Nathan Chen | Page 989 | Golden Skate

Nathan Chen

Rocketman with 4T-1Eu-3F and two more 3Fs
https://www.instagram.com/tv/CNzlFRhJEb2/?igshid=1eqwie49sn6c6

Caravan step sequence for encore
https://www.instagram.com/tv/CNzppvfpQO4/?igshid=1djfjdrismnii

I love his happy energy throughout WTT, the freedom of his movement (and the 4-1-3 that almost hit the musical accents :laugh:) in Rocketman, and the spontaneous and unstudied manner with which he captured each note in Caravan. Nice coda to his WTT appearances as in all likelihood this is his last one.
 
I think Nathan was just practicing it since he put the 4T1Eu3F into his gala performance. Probably mad at himself for messing it up. He did it perfectly today though. 😅

Caravan was soo good. I missed it.
Team Raf posted a clip of the combo, just in case anyone had questions about whether the free program miss was a pattern or anything. LOL

See it quick. It's an Instastory, so it won't be available for long.

 
New Raf interview

More Nathan in Japanese
 
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It’s also on facebook:
https://fb.watch/4ZQ5XQRIqO/

Nice to see people who are not skating fans receive his performance warmly.

ETA: Woodkid liked Philip Glass’s IG post and made a non-verbal congratulation under Nathan’s WTT post. Our boy’s gaining some recognition by musicians these days lol
 
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Now that Nathan's Philip Glass program has made such a big impression, do you want Nathan to go to Shae for both SP and FS next season?

How long do you think he'll keep Rocketman as a gala program? I know it was a good vehicle for him, but with so few remaining opportunities for us to see him skate (most likely), and so few chances for such a versatile skater to explore new avenues, I really hope to see a new gala program.
 
Now that Nathan's Philip Glass program has made such a big impression, do you want Nathan to go to Shae for both SP and FS next season?

How long do you think he'll keep Rocketman as a gala program? I know it was a good vehicle for him, but with so few remaining opportunities for us to see him skate (most likely), and so few chances for such a versatile skater to explore new avenues, I really hope to see a new gala program.

I kinda want Nathan to at least consult with professional choreographers like Val and Derek Hough (with Shae still the main translator of floor choreography to ice) to reimagine a good FS for him. I actually like the Davis and White free dance that Derek helped choreograph and might be interesting for Nathan to spend some time with him to see what genres or types of movement Nathan resonates or go deeper on from this last quad.
 
I'd still love to see a Nathan/Sandra Bezic collab for the free. She loves him and would say yes to work with him in an instant. Ever since ATS 2019, whenever someone asked, she's immediately named him as someone she wants to work with.
 
I'd still love to see a Nathan/Sandra Bezic collab for the free. She loves him and would say yes to work with him in an instant. Ever since ATS 2019, whenever someone asked, she's immediately named him as someone she wants to work with.

Speaking of Sandra Bezic, makes me think of a cool, reimagined version of Don't Let the Sun Go Down On Me for FS (Kurt may have been the only one that danced to this song in exhibition):
 
Interesting ideas! Has Bezic done competition program choreography for a skater recently? Maybe it's a bit of a risk going with someone he hasn't worked with before for an Olympic season program, though Nathan has done so before, with Nichol for 2017-18.

Which is the Bezic masterpiece that inspired your suggestion, if you don't mind my asking, Apple1078?

I don't know about more Elton John (original or covers), or any music Kurt has used. I like Nathan's skating, and I like Kurt's, but I don't think Kurt's strengths are Nathan's, although they both have great footwork, and they're both very musical.
 
I think Nathan will likely go back to Montreal for his FS once again since Sam's choreo sequences have generally been well received. And hopefully his work with SLB will inspire MFD to create something memorable for the rest of the program.

Phil's recap of the season


Looking back 4 years ago, this is roughly the time when they held the NBC Winter Olympics photo shoot in West Hollywood. Wonder when/if that will happen again this year?
 
I think Nathan will likely go back to Montreal for his FS once again since Sam's choreo sequences have generally been well received. And hopefully his work with SLB will inspire MFD to create something memorable for the rest of the program.

Must MFD choreograph the rest of the FS? Why can't Sam do the entire program with transition options for each sequence to accommodate for Nathan's jump entries? Maybe it's the alarmist in me, but the GOEs on other skaters' quad jumps during Worlds appear to catch up if not exceed those of Nathans (i.e., Kolyada). Sam has choreographed some good exhibition and competition programs for Virtue and Moir like Moulin Rouge and Sorry. IDK - maybe I have yet to appreciate MFD's actual choreography style.
 
Must MFD choreograph the rest of the FS? Why can't Sam do the entire program with transition options for each sequence to accommodate for Nathan's jump entries? Maybe it's the alarmist in me, but the GOEs on other skaters' quad jumps during Worlds appear to catch up if not exceed those of Nathans (i.e., Kolyada). Sam has choreographed some good exhibition and competition programs for Virtue and Moir like Moulin Rouge and Sorry. IDK - maybe I have yet to appreciate MFD's actual choreography style.
First, I’m not sure if Sam contributed only to the choreo sequence. Second, while I’m not a big fan of MFD/Sam’s choreography for Nathan, I will give them credits for having some excellent ideas in terms of weaving jumps into the program. The opening combo, spread eagle exit on the second jumping pass, the spread eagle-4T-Eu-3F sequence, and the double 3-turns leading into the 3A in Rocketman were all well placed musically, with the transitions enhancing the performance. Third, neither Misha nor Yuma who received higher GOEs on their quads than Nathan at Worlds had transitions going into those jumps. I believe the higher GOEs were due to the effortlessness of those jumps, which makes sense since they were dealing with fewer quads and also held their landing pose longer.

Personally I do wish Nathan could get both of his programs from Shae for the Olympic season (or three, including the ex;)). I feel she taps into Nathan’s talent and versatility like no one else and there’s synergy between them. However I’m also under the impression that Nathan prefers to get the long from Montreal because of the training environment and MFD’s less hands-on approach. And MFD/Team Gadbois seems to have some connections in the dance world, as they got an America Ballet Theatre dancer to choreograph P/C’s Olympic FD. I could see such a collaboration really benefit Nathan’s program. Maybe in the end whether he gets the FS from Shae or MFD depends on how easy it is to travel to Canada.

Switching gears, Jason had some nice words for Nathan in his WTT reflections:
Nathan Chen is just remarkable in every way. There are few words that I can use to adequately describe his level of talent and ability. I am just in awe of him, and I am so grateful that he is part of Team USA. He pushes me to be a better skater by showing me what is possible. At this event, we had the opportunity to interact more than we normally do, and he is really a lot of fun.
https://usfigureskatingfanzone.com/...458536&utm_medium=social&utm_source=instagram
 
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Yea - I guess having SLB still do both might be too much 2 years in a row. I think Nathan did mention that he prefers MFD for FS laissez faire approach. Actually at the end of it, if SLB ends up doing both or sticking to SLB for SP and MFD/SC for FS, I am supportive of it as long as they pick the right music.
 
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