- Joined
- Jan 23, 2004
Happy 39th Birthday to Stephane!
Count me in as being intrigued by both the new members of the cast and the use of the Kodo taiko group! I actually went to see Kodo perform once when they came to my home city and I enjoyed it! There were performers in the group as well as drummers, and the thing I remember the most about their performance was seeing the performers wearing a long dragon costume (similar to what you'd see at a Chinese lion dance, but longer) and dancing to the beat of the drums. (I also recall being disappointed that they didn't have CDs of their music for sale...I hope they rectify this at The Ice.) I'm curious about whether performers will be involved for the ice show or if it will simply be drumming. Either way, I think it will be worth watching.It's definitely a new direction alright! I'm not surprised with the change of casting but I didn't expect them to go on such an extreme route. Well, it's done, I suppose we'll just have to wait until July.
Most importantly, I'm intrigued by the collaboration with Kodo.... I have wished for Shoma to skate to Japanese traditional music for some time, and the possibility of him skating to Taiko is just so exciting, I'm trying to be realistic and keep my hopes down
I have been enjoying reading all the overwhelmingly positive comments people are posting about Sho's Bolero. Although people seem to enjoy Come Together, there have been SO many comments about Bolero! Here is a small sample:
--Shoma's Bolero made me cry. The moment he came out and I saw the costume, I started tearing up. It was the perfect moment.
--Bolero is evolving more and more. His skating is beautiful and expressive and performed with the whole body. I'm so excited!
--Shoma's performance is so refined, down to the finest detail, even down to his fingertips, so that it brought tears to my eyes.
--5 clean jumps, the twizzles, the steps, the choreography, from the back to the tips of the fingers. What power! What awesomeness and beauty!
--Shoma's Bolero was amazingly fast and full of spirit. His jumps were fast but well controlled. In the final choreo, he had a gentle smile, just like in the World Championships 2022.
--It was clear that Shoma was in a class of his own. You have to see it live!
--This was a Bolero that I can't express in words! It seemed to me that Shoma had transcended everything and was in a completely different world. His expression is one of a kind, no one can imitate it.
One person wrote that when he finished, there was such a loud "clunk" noise when everyone stood up at the same time for a standing ovation and all the seats made a noise in unison! LOL.
What will always be my favorite Bolero moment -- being there to witness the little smile and shake of his head he gave at the end of his Worlds 2022 performance, the one that said, "Yes, I'm sure I've done enough." A gold medal moment to cherish.
As I mentioned earlier about the black costume, the right shoulder appeared to be scuffed when I saw it up close in Montreal. Upon looking more closely at my photos of it, I discovered that the scuffing extended down the right side to the torso and waist area. I have no idea how it could have gotten so damaged, but my best guess is that Shoma was probably Sholeroing too hard. The black costume was a worthy sacrifice for the sake of figure skating history...I just loved Bolero and in my opinion, we didn't see it enough. The music made it as it was so different from all the other Bolero's. That blue costume is so reminiscent of DOMO but I guess the black one was in the wash.
I now remember that you said the black costume was on display in Montreal but did not know it looked like it was damaged! He could wear anything, really, as long as we get to see the new, enhanced Bolero. Pretty genius of him to bring that back.As I mentioned earlier about the black costume, the right shoulder appeared to be scuffed when I saw it up close in Montreal. Upon looking more closely at my photos of it, I discovered that the scuffing extended down the right side to the torso and waist area. I have no idea how it could have gotten so damaged, but my best guess is that Shoma was probably Sholeroing too hard. The black costume was a worthy sacrifice for the sake of figure skating history...
I too love Shoma's interpretation of Bolero, especially that step sequence!
But to be a bit more particular here, the DOMO costume (which I also saw in Montreal) is a single shade of blue, while the blue Bolero costume (seen in Montpellier) is actually two different shades of blue (one of them being more of a blue-green)! I cannot stress this enough for any fan artists out there!