2019-2020 Programs and Choreographers

Tinami Amori

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Sarabande Suite I can see totally working for them.
I am not sure with the SP choice, but let's see.
I am thinking the same. However, there are several versions of SOTW/2wei. One that is all rock closer to DP original, techno-instrumental, and one with elements of "symphonic orchestra". The last two are very skate-able, and not "head bangers" like DP's one.

more "orchestra" - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YnNTD_5_erg
more "techno" - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Ye4G2ub1YM
more "hard-rock" - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=myeF9cACeX0
 

DobrinFan

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Mad for Skating

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Kostiukovich/Ialin
SP: Smoke on the Water performed by 2Wei
FS: Sarabande Suite (Aeterna) by Globus

Both choreographed by Denis Lunin
https://www.goldenskate.com/2019/06/kostiukovich-and-ialin/

Their SP last year was performed by 2WEI so I think this will be pretty good!

Gracie Gold
FP: "She Used To Be Mine" (FP from last season)

I’m excited to see this! I think it could be a great program for her if she can perform it well.
 

Sylvia

TBD
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Tinami Amori

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From the Salome opera by Richard Strauss?
Ha! I thought the same thing! The opera's piece music cuts wise is not very interesting for a skating routine (imo). Then i doubt she would see herself as Rita H. or even know this old movie.

So another option is this...
 

VGThuy

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My first reaction was that Starr seemed a bit young for that role, but then I remembered Kwan was 15 when she did it. For some reason either Kwan seemed older than she was (even compared to Tara who was only two years younger) or I'm just getting older and kids just seem so young to me now.
 

LoopCombo

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Peter James "PJ" Hallam (GBR)
SP Music: Footloose
Choreographer: Dawn Peckett, his coach
Music choice: Robin Cousins
Clips from his IG:

PJ Hallam was the surprise delight of this year’s worlds for me! He skated like a daredevil just barely in control and he had some seriously sweet moves. He was so in the moment. He came very close to making it into the free program. I read that he works as a stunt man, absolutely loves figure skating, and trains in his free time. Hope to see him at Europeans this year. Much luck to him!
 

aftershocks

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Starr Andrews announced her FS theme: https://www.instagram.com/p/By8_WMwpKxh/

From the Salome opera by Richard Strauss?

$10 it’s gonna be Kwan’s Dance of the 7 veils 😎

When Michelle Kwan used this music, it had never previously been used. Since then, MK's Salome has led to numerous costume imitations, and perhaps one or two uses of the same or similar music from either the opera or a film version. However, I'm not certain anyone actually used Michelle's same music. Perhaps someone was inspired to skate to a similar music theme, but did not want to risk using MK's exact music. I recall Radionova skating to MK's Rachmaninoff awhile back. At this juncture, enough time has definitely passed for Salome to be brought back, in one form or another.

I am intrigued to see what Starr and her choreographer will do with this choice. She will definitely need to project more and really get into the interpretive aspects of the music much more than she managed with the African-themed music for her last season's fp. I think that program had potential which Starr never fully realized.

There was a lot of criticism in some quarters when Michelle, Lori and Frank selected this music. And the criticism stemmed from the violence contained in the underlying story. But after all, it is a Biblical story, possibly embellished via centuries of myth. As a young skater, Michelle used the music and story to portray emotion. Obviously, it was not a literal re-enactment, so some of the criticisms IMO were more related to jealousy of MK's talent. And in any case, even in the Biblical story, Salome herself did not perpetrate the violent act.

Thanks for providing the clip from the 1953 Rita Hayworth movie Tinami. Even I was unaware of this movie. It's certainly not the role Rita Hayworth is most famous for re her dance abilities and sexiness. :p

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salome_(1953_film) Plot of film which takes huge dramatic license

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salome Biblical story

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salome_(opera) The opera

During his famous 1996 Worlds commentary, Dick Button states that MK skates to Miklos Rozsa's flim score version of Salome, but I don't see any indication that Rozsa scored the 1953 Salome film. Further checking reveals that Rozsa scored the movie, King of Kings, in which there was a section entitled, 'Salome Dances.' That must be the movie music version Dick referenced in his commentary:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0joQEzwn07M Kwan 1996 Worlds fp ETA: MK also used music from the Strauss opera at the end of her program

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cszkQkiIY7M Miklos Rozsa's Salome Dances (from King of Kings soundtrack)


That said, in her Instagram announcement, Starr did not identify the exact music version she is using. Therefore, whether her choice is the Richard Strauss' opera or the more well known in figure skating Miklos Rozsa version (skated by MK) or yet a different version, remains to be seen. ETA: Since MK incorporated both Rozsa and Strauss in her music selection, MK's version is possibly the same incorporated edit Starr has chosen.

The second version posted by @Tinami Amori is interesting (not from the 1953 film)
 
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VGThuy

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Peter James "PJ" Hallam (GBR)
SP Music: Footloose
Choreographer: Dawn Peckett, his coach
Music choice: Robin Cousins
Clips from his IG:
ETA: Thanks @AYS, I had a feeling I was supposed to post program info here that I'd already added to the spreadsheet earlier today... it was Ponsart's SP!

I was scrolling really fast, and I thought someone was skating to the music of PJ Harvey, which made me go :eek:
 

aftershocks

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My first reaction was that Starr seemed a bit young for that role, but then I remembered Kwan was 15 when she did it. For some reason either Kwan seemed older than she was (even compared to Tara who was only two years younger) or I'm just getting older and kids just seem so young to me now.

