Stars on Ice USA 2023

[el henry]

Is Kurt retiring? He is a HUGE Star in those shows. Just like Scott Hamilton was.

yes, this is Kurt’s farewell tour for SOI (don’t know about other skating). The skaters are performing one program as a homage to Kurt.

ETA: although this is SOI Canada, they are performing the same program in SOI USA.

 

[noskates]

Yes mrrice - he has announced this will be his last SOI year. And I agree - he made the shows really exciting with some of his best work. Check out my avatar. Rag-a-din the Clown was genius. He also did Nala and several other programs that are iconic. You certainly didn't need quads to get attention then. He will be missed. I think Jason Brown is the only male skater right now that can even approach Kurt's entertainment skills.

 

[Ic3Rabbit]

Yes mrrice - he has announced this will be his last SOI year. And I agree - he made the shows really exciting with some of his best work. Check out my avatar. Rag-a-din the Clown was genius. He also did Nala and several other programs that are iconic. You certainly didn't need quads to get attention then. He will be missed. I think Jason Brown is the only male skater right now that can even approach Kurt's entertainment skills.

Do you mean Nyah?

 

[noskates]

Yes. Nala is a lion. Excuse me.

 

[Ic3Rabbit]

IDK why the eyeroll was necessary. I was just kindly asking if that is what you meant.

 

[reader3]

SOI Chicago was a great show. All received a great round of applause. I'd say that Nathan, Jason and Kurt were the most popular. Isabeau was well received too and did well. Loena and the pairs and ice dancers were also fun.

I'm a recent skating fan so Kurt was a special surprise and got a standing ovation on the 2nd number. Jason got the home town welcome.

Daughter went to the meet and greet and was most thrilled to meet Nathan and Ilia. Even hubby enjoyed the show much more than he thought he would.

Ilia's routines were quite good too.

It was nice meeting another GS member, @Arriba627,
too!

The show seemed so surreal and I'm especially thrilled to see our Olympic Champion live.

 

[backspin]

I was at Chicago last night & it was a great show. Definite STROBE warning though!! Really annoying & it happened more than once. Not sure why we can't just enjoy the pure beautiful skating. And anyone w/ issues such as epilepsy would definitely have a problem.

The skating in the first half was pretty, but 'skating light' -- very few jumps in general from everyone, no great footwork, even from the dancers. The second half was better & more robust. Kind of like they used the first half for the warmup.

Alissa was a surprise, which does make sense so she can be with Kurt. Don't know if she's doing the whole tour. No jumps at all but still a very pretty skater.

Isabeau's skating is surprisingly mature & really enjoyable to watch. A real star quality I think.

Jason is always fantastic & so fun. But OH my goodness Nathan Chen is still in a class to himself -- I've never gotten to see him live before, what a treat.

The group numbers were great, really enjoyed them.

I do miss the old days of the bigger cast, but it was very well done & had a great time!

 

[reader3]

But OH my goodness Nathan Chen is still in a class to himself -- I've never gotten to see him live before, what a treat.

You just made my day!

 

[Arriba627]

After seeing the SOI ads on tv for weeks, I finally said to my skating buddy "I think we'll really regret it if we don't go to this show!" The venue is less than 25 minutes from my house, so why wouldn't I go?! We REALLY got our money's worth. The small venue made every seat a good seat, and we decided on the $90 seats, not super close to the ice. I may be going out on a limb here, but I think this was possibly the best ice show I have ever been to! Fun to meet @reader3! I'm sure if we had time, we would have been able to commiserate about skating for a long time!

Loved the cast (nice to see a few skaters other than U.S. skaters), great costumes (ok Nathan, we did see a few of those sparklies on your costume! LOL), enthusiastic good-sized crowd, nice use of the rink-side tv monitors throughout the show, great pacing of the programs (not a long wait between numbers). liked the way they had loud bombastic numbers but some soulful balletic type programs were interspersed in there too, and many other things I'm probably forgetting. My love will always be with the tension and pressure of competition, but it was nice to sit back and relax and enjoy! Nice to see that the skaters weren't bogged down by all the requirements they have to do during a competitive program. Loved the choreography of the group numbers. It's great to be towards the end of the tour where the skaters have (by now) really gotten the choreo down pat. In the group skates, movements were sharp, crisp, energetic, confident.

Jason's hometown crowd was out in full force, and (as always) he did not disappoint! So happy we got to see his "Impossible Dream" program. Wow, Nathan still has it! Fun to see his amazing speed and flow across the ice. He is SO fast. Both he and Jason looked like they might get speeding tickets. LOL. Thoroughly enjoyed Piper & Paul's "Evita" and a program to John Denver songs. Oh, Alexa and Brandon, do you have to retire?! They looked great! Throws, spins, etc. They definitely didn't water down their content. Alexa had quite a few hometown supporters present too. Satoko was ethereal. Loena was a great combination of sass and speed! Chock and Bates skated like the World Champions that they are...Ok I'm getting carried away, this is getting long.

