Stars on Ice Canada tour, April 26-May 16, 2019

Fan cams from the Laval show in upload order:

(2:52) Kaetlyn Osmond - "Proud Mary"

(1:27) Patrick Chan - "To Build A Home"

(2:17) Gabriella Papadakis & Guillaume Cizero - exhibition version of their Piazzolla tango RD

(2:28) Evgenia Medvedeva - "7 Rings"

(2:23) Evgenia Medvedeva - "Beautiful Mess"

(3:05) Meagan Duhamel & Eric Radford - "On Our Own"

(1:57) Gabriella Papadakis & Guillaume Cizeron - "Power Over Me" by Dermot Kennedy

(3:11) Kaetlyn Osmond - "Million Reasons"

(3:30) Kurt Browning - "If You Could Read My Mind" by Gordon Lightfoot (CC: @paskatefan)

(0:17) Kurt Browning’s backflip

(3:27) Piper Gilles & Paul Poirier - exhibition version of "Vincent" FD
 
^ OMG, thank you, Sylvia! First I'll have to watch Kurt, and then on to the rest of the performances! :cheer2::encore::D
 
Saw the Toronto show and loved it! The infusion of the newbies has been a great idea! Nam is loving every second of this and Piper and Paul are fabulous additions. Wea/Po did some fun sassy stuff and it is such a refreshing change from the serious intense competition programs. Kurt is SO Kurt and it is hard to think of SOI ever being without him. Elvis adores being with this show and is better than ever. A few gulps and worry when Meghan skated but she is tough and still looked great. Interesting thing about Medved: she does not connect with the crowd the way that others do, always has her head down, little eye contact. It would be interesting to know her impressioins of the tour at the end. I wonder if she does not realize how much she is appreciated here.
We had great seats, 1st row centre of off-ice seats. Sadly, we had a family of boors behind us. They were 15 mins. late , had an elderly disabled relative who had to be carried to her seat; they did this through Nam's number, 6-footer son did not bother to kneel and let people see while 2 staff were getting this woman into her seat. Son and daughter talked loudly all through show (didn't know any of the skaters), ate and slurped the most disgusting food which reeked, kicked the backs of our chairs and then told us to sit down during the standing ovation so that they could see! My friend refused, tore a few strips off that woman for blocking our view of Nam. All of these people were adults and if you are disabled, you come early (that's what I do each year). Ugh!
Overall: the ice dancers were having an absolute blast. I'd go to a show just with them. I think this fun show was a perfect follow-up to last year's post-Olympic one as nothing could duplicate the emotion of our showing there. Good show. Go!
 
Scrufflet said:
Saw the Toronto show and loved it! The infusion of the newbies has been a great idea! Nam is loving every second of this and Piper and Paul are fabulous additions. Wea/Po did some fun sassy stuff and it is such a refreshing change from the serious intense competition programs. Kurt is SO Kurt and it is hard to think of SOI ever being without him. Elvis adores being with this show and is better than ever. A few gulps and worry when Meghan skated but she is tough and still looked great. Interesting thing about Medved: she does not connect with the crowd the way that others do, always has her head down, little eye contact. It would be interesting to know her impressioins of the tour at the end. I wonder if she does not realize how much she is appreciated here.
We had great seats, 1st row centre of off-ice seats. Sadly, we had a family of boors behind us. They were 15 mins. late , had an elderly disabled relative who had to be carried to her seat; they did this through Nam's number, 6-footer son did not bother to kneel and let people see while 2 staff were getting this woman into her seat. Son and daughter talked loudly all through show (didn't know any of the skaters), ate and slurped the most disgusting food which reeked, kicked the backs of our chairs and then told us to sit down during the standing ovation so that they could see! My friend refused, tore a few strips off that woman for blocking our view of Nam. All of these people were adults and if you are disabled, you come early (that's what I do each year). Ugh!
Overall: the ice dancers were having an absolute blast. I'd go to a show just with them. I think this fun show was a perfect follow-up to last year's post-Olympic one as nothing could duplicate the emotion of our showing there. Good show. Go!
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Tks for the updates. Always excited to read them. Was Stephen G. there? How was his performance?
 
