister and her husband's brother were also moved by her. For me it certainly wasn't the flexibility or any of that, having seen tons of that in dance over the years, it was, as I said, the pure, clean lines and direct unaffected expression of who she was.

As Sasha has matured, I think she has struggled to find what came to her naturally as an unknown since she has been in the spotlight, so to speak. I saw this often in preternaturally gifted dancers. Before they knew how exquisite they were, they had an easier time expressing themselves. In Sasha's case, I think she is going through a period of being self-conscious. Last season I think she tried too hard to dramatic in the LP, while I think her SP was sublime. This season, with Tarasova, I think she is trying to find a way to be expressive from a point of truth in herself. Sometimes she succeeds, sometimes she fails. For me, I would rather see a skater struggle to be a truthful performer than mug through a performance. Although I've seen people describe Sasha as a "look at me" performer, I've never gotten that sense from her. Although I don't doubt that some people truly feel that from her, I think that her exceptional physical abilities can give that impression even when that's not what she's doing. For the most part, I find Sasha to have one of the most honest performing styles among the top ladies today.

I've always found Sarah to be honest as well, but like Sasha, I saw her have trouble expressing herself in her transition from 15-yr-old phenom to mature skater. Unlike Sasha, I thought Sarah's performances, while true to who she was, tended to be one note and underperformed ('02 Nationals was a good example). Of course the freedom she found in her Olympic LP performance was absolutely dazzling and very heart-connected. Her Olympic exhibitions were also exceptional. Since then, because of the time off during the summer and then the injury, we haven't seen Sarah at 100% physically, so it wouldn't be fair to evaluate her performances this season, IMO.

Although I realize I'm in the minority, Michelle never moved me until this year's Nationals. Although there were a couple of exceptions, for the most part I felt that the facial expressions and drama in her programs were superficial, though not necessarily through any fault of her own. I think Lori Nichol's choreography and direction pushed Michelle into that. Obviously a lot of people responded to it, but I know a lot of other people felt this way too. I say this about Lori Nichol because when Michelle did "White Horses," I was happily surprised to see genuine feeling and expression whenever she performed that program. I also saw an unaffected Michelle in "Rush," I think because of the demands of Christopher Dean to work from the movement out rather than "think emotion." But with this year's Nationals, I saw an enormous change with Michelle's skating. As I've said before, I felt for the first time as a mature skater she was truly skating as who she was instead of who she thought "Michelle Kwan" should be. I also couldn't agree more with Oksana Baiul that Michelle is getting more graceful. Some people may go crazy when I say this, but one of the main reasons I wasn't captured by Michelle's skating was that I saw an essential awkwardness in her skating. Again, a lot of it I think was do to a poor fit between Michelle's natural way of moving and Lori Nichol's choreography. It seemed to me that Lori often choreographed very difficult "bravura" sequences (to use Joe's term) requiring high speed and complex coordination of the upper and lower body, and IMO, Michelle just wasn't up to it. She could execute them, but it looked to me as if she was barely getting through them and getting through them with athleticism but not grace. "Song of the Black Swan" was, IMO, the program where this was especially evident. Anyway, I don't know if it is maturity, getting the right choreography, mentally and emotionally loosening up, finding peace in herself, or what, but with "The Feeling Begins" and "Aranjuez" at Nationals (didn't see it in her performances at Campbell's or Skate America) that Michelle took an enormous step in finding the process that allows her to move with her own sense of grace and emotion from within. I find this Michelle compelling to watch and a skater who has the potential to speak to my heart.

I like Nadine's point about trying to separate what other people say about a skater from one's own reactions to a skater. I think we miss out on a lot when we let the way fans, agents, or whomever influence the way we perceive a skater. After all, the skater has no control over what is said about him/her.
Rgirl

PS Joe, you asked about pro-am competitions this season. One was the Harkness competition where Yuka Sata was first, Irina was second, and Sarah third. And I believe the Sears Open where Sasha and Yags placed first, respectively, was the other pro-am. Or maybe that was the Crest Whitestrip. These brand names as titles for competitions have me flummoxed. Anyway, they were in late November and December. Someone please correct me as I'm sure I have the second one wrong <img src=http://www.ezboard.com/intl/aenglish/images/emoticons/ohwell.gif ALT=":\">

Re: Very Interesting Article

Art appreciation is very subjective. Some people may hear hummingbird, and I hear cuckoo. OTOH judging <strong>speed</strong> is more objective. The baby ballerina's programs at national 2000 was SLOW, with ice coverage much inferior to the rest of the top level skaters. Sarah Hughes was much better than Cohen. IMHO MK and SH are honest in their presentation

Her 2000 nats exhibition Um Bel Di was
There is nothing honest about 15 y/o who looked like a 9 y/o in a pink birthday party dress skating to an aria about sexual love, longings.