Kurt -- what can one say about Kurt! Many aspects of the show paid tribute to him, and he certainly does deserve it! What a career and a legacy! He really knows how to make the ice work for him. Oh, that footwork! Makes me long for them to bring back the straight-line step sequence. I'm going to have to take some time to look at his old programs. Thx for the memories, Kurt!

Bottom line, if you're in the last three tour cities (Baltimore, Boston, or Hershey areas) and trying to decide if you should go -- GO!!!!! You won't regret it.

Adding--I see what was written above about STROBE lights. I've NEVER liked strobes and find them so unnecessary!

 

[cheerknithanson]

Thanks for the strobe warning. I just texted my friends.

 

[el henry]

Last year, at the beginning of the show, I had to take my glasses off and squint, because I was seeing double due to the show lights. I just thought it was me being old

Thanks to everyone for in-person reports

 

[GGFan]

I was also at the Chicago show last night (though Allstate is not really in Chicago of course ). After all of these years of watching skating on TV this was my first SOI. I missed the glory years when skating was on TV every weekend.

Anyway, just a couple highlights:

1) Kurt! I did not expect to be as moved by his farewell tour as I was. The numbers he did were well planned and despite his age he still has those feet and that extra Gene Kelley pizzaz. It's amazing that someone who won his last Worlds 30 years ago still has this kind of impact. The crowd ate it up.

2) Jason was everything! I hope he keeps touring for years to come. He was just in his element and the hometown was enjoying every sevond. I was so happy I got to see the modified version of the Impossible Dream live.

2 b) Rohene was sitting two rows in front of me, he was taping Jason skating ID, and he's even more beautiful in person. Just a stunning guy.

3) I was so thrilled to see my boy Nathan for the first time since 2022 Nationals. While I have no idea about his quads--that triple flip is holding very strong (it seemed like every jump was a flip). I really enjoyed the freshness of his programs and anyone who has been dying to see Nathan in Liberace costumes will get their money's worth.

4) Satoko is definitely in her post-retirement avant garde, Jeremy Abbott, era. Love what she is exploring with her skating though the numbers are not necessarily for skating novices.

5) Isabeau's Swan program is stil GORGEOUS. She should keep doing that in exhibitions forever. The details are superb.

6) The cast has great chemistry and I liked the group numbers more than I thought. No disrespect to any of the other skaters who I also enjoyed (there were no duds) but this post is already longer than I planned.

 

[muptgirl]

I'll add to the list of those at the SOI Chicago show last night. As mentioned before, it was my first live skating since a SOI show back in the late 90s. I must say - it was incredible and being so close to the ice (1st row behind floor seats was amazing) completely changed how I experienced each skater and their performances. For me, some of the key takeaways:

1) Jason Brown is an absolute superstar performer. While I've always enjoyed him and cheered for him, his performance quality in live shows was amazing. And anyone who could make my teenager react that strongly to the Backstreet Boy number must have superhuman powers.

2) Nathan Chen - Wow! Just a class of his own. Continues to be so impressive.

3) Madison Chock is stunning - Have been a huge fan of this team for years but up close you can appreciate just what a star performer she is with presence. Their connection on the ice was amazing and loved getting to see that Rhythm Dance live.

4) Piper and Paul - I'm a convert. Ok, an unpopular opinion here but I've never been a huge fan of them. Just could never connect to them and sometimes found them a little kitchy. But live I really felt their expressiveness and really loved the Evita program.

5) Group numbers - So much fun! Really high energy, great crowd reactions, so much fun to watch the skaters interact

6) Hometown crowd - As others said, the size of the arena was relatively small and felt intimate. For both Jason and Alexa, there was some great hometown reactions. Loved how they came back out at the very end for an extra wave

Only downside was the sound system (super loud at times) and the strobes at times. I thoroughly enjoyed myself and hope that many of these teams who are or will retire this year from competitive skating stick around for shows - because I'll buy

 

[Arriba627]

Last year, at the beginning of the show, I had to take my glasses off and squint, because I was seeing double due to the show lights. I just thought it was me being old

Thanks to everyone for in-person reports

Yep, those lights aren't cool. I would recommend ear plugs. I have very sensitive hearing, but even so, some of the music was WAY too loud...Forgot to mention the James Bond program was really fun.

 

[muptgirl]

Yep, those lights aren't cool. I would recommend ear plugs. I have very sensitive hearing, but even so, some of the music was WAY too loud...Forgot to mention the James Bond program was really fun.

Agreed! James Bond was awesome! Though my view at beginning was a bit obstructed by volunteer from Holt Foundation getting a last donation. Thanks to those who encouraged sneaking out right at start of intermission

 

[skatesofgold]

After seeing the SOI ads on tv for weeks, I finally said to my skating buddy "I think we'll really regret it if we don't go to this show!" The venue is less than 25 minutes from my house, so why wouldn't I go?! We REALLY got our money's worth. The small venue made every seat a good seat, and we decided on the $90 seats, not super close to the ice. I may be going out on a limb here, but I think this was possibly the best ice show I have ever been to! Fun to meet @reader3! I'm sure if we had time, we would have been able to commiserate about skating for a long time!

