I was asked for some notes from Ice Dance Test Skate…
I was always criticising that Russian Ice Dance couples were not able to show at least whole programs in late August / middle September while American / Canadian couples were already able to show programs at competition. Well, there is an improvement. Russian couples didn’t show perfect quality skating, but the level of preparation is good taken into account we have just September…they can be very well prepared in time of Grand Prix.
All couples were giving those performances everything, it was visible. It is obvious that the fight for 3 spots at Euros and 2 spots for Worlds will be taught.
I am not sure whether it has some sense to talk about Levels, it was more a exhibition than competition and home videos not always showed every detail needed for clear decision of fulfilled criteria for Levels. And yes, it would take plenty of time, so I will let it go.
Great technicians stayed great. Step Sequences and Ravensburgh Waltz Pattern need polishing, all couples are able to show even better edges than we saw, but once again, it is just September. All couples were fighting with Timing in Ravensburgh Waltz pattern.
Monko & Khaliavin:
I am not sure how will judges accept Short Dance music choice which some people tend to rename into Juniorish music. But the fact is that music is fresh, playful and full of joy – so is the expression of the couple. I personally start to think that this is Sasha Zhulin’s little flip into a nose of those people who were pointing that this couple is not able to skate anything but drama… they were wrong. They are lovely in this Short Dance. To Ksenia – she was able to correct upper body position she was criticised for i past years (why nobody here noticed it?), her posture was very good and elegant. Great ice coverage in all three Sets of Twizzles.
Free Dance was full of drama thanks to defect on Ksenia’s edges. Thanks to it, we couldn’t get the whole picture of how the dance is looking like, but what is visible even now – this is a DANCE. Ksenia and Kirill confirm my opinion about dancing – even being great dancer, you need some years to grown-up inside to show the depth of feelings and maturity which make your presentation stronger.
Bobrova & Soloviev:
They are back and I like it. They are back and they are different than they were in their last two competitive seasons, especially in FD. And it is not about a different colour of hair.
Short Dance is dramatic which couples is capable of very well, we all know it, I like the original use of Romeo & Juliet‘s music and with Masquarade it creats interesting program. I would like to see a corrections in Katya’s upper body and head position in few moments during a dance.
Choice of music for Free Dance from Karenina Soundtrack was a surpise for me. Katya and Dima were usually using big orchestra music with drums and dynamic beats in music…this time they chose violin and piano… and they are great in it and once again the couple looks different than they were used to be in previous programs. Surprising. Nice Transitions with different hands holds. Beautiful choreography. The program looks more polished in presentation in comparison with other teams, but it is true that Katya and Dima are practising Karenina for second season (with breaks because of Dima’s injury).
Ilinykh & Zhiganshin:
Short Dance is another attemp how to make Waltz / Marsh more original. I like it althought I would prefer less side by side skating (with exception of dancing part in the beggining of We Will Rock You). Using We Will Rock You part for Step Sequence is risky (it is fast, you need to accept dynamic beats while doing proper edge work) and we all can see that the couple is still fighting with it, some changes in this part of the dance would be appreciated also.
The program itself is made for dancers who are very “visible“ and shining personalities on the ice with a sort of showy and entertaining attributes (in today’s dance field I can imagine only Gabriella & Guillaume being able to skating to such music and not looking stiff / strange / boring / unnatural etc.). Once Lena & Ruslan will stop fighting with technical aspects of the dance, the dance will rise as much as Carmen did with audience loving it. If they will be able to put all things together already at Grand Prix…well, if they want to be in GP Final, they will have to…
Many people wanted perfect dance with perfect choreo for I&Z and with Frida they got it. This is Gold medal material. What the couple will do with such material – Levels, mistakes, execution – it depends on them. Even now the dance takes you into the story, those four minutes are running so fast, it is watchable even with home video / low quality video. Choreography is very difficult, because it connects head / arms / upper body moves while skating, all done in one moment, which brings the idea that I&Z are dancing from the beginning to the end, without any “non-dance just skating“ movements…this is great.
Once again Elif touched the question of doing first two Sets of Twizzles on one foot – Lena & Ruslan are one of few couples doing it (if not the only couple). This option is much more difficult than Sets with change of foot. And you can notice that even on one foot I&Z have better ice cover than most of couples doing change of foot. I think that you are probably dreaming that with change of foot I&Z would cover whole ice ring from corner to corner, I can‘t avoid an idea that they really would...but I don’t want to criticise the couple for doing more difficult things than other couples. That is what is sport about – doing more and better than others, showing more difficult things. In my opinion One foot Twizzles for opening two Sets should be one of criteria for Level 4, I wonder why ISU never came with this.
The same with spin done on one foot, most couple choose option with change of foot, I&Z are doing the whole spin on one foot, which is more difficult.
I expect that judges are no amateurs and they are not judging first year to be able to recognize what is more difficult and deserves great GOE. If not, it will be a sad example of underrating couple/couples who try to push difficulty up.
I already had an opportunity to make a comparison with Chock & Bates and Gilles & Poirier‘s programs, both B&S and I&Z’s programs made much stronger impression in my eyes. I also take B&S and I&Z’s Free Dance much difficult to skate in terms of choreography.
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