EEk about the music editing of Cohen's 2000 lp Mendelssohn v cto.

Re: Very Interesting Article

<blockquote><strong><em>Quote:</em></strong><hr>It seemed to me that Lori often choreographed very difficult "bravura" sequences (to use Joe's term) requiring high speed and complex coordination of the upper and lower body, and IMO, Michelle just wasn't up to it. She could execute them, but it looked to me as if she was barely getting through them and getting through them with athleticism but not grace. "Song of the Black Swan" was, IMO, the program where this was especially evident.[/quote] I was never more proud of Michelle than when she used her astonishing athleticism and bulldog determination somehow to wrench and wrestle this program into a World Championship performance. Utterly awesome.

Why do people use the word athleticism as if this is something bad? If Lori kept pushing the technical envelope, sometimes in subtle ways, challenging Michelle to keep up, that's a good thing.

On the other hand, it was right after SOTBS that Michelle and Lori parted ways. Maybe Michelle felt the same way about the program that you did, R.

Mathman

My speculation

The SA version of SOTBS was not well thought out choreography yet. Sandra Loosemore made the comment that the utilization of ice surface was bad, all the spins were placed at the same spot. She thought MK should just dump it.

I agree that by worlds, MK wrestled that swan to the ground.

Re: My speculation

"MK wrestled that swan to the ground.":lol: That's what I was trying to say. But the best I could come up with was, "I was never so proud of Michelle as when she grabbed that program by the horns and ..." But then I ran out of inspiration. I also thought of, she has the determination of a bulldog and the athletic grace of a ... Siamang Gibbon? (This is the most athletic animal I could think of.)

pictures.care2.com/view/2/462048653

Since everybody is giving their emotional take on the first tme they saw Sasha skate (for many it was the 2000 Nationals), I will share the emotion that sweep over me as I watched her performance. It was the same pang I felt in the very soul of my heart when I saw Naomi Nari Nam skate at the 1999 Nationals. A feeling of sheer panic -- Oh no, this little girl is beating Michelle!

Now with worlds upon us I have to go through it all over again.

Mathman

Kristi is an American!

Not from China or Japan as the article mentions.

Charitableness to Composers

Mathman,

Are you charitable to Cage?

How about his dog barking and detuned piano pieces?

The only good thing I can think about to say about them is that I do not have to listen to them.

As to article, everyone noticed the Kristi is American, but has anyone mentioned that LuLu is Chinese, not Japanese?

Dpp

Re: Charitableness to Composers

It's ironic, most people agree that Kwan's work with Nichol was getting boring and stale, yet so many of those people also thought that she was a backstabbing unforgivable @#%$ when she dared to move on to another choreographer. It's interesting the way some people's minds work.

Re: Charitableness to Composers

Doris, Yes, I can say something nice about John Cage. I am listening to his Four Minutes Thirty-four Seconds right now. It is very soothing. Also, it's exactly the right length for a men's long program!

But I can beat that. I can say something nice about Phillip Glass. I just saw the movie The Hours, with score by Glass. It was good enough that I found myself actually listening to the music throughout the movie.

Jimmy, what I really hated about Michelle and Lori Nichol parting ways was that these are, separately and together, my two favorite people in the whole skating world. So I was very sad about this.

Time heals a sad heart. Both of them have done fine and in retrospect, now I can see that nothing is forever.

Mathman

Re: Very Interesting Article

Mathman,
Re the term "athletic" meaning "bad," I should have been more clear, and frankly it wasn't a good word to use. By athletic I meant "over-muscled." I would describe the way Michelle performed SOTBS, even though it was improved at Worlds, as forced, tense, and incomplete. Obviously you and others enjoyed the "wrestling to the ground" quality of SOTBS and of course that's one's prerogative. But to me, wrestling looked like wrestling. Anyway, my point was to compliment Michelle on overcoming her limitations and working to a point where this year she has been able to move in a graceful and exciting way that is both natural to her and challenging.
Rgirl

Re: Responses to Skaters

rGirl -Thanks for the info which I already knew but didn't know it was ProAm. They were kinda overlapping as I remember. Always nice for me to see skaters skate for a prize but I think they could plan these 'meets' out better. Our close friend "Golf" has their games well paced and organized.