Saw the Toronto show last night and I was impressed - it was a lot better than I was expecting, given that it is a post-Olympic year. I wasn't planning to go this year since V&M weren't on tour and I can see Patrick, Kaetlyn, etc. in the RTR tour in the fall, but when Kurt got added to the cast, I changed my mind.

Kurt's "If You Could Read My Mind" was beautiful and, to me, worth the price of admission - there still isn't another skater (IMO) who captures the emotions of music as perfectly as he does. I thought his popcorn search number in Act I (with a Siri-style computer voice leading him) was quite adorable. It's funny that Elvis is the one pursuing an acting career, since I always thought Kurt would have made that transition easily.

Patrick's "To Build a Home" was gorgeous, too, and I almost wish he had decided to eliminate jumps from that program entirely. (He did have a small jump error, but the reason why I wished he'd take out the jumps was more because his overall movement and non-jump elements in the program are so effortless and lovely.)

Elvis's show programs and music choices are not really my cup of tea, but I have to say that he has really improved since he rejoined SOI. The first year he rejoined, he basically was skating from one end of the rink to the other, pointing at the audience, and doing some double axels. His programs this year had much more footwork and choreography, and he landed more than one triple jump.

Nam looked like he was having a blast throughout, and I disagree with people who think he has regressed or stopped improving - his speed looked much better than it has in the past (even in exhibition skates) and it seems like he is still trying to stretch himself in his presentation styles and skills.

I thought Kaitlyn & Andrew's program to Alanis Morrisette's "Uninvited" in the first act was great; they pulled off the dark heat of the choreography very well. I wasn't as enamoured with their more upbeat, dance-y program in Act II.

Gogolev guest-starred in Toronto and was adorable - he looked confused about where to enter and exit and at once point, looked around as if he had forgotten in which direction to bow.

My friend, who is a very casual skating fan, got a huge kick out of the 90s medley group number and was singing along to all the songs. The costuming in that number was hilariously accurate. We were joking about how several cast members weren't even alive when some of the songs came out.

Jeff did a great job on the overall choreo and coherence of the show this year, and it's too bad he wasn't able to skate in it.
 
Loved the CSOI show yesterday at Hamilton.

Highlights for me were Patrick’s beautiful edges...his jumps were perfect as well....
Kurt’s program to Gordon Lightfoot who was present in the audience ...and Evgenia’s elegance and delicacy in Beautiful Mess.

Loved seeing GOGO too and looking forward to seeing him and Nam at Nats.
 
Scrufflet said:
Saw the Toronto show and loved it! The infusion of the newbies has been a great idea! Nam is loving every second of this and Piper and Paul are fabulous additions. Wea/Po did some fun sassy stuff and it is such a refreshing change from the serious intense competition programs. Kurt is SO Kurt and it is hard to think of SOI ever being without him. Elvis adores being with this show and is better than ever. A few gulps and worry when Meghan skated but she is tough and still looked great. Interesting thing about Medved: she does not connect with the crowd the way that others do, always has her head down, little eye contact. It would be interesting to know her impressioins of the tour at the end. I wonder if she does not realize how much she is appreciated here.
We had great seats, 1st row centre of off-ice seats. Sadly, we had a family of boors behind us. They were 15 mins. late , had an elderly disabled relative who had to be carried to her seat; they did this through Nam's number, 6-footer son did not bother to kneel and let people see while 2 staff were getting this woman into her seat. Son and daughter talked loudly all through show (didn't know any of the skaters), ate and slurped the most disgusting food which reeked, kicked the backs of our chairs and then told us to sit down during the standing ovation so that they could see! My friend refused, tore a few strips off that woman for blocking our view of Nam. All of these people were adults and if you are disabled, you come early (that's what I do each year). Ugh!
Overall: the ice dancers were having an absolute blast. I'd go to a show just with them. I think this fun show was a perfect follow-up to last year's post-Olympic one as nothing could duplicate the emotion of our showing there. Good show. Go!
Click to expand...


