Also Shoma had an interview with the press after the show, it's a great read:
フィギュアスケートで日本男子初の世界選手権連覇を果たした宇野昌磨さんが初プロデュースするアイスショー「Ice Brave（アイスブレイブ）」が14日、愛・地球博記念公園アイススケート場（愛知県長久手市）で開幕した。出演者7人による約80分間、休憩無しという異例のショーとなった。
mainichi.jp
Shoma Uno’s First Self-Produced Show – What Was Behind His Attempt at Ice Dance?
By Hitoshi Kurosawa
June 14, 2025, 21:32
The ice show “Ice Brave,” the first to be produced by Shoma Uno—who achieved the historic feat of becoming the first Japanese man to win back-to-back World Figure Skating Championships—opened on June 14 at the Expo 2005 Aichi Commemorative Park Ice Rink (Nagakute City, Aichi Prefecture). It was an unusual show, about 80 minutes long without intermission, featuring seven performers.
Focusing mainly on Uno’s programs from his competitive career, the show also featured a performance with his former coach and former world champion Stéphane Lambiel, and drew cheers from the audience with an ice dance performance alongside former junior world champion Marin Honda. After the show, Uno responded to interviews. The following is a transcript of his remarks. —[by Hitoshi Kurasawa]
—Your thoughts after the first day?
Yes. I’m surprised that even more people are surrounding me now than when I won my second World Championship (laughs). Joking aside, creating this ice show from scratch—I definitely couldn’t have achieved this level of quality on my own. Many people gave me all kinds of support. And it wasn’t just business-related support. Everyone went above and beyond what was required of them, and I think that’s what made this such a wonderful show.
Putting on a show of this length and quality with only seven people—it’s something that’s only possible because there are seven of us, but it also made things incredibly tough. Still, everyone stuck with it until the very end. We were able to welcome a truly amazing opening day. And more than anything, this kind of intense ice show usually makes it hard to keep up your stamina until the end, but there was so much applause and cheering from the audience. Of course, we’re doing this to entertain the audience, but the audience’s applause and big cheers made us enjoy it too. I feel very happy because I think we created a “win-win” kind of show between us and the audience.
—Were there any particular programs or scenes in the show that stood out to you?
I’ve been thinking about that since the show ended, but honestly—this “Ice Brave” doesn’t really have any moments where you can rest. We put a lot of time into every part of it. I’m the main feature, of course, but all seven of us—none of us are just supporting characters. Each of us brought out our own individuality. We weren’t an ensemble; we were seven members, seven companions, each standing out. So rather than pointing to a highlight, I can say with pride that “it was really all of it.”
—You also took on the challenge of ice dance.
That’s right. After trying both singles and ice dance, I came to realize how different they are in so many ways. The skills I cultivated (in singles) only carried over to ice dance at about 10% or 20%, just a little bit. A lot of things were difficult.
But rather than just trying a bit of a lift or doing a piece where we skate together as a "collaboration number," this was my first time producing a show, and I wanted to take on all kinds of new challenges.
And I didn’t just want to “give it a try”—I wanted to do something that could properly stand as a full program. So while I also feel that there’s still a lot of room for me to grow, I also think I did well. The audience’s applause made me really happy. Honestly, it felt like the practice I’d done up to today was being praised (laughs).
In singles, I would be nervous because it was all about the years of work I’d put in and what results I could achieve. But in this show, I got to experience just how much cheering and applause can be encouraging—it’s not something you often get to feel. I was really able to skate with a good feeling.
—What does it mean to you to be able to hold an ice show in your home region of Aichi?
Even at the very end, as I was exiting the stage, I felt deeply grateful seeing that so many people had come to see our show. We had very long rehearsals to make sure we could deliver something great to those who came.
Since this was my first time doing something like this, there were a lot of mistakes, and I had to go through a lot of trial and error. But with help from so many people, we were able to make it happen, and we ended up creating something truly wonderful. The fact that I can now say “it’s wonderful” so easily—I think that means I really did everything I could.
—Many of the programs were from your competitive years. Were there any pieces that were especially difficult to refine?
Hmm… this might not really answer the question, but… I kind of forgot what I was going to say (laughs). What was the question again?
—About your past programs…
Ah, I remember now. The concept of this show was to center it around my competitive programs. Having the current me perform my past programs. And to also include a variety of new challenges—like the ice dance, and also a program choreographed by a dancer from the stage world, something I hadn’t done before.
Back in my competitive days, I focused entirely on honing my skating technique every day, so this was a chance to revisit the parts I had neglected. That’s how this show “Ice Brave” came to be—a merging of the “past” and the “present,” and a step forward toward new possibilities.