Back to topic. I see this thread on emotions becoming an MK razzle dazzle. It's been a while since she was so much in the posters minds (pro and con). It was actually refreshing for me to let the lady rest.

It's very difficult, imo, to skate a routine with emotions. There is just too much difficult technical involved in figure skating. If a skater is going to worry about those difficult jumps (and who wouldn't? - even the show skaters) they are losing their contact with the feelings for the music and what they want to convey to the audience. Instead, the skaters are happy that the audience loved the triple combos by their shouts and applause.

I don't really think that many skaters get to show gut feelings because, unlike dancers they don't rehearse that much where the muscles take over the technical leaving the dancer no choice but to relate to the music. The audience will pick up that feeling of the dancer and either hate it or be overwhelmed depending on the talent of the dancer.

Sasha Abt, for me, is a very musical skater who doesn't need all that convoluted mannerisms of Plush (this is not a bash, it is just an observation). His flow and long stride footwork as opposed to the staccotto footwork of others stands out as part of his gut feelings. Of course, the quads will win over that gut feeling because it is a sport and the quad is king (32 fuertes in Swan Lake?).

Joe

Re: Very Interesting Article

Hey Rgirl, I'm up for a 300 post thread. You?

I like my girls with muscles. That's why my next favorite, after Michelle "Godzilla" Kwan, is Kristi "The Behemoth" Yamguchi.

Plus, it's so cool to see Surya Bonaly muscle herself up to a triple Salchow after a backflip. You go, girl!

About the choreography to The Song of the Black Swan. That falls into "flips off rationality" category. If you knew how nice Lori Nichol is, you too would force yourself to like everything she does.

I think that Michelle's problem with SOTBS was that she didn't like the music. (I don't have any evidence for this claim, I just think so.) One of the hallmarks of Michelle's career (that is, Michelle, the middle years), was that Lori and Frank always choose music for her that no one had ever heard of before. How many skating fans knew anything about twentieth century British composer William Alwyn, much less that he wrote a harp concerto called Lyra Angelica (much less that I have a cd of it autographed by LN).

Mathman

Re: Very Interesting Article

Here comes my unorganized rambling at the wrong place, but oh well...

I resepct and appreciate Michelle very much for always choosing "music that no one has skated to", but at the same time, I also wish she could skate to some of the more famous, purely classical pieces, just to prove to us that she is not only a modern dancer. The closest she has ever come to skating to "classical" music (in my definitiong), was "Ariane"- the debut version performed at the '98 World Pros- one of her most underrated programs of all times. She blowed me away there. The program had such captivating drama and other subtle nuances, and Michelle skated to it with such overwhelming presence, and passion. I think that was perhaps the point in her career where Michelle first became a "woman" and took real command of the choreography, making it her own. I though Michelle became one with the role and was feeling the drama and the emotion down to her soul- one move flowed into the next without any hesitation, and the emotion was so powerful yet came so naturally. As much as I loved Lyra and Rach, they could still, at times, look a bit too choregraphed, too thought out, to cautious- as though Michelle was still a student under guidance, not yet a professional performer. Back to Ariane- it was really a shame that she took out many of the moves that made the program so grand by the time Naitonals came around. And unfortunately, though still quite impressive, the same level of drama and passion was no where to be seen. The music, in particular, might have been Michelle's personal favorite among her music choices, as she said it herself, "the music takes you everywhere". I really wonder what had happened during the time between its debut and Nationals.
Then came the "Red Violin". I knew it was going to be a masterpiece when Michelle debuted it at the '99 Worlds exh. I felt so proud of her because at this point I realized she was a completely mature skater and was skating beyond choreography. Every move was her own, every ounce of emotion she felt and understood, not to mention how musically difficult the piece was to interpret. Michelle has become a true artist, with sophistication and maturity like no other. The competition debut version at Skate America, though with slight alteration from the exh. version thus not as enchanting, was nevertheless beautiful. The tension was unbelievable and continued from the start to the end without a single pause. I truly felt she was the best skater in the world and one of the best in history. Too bad that the program was, again, waterred down at Worlds and the same level of tension and sharpness was no where near the SA version (though still good). It was then merely a very good competition program with highs and lows, fast and slow sections. I couldn't help but wondered whose idea it had been for the past two years...oh well.
Since then Michelle's choreography had been going downhill. I still can't understand the big difference between the levels of RV and SOTBS. The only programs I liked in the following two seasons was "Rush", which she dumped after 3 performances, and EOE, which, though very beautiful, was a let down choreographically after RV and Ariane. SOTBS was bad at its debut, and still not that convincing at Worlds, though I felt Michelle did as good as she could. Scheherazade was just a bad choice from the beginning, though I did see a possible glimpse of brilliance at GPF that year. But it got lost at Naitonals and never came back since.
The past two years had almost made me forget how capable and brilliant Michelle actually is or could be. I can't blame Lori Nicol too harshly because she did give her Ariane and Red Violin. But I do think that her working with other skaters did really affect her schedule with Michelle. Michelle, being not a very smart choice maker, went to Sarah Kawahara for Schez. And I also agree that Michelle never really liked either the music of SOTBS or Schez. The joy and enthusiasm for skating and intepreting the two programs just wasn't there.
I'm very glad that Michelle has found her way back to the level of performance she's capable of and I hope she continues with this.