:giggle: Michelle was coming into her own as an artist in 1996. That was the season she blossomed and seemed unrecognizable. But it was a well-planned strategy to remake Michelle's entire look and to give her more mature music to skate to. The reason for this strategy was because the judges refused to reward Michelle in any capacity in 1995, when she definitely out-skated all of the ladies placed in front of her. After her blazing performance in 1995 with girlish ponytail rocking, Michelle only placed fifth (up three spots from her 8th place 1994 Worlds result).

No matter what, Starr will need to make this music and her choices her own. She needs to delve more deeply into interpreting and projecting, but she needs to find and express herself more fully in the process. Maybe that's why this choice was made: to help Starr develop more expressiveness. Or else, the choice was made for different reasons. Starr's challenge is to project more while also managing technical difficulty with consistency.
 

VGThuy

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Oh yeah, as a huge Kwan fan, I'm familiar with that, ;). For some reason though even outside the superficial changes the Kwan team did, Kwan just exuded a mature energy at that age with those cosmetic changes. Even Tara made sure to put her hair in a bun and wear dresses that looked ready for competition, but she still seemed more her age while Kwan always seemed older. It must be the skating style and Kwan just having that sort of mature energy. Even now, we see American ladies of all ages having make-up, putting their hair in a bun, making sure they look older, but don't seem to look as "old" or "mature" as Kwan did at 15-17. I'm not saying it's a bad thing to be young and to give off a youthful energy (as it worked well on Tara and made her skating seem very natural and almost improvisational), but just observing that Kwan seemed older, so her skating to Salome didn't seem weird to me. Plus, I also watched it many years after she had already done that and I was used to seeing an older Kwan already, so maybe that adds to it. I also think Yuna Kim has a similar quality that Kwan had regarding exuding a more older/mature look while skating than she actually was.
 

aftershocks

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PJ Hallam was the surprise delight of this year’s worlds for me! He skated like a daredevil just barely in control and he had some seriously sweet moves. He was so in the moment. He came very close to making it into the free program. I read that he works as a stunt man, absolutely loves figure skating, and trains in his free time. Hope to see him at Europeans this year. Much luck to him!

PJ definitely has an energetic, daredevil style to his skating which is refreshing and entertaining:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_MHV5U6kgaU Challenge Cup fp

I look forward to seeing more from PJ. :cheer2: Hopefully, he will also work on learning how to hold out his moves more and develop greater finesse, as he flies across the ice thrilling audiences with his daredevil feats. :)

ETA:
To me, PJ has a look reminiscent of Heath Ledger... :wuzrobbed

Perhaps he might consider music from one or more of Heath's greatest films:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WooaqrGijcM&list=PL9CE5BA58F89E6162 Brokeback Mountain


The below is probably more suited to PJ's energetic, adventurous style:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5wjYL0FwpPg The Dark Knight

PJ skating to Michael Jackson's Smooth Criminal:

PJ's sp at 2013 JGP Minsk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6EiwBhCwBBE
 
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aftershocks

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^^ Thanks. So that apparently means none of the Miklos Rozsa score from King of Kings. :) It won't be exactly the same as MK's music.

... For some reason though even outside the superficial changes the Kwan team did, Kwan just exuded a mature energy at that age with those cosmetic changes. Even Tara made sure to put her hair in a bun and wear dresses that looked ready for competition, but she still seemed more her age while Kwan always seemed older. It must be the skating style and Kwan just having that sort of mature energy. Even now, we see American ladies of all ages having make-up, putting their hair in a bun, making sure they look older, but don't seem to look as "old" or "mature" as Kwan did at 15-17.

I'm not saying it's a bad thing to be young and to give off a youthful energy (as it worked well on Tara and made her skating seem very natural and almost improvisational), but just observing that Kwan seemed older, so her skating to Salome didn't seem weird to me. Plus, I also watched it many years after she had already done that and I was used to seeing an older Kwan already, so maybe that adds to it. I also think Yuna Kim has a similar quality that Kwan had regarding exuding a more older/mature look while skating than she actually was.

Your observations are interesting. I don't view this exactly the same, but I get what you're seeing and saying. For me, Kwan did not always look older. She looked like the cute little jumping bean that she was up through the 1994-95 season. Then her team made the decision to enact a conscious 'mature' makeover, because it was seen as necessary at that time when the old-fashioned "wait your turn" judging approach was still in effect. Plus, the additional year made the difference in terms of Michelle's emotional and artistic growth as a skater. Something in her just began to click. I think Michelle has always gained great inspiration from her sister Karen too. In many ways, Karen was Michelle's muse. And we know a bit about how lovely and graceful Karen was as a skater.

That said, I do agree with you that Michelle's personality and the way she has always carried herself made her indeed seem wise and mature for her age. But she did not visibly look older until the makeover happened. I think Michelle's skating to Salome did not seem unnatural nor a stretch simply because she was emotionally and aesthetically prepared for the challenge. With that program, everything changed. Michelle pushed her career and the entire sport forward. But the lesson is that she was expressing who she was and what the music meant to her. That's the key.

I'm going to cross-post this in the Michelle Kwan thread in Trash Can, so further conversation, if desired, can take place there. :)
 
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aftershocks

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I wager $100 on it.

You both lost. ;)

If Starr isn't using any of Miklos Rozsa, and it's all Richard Strauss, it's not the same as the MK version.


Hase/Seegert
SP: Open Hands by Ingrid Michaelson, choreo Mark Pillay
https://www.instagram.com/p/BzBQPHXoCGf/

 

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