Loved the cast (nice to see a few skaters other than U.S. skaters), great costumes (ok Nathan, we did see a few of those sparklies on your costume! LOL), enthusiastic good-sized crowd, nice use of the rink-side tv monitors throughout the show, great pacing of the programs (not a long wait between numbers). liked the way they had loud bombastic numbers but some soulful balletic type programs were interspersed in there too, and many other things I'm probably forgetting. My love will always be with the tension and pressure of competition, but it was nice to sit back and relax and enjoy! Nice to see that the skaters weren't bogged down by all the requirements they have to do during a competitive program. Loved the choreography of the group numbers. It's great to be towards the end of the tour where the skaters have (by now) really gotten the choreo down pat. In the group skates, movements were sharp, crisp, energetic, confident.

Jason's hometown crowd was out in full force, and (as always) he did not disappoint! So happy we got to see his "Impossible Dream" program. Wow, Nathan still has it! Fun to see his amazing speed and flow across the ice. He is SO fast. Both he and Jason looked like they might get speeding tickets. LOL. Thoroughly enjoyed Piper & Paul's "Evita" and a program to John Denver songs. Oh, Alexa and Brandon, do you have to retire?! They looked great! Throws, spins, etc. They definitely didn't water down their content. Alexa had quite a few hometown supporters present too. Satoko was ethereal. Loena was a great combination of sass and speed! Chock and Bates skated like the World Champions that they are...Ok I'm getting carried away, this is getting long.

Kurt -- what can one say about Kurt! Many aspects of the show paid tribute to him, and he certainly does deserve it! What a career and a legacy! He really knows how to make the ice work for him. Oh, that footwork! Makes me long for them to bring back the straight-line step sequence. I'm going to have to take some time to look at his old programs. Thx for the memories, Kurt!

Bottom line, if you're in the last three tour cities (Baltimore, Boston, or Hershey areas) and trying to decide if you should go -- GO!!!!! You won't regret it.

Adding--I see what was written above about STROBE lights. I've NEVER liked strobes and find them so unnecessary!

Last week I made the decision to go to the show yesterday (I recently bought tickets for the Olympics next year so I wasn't sure if I wanted to spend more), and it was totally worth it. I loved seeing programs from this year that I never thought I would see again (Alexa and Brandon's short, Jason's Impossible Dream long, Madison and Evan's short, Ilia's long, Piper & Paul's Evita) and I definitely was quite teary-eyed any time Kurt performed. I missed out on his competitive career, but I've always heard about his greatness. I didn't really watch men's skating much before 2002 although I loved Brian Boitano, Scott Hamilton, and Viktor Petrenko as a kid because of my tape of Skates of Gold. I also really want Nathan to go to one more Olympics, but I'll be okay if he doesn't. His back flips were awesome! I never thought I would see Alissa Czisny live, so she was a nice surprise. I also really enjoyed both of Isabeau's programs, which I knew I would. Oh, and I loved Jason's Backstreet Boys exhibition. That was so much fun. And Loena's Circus exhibition.

The only thing I'm disappointed about was that I was behind two tall men, and I'm short. This happens to me quite frequently at arenas or musical venues. I wish the seating had more differential, but taller steps can be inconvenient.

 

[reader3]

I'm enjoying reading all the reviews. Meant to add that the group numbers were good. This clip isn't from the Chicago show but it gives one an idea of the opening. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpb1i4WVD0g

 

[Arriba627]

The only thing I'm disappointed about was that I was behind two tall men, and I'm short. This happens to me quite frequently at arenas or musical venues. I wish the seating had more differential, but taller steps can be inconvenient.

Ugh, I feel.your pain. I'm 5 feet tall and somehow always end up behind the Incredible Hulk or Mr. Potato Head!!! I was SO happy that we chose to sit farther back and had 2 empty rows in front of us. Still, they were decent seats.

 

[ANS4JBS]

SOI USA started yesterday!!!

I cannot figure out how to create my own post in this darn forum, BUT here to say that I have a friend who dropped out at the last minute and am willing to give away one BALTIMORE ticket (June 2) for FREE if someone is interested. Hate it to go to waste. Prefer someone with financial constraints who needs a favor. Be prepared to sit with over-the-top Jason Brown Fans. Reply if intersted and we can exchange info. I can transfer ticket though the Ticketmaster app.

 

[dorispulaski]

I cannot figure out how to create my own post in this darn forum, BUT here to say that I have a friend who dropped out at the last minute and am willing to give away one BALTIMORE ticket (June 2) for FREE if someone is interested. Hate it to go to waste. Prefer someone with financial constraints who needs a favor. Be prepared to sit with over-the-top Jason Brown Fans. Reply if intersted and we can exchange info. I can transfer ticket though the Ticketmaster app.

To start a thread, go the forum where you want your thread to appear. Click on the orange Post Thread button at the top of the page. Full in your thread title. Then write your post and hit Submit

Enjoy the SOI Show!