Re: Very Interesting Article

Shine, that was a great post. I think you were right on the money. Especially about Ariane. I don't know why that program is not often mentioned among the all-time best. Michelle's short program that year was one of her best, too. (Fate of Carmen.)

Also about some of her later programs going downhill as the season progressed. I really think that she was feeling Olympic pressure even then -- that is, that she had to force herself to keep up the technical content, triple-triples and the like, at the expense of some of the details that made the choreography beautiful.

While we are on the subject of Arianne, one more thing. Amid all the criticism of judging, I was impressed that almost all the time in the ladies championships the judges got it right, despite other expectations.

Michelle was the favorite at the 1998 Olympics, but Tara skated exceptionally well and won. In the 1998 world championships, Michelle didn't really have any competition and she won despite a lackadasical performance. (Irina wasn't bad.) In 1999 Michelle was the overwhelming favorite, but she came up sick and Maria skated very well to win. In 2000
people were starting to think that Michelle was on the decline, and the spotlight was on Irina. But at worlds Michelle came from behind with a technically superb long program, then still had to count on Irina to knock off Maria. The judges could easilty have held up Maria over Irina for second to give Maria the championship, but they didn't. Again in 2001 Irina was probably the favorite, but Michelle skated better. And we all know what happened at the Olympics (ladies division). So I can't really see any evidence there of crooked judging.

Mathman

Re: Very Interesting Article

I thought Fate of Carmen and Ariane at Nationals were excellent. I never seen that side of Michelle before then. From the pretty skating of Lyra to the mature sexual side of Michelle. You could tell in the face that she loved Ariane and FOC. Maybe it's that I haven't seen Ariane at World Pros, but I didn't think it was bad at Nationals at all.

Re: Very Interesting Article

<em>I find this article very interesting. Some needs tobe taken with a grain of salt, lemon, etc...

How was it that An American had to win the Olympics otherwise the American Touring would busted . I guess that person wasn't watching the same program that the rest of the world was watching. Irina was lucky that she got the silver. Sorry, But, with her sloppy performance. I was a toss up for the silver between her &Michelle. Michells one mistake( Fall) & Irina's Bobbles & A near face 1st into the ice. Irina did not deserve the Gold with that Long Program.

As for the Tours. I have to agree that it is 1 Tour vs anohter Tour. Tom Collins does have enough stars on their Tour & With Alexei Doing ( or Did ) both tours during the summer. But, At least he gave Alexei props for his amazing season that he had last year . I see a hidden diss in his mention of the simple footwork. It mayhave been simple compared to other. But, it was perfect for the music & keeping the tempo of the program. Just because, a footwork may look more intense. Doesn't mean it fits into a program. Something that looks forces & put in just because of a needed element, doesn't make a program look or better. It just looks forced & applied.<img src=http://www.ezboard.com/intl/aenglish/images/emoticons/ohwell.gif ALT=":\"> . But, He did mention how Alexie's persona(sp)/ Soul does pull an audience in when he skates.