This might not answer your question directly, but each piece holds memories for me. There were moments like, “Wow, this one was super hard… okay, let’s have Stéphane do it instead” (laughs). For example, Boléro—I saved it for the end because I felt like it was the one program I had perfected the most. And “See You Again,” which is an exhibition number I made ages ago and have used for a long time.
I really did a wide range of programs, and looking back on them, I was able to discover all over again what I’m good at and what I struggle with. Even for numbers I didn’t skate in myself, I got to teach others—how I did them, how to teach them effectively. It was an incredibly valuable experience.
—It seemed like you pushed yourself even harder than when you were active. Do you feel any longing to return to competition?
Not at all. To be honest, when I was active in singles, every day felt like I was being chased by the pressure of competition. So rather than saying I do or don’t miss competing—I just felt lonely skating alone.
Only the “Balada para un Loco” was a solo piece, but just like in other shows I’ve done, I really enjoy creating something together with others, heading in the same direction as a team. That’s what I felt most strongly after finishing this first day—that I find it rewarding, that I love it. Working toward the same goal with friends and teammates—that’s what I really enjoy now.
—As the producer, how did you view Lambiel’s skating, given that he joined rehearsals quite late?
Stéphane is 40 now, right? He’s incredibly energetic for 40. It’s amazing. Honestly. To have that level of quality at age 40. I mean, I made him skate programs that I used to do when I was competing (laughs). That’s incredible, isn’t it?
So, watching him skate, I thought, “Wow, that’s really impressive.” And until Stéphane joined us, we had all been working properly together. But once he joined, the atmosphere got much brighter—it became a space full of constant laughter. At the same time, rehearsals really stopped moving forward (laughs). That’s half a joke, but also half true (laughs).
But that’s just how much fun the environment became. Stéphane jokes around when it’s time to, but he also picks things up really quickly and takes things seriously. You can really see his determination to make something good, even if it means pushing himself a bit for the sake of the show. That makes me really happy. He’s gone beyond the role of “my coach.” Of course, even when he was my coach, we were already quite close to being friends—but that’s the kind of presence he is for me. That’s how I feel all over again.
—When did you begin training in ice dance?
Around last October, I switched to ice dance blades and started from there. It wasn’t every day, but whenever I could find time between other things. From the time I decided to do “Ice Brave,” I wanted to include at least one ice dance number, so I asked to be allowed to do it.
—Why did you choose “Loco” for your solo, and “Legends” for the duet with Lambiel?
At first, I liked “Loco” but didn’t think I could deliver the same level of performance anymore. But after some time had passed, I started to feel that maybe now I could bring out a version of “Loco” that could only be done at this point in my life—so I chose it.
Also, “Ice Brave” is about all the different steps in my journey up to now, and I wanted to include programs that the audience might have strong memories of. Some that stood out in their minds, and also ones that I hadn’t done well in the past. That’s why I picked “Loco.”
As for “Legends,” I’m not really sure, but I heard it had a good reputation. I don’t know—since I rarely look at myself objectively. I’ve heard a lot of other skaters say they like “Legends,” and I thought, “Why is that?” But since so many people were saying it, I figured I’d include it (laughs).
With Stéphane, there were other ideas too—like skating “Gravity” together. We discussed a lot of options… Sorry, I’m rambling (laughs).
—Have you developed any interest in competing in ice dance?
Rather than thinking in terms of “doing it” or “not doing it” as a competitive sport—when I decided to try ice dance, I didn’t want it to be seen as just a collaboration number with someone. So, getting questions like this actually makes me really happy. Of course, we still have another show tomorrow, and the Niigata performance is coming too.
And now that I’ve tried it, I really feel that ice dancers are all on such a high level and doing amazing work. I don’t mean to sound arrogant, but it would be nice if we could create something in this show that doesn’t feel out of place even alongside real ice dancers—something that the two of us can perform together. Right now, I’m just focused on what we can do in this ice show.
—During the twizzles (or spin) in the ice dance, who gives the cues?
We don’t really call out to each other much. Spins are honestly, seriously way harder than they look. The rest too, but even just doing one full rotation… I really wish people could understand how difficult it is. It’s seriously tough.
—Who did you learn from?
Kenji-sensei (Kenji Miyamoto, who did the choreography) is an ice dancer himself, so I asked him for guidance. Also, whenever I had time, I asked various other people for help. One of the performers, Kazuki Kushida, had some experience with ice dance too, so I asked him a little bit as well.
there is SO MUCH MORE of the show they are not showing but at least you can see Grespi opening, a bit of Loco, Legends and Bolero, Shoma skating the new program Wild Side with Marin and his MC-ing time with the audience.
The twizzles! The lifts!
number.bunshun.jp