I do agree with him on what he says about the Pro-Am World competition. There is no way that Brian B. Brian O, Scott, Kurt or even Peter P. Could compete with Alexei. Of Course Alexei could outskate all of them. & I do kind of remember hearing some rumbling about how the Ametur skaters had an advantage over the professionals. But, I do remember watching so many specials that were on after the 94 olympics. That they did kind of run it into the ground. That may be why some of the Top skaters did not retire after the last olympics. But, From what I read. Some of the skater( Michelle & Alexei) don't want to retire. They want to continue to compete. Though, 22 & 23 is OLD to be skating . I guess everyone wansts to see 13 & 14 year olds skate.

As for the Sasha Comment. He likes her. Nothing wrong with that. But, the Russian influence that she has now with TT as her coach has pulled him in her corner Plus she is his client. But, Michelle does not skate like a Horse. She may work hard like one & won't quit. But, Skates like one. I don't think so. I think that comment was more for Sarah. Sarah may skate kind of heavy footed & does not have the grace of Michelle or sasha. But, to say that some skates like a horse is insluting. But, he is from mishin's camp so nothing suprises me at all with those people:lol: :lol: . Mishin tried the same tatics last season. Making remarks like that trying to get under alexei Skin. & We all seen how much that work. Can we all say backfire:lol: :lol: .

But, I do see American Skating Fans( Not Olympic Skating Fans) there is a difference. But, Skating fans here in the US do have favorites outside of the US skaters. I myself was rooting for Alexei over Todd & Timmy. I was hoping that Todd could get a bronze. But, his SP took care of that. & I never liked Timmy skating at all. Just Jumping Jumping Jumping is what he seems to do. As for the Ladies. Well, Michelle was My girl. As for Michelle being a fan favorite. Well, she has been around for so long & builtup that fan base. & there has never been a mean word come out her mouth about another skater or her problems last season. She never blamed Judging or near misses on the practice rink. Even with that little drama last season during nationals. She took it all in stride & tried to put it out of the way & take pressure off of sasha who was getting alot of bad press about it. Unlike Irina who whines about judging, or having to wait too long after michelle skated because they have to clean off the ice. When, Michelle Won her Bronze medal at the Olympics. When she did her interview She did not blame anyone But, tried to look at the bright side. Even people who are not fans of hers. Was impressed with how she took things. No blaming anyone. She said she Rushed her 3flip. Her mistake. At Nationals this year when everyone was picking Sasha to win & saying how Michelle should retire & How she is too old & how she could no longer compete with the younger skaters. OK . Michelle just skated & Did not talk about how the media hated her or whatever. She just did what she does best. Let her skating talk for it's self.

But, I do find the article interesting. </em>

Re: Very Interesting Article

Pather - Regardomg Mischin - Who cares what he says? I am interested in the skaters not the coaches. The coachers are a point of interest; the choreographers are also a point of interest. It is the skater who does the talking in the last analysis by his/her performance.

With everyone thinking Michelle was over the hill and Sasha was to pick up the crown. It didn't happen. No talk by Mischin, coaches, fans, will change a legitimate outcome.

As for Ice Shows - Aren't there shows in Europe? I remember there were several when I was over there years ago. Why are the Russians so intent on COI and SOI? Could it be money? and a place to emigrate to?

Joe

Re: Very Provocative Article

<blockquote><strong><em>Quote:</em></strong><hr>It's very difficult, imo, to skate a routine with emotions. There is just too much difficult technical involved in figure skating. If a skater is going to worry about those difficult jumps (and who wouldn't? - even the show skaters) they are losing their contact with the feelings for the music and what they want to convey to the audience. Instead, the skaters are happy that the audience loved the triple combos by their shouts and applause.

I don't really think that many skaters get to show gut feelings because, unlike dancers they don't rehearse that much where the muscles take over the technical leaving the dancer no choice but to relate to the music. The audience will pick up that feeling of the dancer and either hate it or be overwhelmed depending on the talent of the dancer.[/quote] Joe, For competitive skating, ITA. That's why I love great pro skating, because they do rehearse and perform to the point where it is muscle memory. Everything you said about the response being relative to the talent of the dancer of course goes the same for the skater.

Mathman, 300 posts, again? I get a headache just thinking about it. It just ends up with certain people purposefully misinterpreting what others say so they can try to twist someone's valid, well-reasoned opinion into an irrational diss. "Over-muscled" movement and being muscular are not at all the same and as a physicist, I bet you know that--but as a Kwaniac, I realize things definitely go quantum8o Besides, all the top ladies are ripped. Now if you say you like forced, tense, and incomplete movement, well, that's a religious thing:smokin: As for Lori Nichol's personality...pfft! If I let a creative person's personality affect how I felt about his/her work, I'd be forced to like Steven Spielberg movies (KA-HACK!) Anyway, I felt the way Michelle used to perform, with a couple of exceptions, had a lot of problems and that during '03 Nationals, she either greatly improved upon or overcame them. I was thrilled to see the difference then and hope to see more of it at Worlds. Was just analyzing what I felt were the reasons for difference.

Shine, I loved your analysis of Michelle's choreography. I'm not very familiar with "Arianne," but I did think TRV was Michelle's best program and best performance prior to Nationals '03. Here's what I see as the difference between Michelle's performance of TRV and SOTBS. When I was dancing, there was a woman in our company who had an amazing body for dance. Great extension, beautiful body, beautiful girl, the works. But she couldn't put movement together. She danced like a patchwork quilt. You never felt, as one does with an elite dancer, that the body moves as if it is one large connected muscle. I danced with this woman professionally for five years and then after an injury I moved on. I didn't see her again for about eight years and when I saw her dance again, I couldn't believe it was the same person. It was as if all the nerves in her body had found their connection in the center of her body. All the movements were large or filled with the kind of deep connection one sees in experienced practioners of tai chi. She was able to move beyond and outside of herself and was totally internally connected. With this girl, whose name ironically is also Michelle, I think it just took time and maturity for her to find truly deep grace and rhythm. The change did not happen for the dancing Michelle until she was at least 30 and she had been dancing since she was a kid. For the skating Michelle, I think the choreography of TRV suited her naturally angular body and sense of movement. Even though the choreography was difficult, it was in sync with Michelle's abilities. With "Rush," as I said, I think Chris Dean pushed Michelle into new areas of movement with which she was not very comfortable. But because of Dean's extenseive background as a choreographer and dancer, I think he found a way to get Michelle to skate and move outside her comfort zone yet find the natural flow within the movement. Too bad that for whatever reason, "Rush" was discarded. I'd love to see Michelle do it again. This year at Nationals I saw Michelle move with the same expansiveness and abandon that she did with "Rush," which was absolutely wonderful to see. I felt Lori created SOTBS more in an effort to choreograph something extremely difficult than as a choreographic and competitive vehicle suited for Michelle's style and level of expression. It seemed to me that Lori was trying to create a "masterpiece" of virtuoso skating and movement--sort of the equivalent of a Franz Liszt spectacular piano composition--rather than a program that would be suitable for competition and through which Michelle could speak. So for me, rather than making the piece so it would best use Michelle's strengths and also challenge her weaker abilities, SOTBS came across to me as all challenge and no mastery. By Worlds, Michelle had her moments and physically she got through it, but to me the overriding feeling was one of flailing and rushing, always trying to catch up to the music and never able to fulfill the grace, largeness, and finesse of the movement. I think the problem was in Lori not knowing when to pull back on the choreographic demands and how to communicate to Michelle what she needed to do in order to execute the movement. It's tough, to be sure. Having choreographed a lot on dancers, they can never do the tough stuff at first and even weeks into rehearsal they will insist that it's simply too hard. As a choreographer, you have to walk that fine line between demanding they do it, helping them do it, and realizing when it's your choreography, not the dancers, that's the problem. Knowing that SOTBS was Michelle and Lori's last collaboration, I suspect they were probably both at a point in their creative realtionship where they were at cross purposes. But then it's common, almost mandatory, for the student to outgrow the relationship with the mentor. Michelle now reminds me of the dancer I knew in that now she has found the key to pulling it all together. This Michelle I am thrilled to watch. Up until now, Michelle was always amazingly consistent, but before Nats '03 I'd only seen her skate "outside the lines" in "White Horses" and "Rush." I hope and expect that "Aranjuez" and "The Feeling Begins" are the start of Michelle reaching her full potential.
Rgirl's Last Words on the Subject--for the time being

Edited because I was tired and cranky when I first wrote this:x