I feel sorry for Medvedeva. According to poster on this message board her own country hates her for leaving the coach. I don’t blame her for being unsure if people like her in Canada. Sad that she had this horrible experience on life at age of 19 just because she has goals and some didn’t agree with her decisions. I hope Canada does appreciate her talent
 
Finsta said:
I feel sorry for Medvedeva. According to poster on this message board her own country hates her for leaving the coach. I don’t blame her for being unsure if people like her in Canada. Sad that she had this horrible experience on life at age of 19 just because she has goals and some didn’t agree with her decisions. I hope Canada does appreciate her talent
Click to expand...
There are some random trolls who hate her, but she's still beloved in Russia.
 
Finsta said:
I feel sorry for Medvedeva. According to poster on this message board her own country hates her for leaving the coach. I don’t blame her for being unsure if people like her in Canada. Sad that she had this horrible experience on life at age of 19 just because she has goals and some didn’t agree with her decisions. I hope Canada does appreciate her talent
Click to expand...
I actually went to SOI to see her. She got a huge cheer. I think she seems happy at the TCC. There are a lot of young skaters there to interact with her and some of the playful posts are fun.
 
How long is the show, from start to finish? I'm going next Sunday in Edmonton and am trying to make Mother's Day dinner plans for after the afternoon show. Thanks!
 
No Gogolev in London today. Highlights for me were the group numbers, Patrick, Elvis and Kurt. I loved Patrick’s first number, and you could have heard a pin drop throughout. It was also great to see Nam enjoying himself! He has come so far this season and I am truly happy for him. He got a lot of screams from the younger fans. I am so glad Kurt came back - he really is like the icing on the cake. I stood after his Gordon Lightfoot number. There were no real standing ovations today other than the one at the end. I loved the whole show but was sad to see so many empty seats.
 
Browning goofing around with his popcorn before Medvedeva skated in Winnipeg last night :D: https://www.instagram.com/p/BxOrUSQFd45/
Stojko closeup: https://www.instagram.com/p/BxOjNbklNJD/

2 3 Evgenia Medvedeva SOI articles:
http://figureskatersonline.com/news...but-its-such-an-incredible-experience-for-me/
https://olympics.nbcsports.com/2019...dvedevas-divisive-7-rings-exhibition-program/
ETA: https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/a...ent/arts/she-knows-butterflies-509572852.html
In the midst of rehearsals ahead of her debut tour with Stars on Ice — which lands at Bell MTS Place on Wednesday night — Medvedeva confirmed a little-known fact.
For as long as she can remember, the 19-year-old Russian star has suffered from lepidopterophobia — the unrealistic fear of butterflies and moths.
"Everyone else is afraid of spiders and I’m afraid of butterflies. (If a butterfly comes near) I will start laughing and crying, both at the same time," the Olympic silver medallist revealed.
Click to expand...

Photos by Max Gao in Toronto:
Pre-show Q&A with Osmond & Nguyen: https://www.instagram.com/p/BxBOXL3pzYy/
'90s number "girl power": https://www.instagram.com/p/BxC3PBvFc45/
Medvedeva's "7 Rings": https://www.instagram.com/p/BxDQWhVFGfv/
Osmond's "Proud Mary": https://www.instagram.com/p/BxETr-QlLfd/
Gilles/Poirier's "In the Mood": https://www.instagram.com/p/BxGeH4_FMSX/
Chan (both solos): https://www.instagram.com/p/BxIhunql7tk/
Weaver/Poje's "Groove Me/Land of 1000 Dances": https://www.instagram.com/p/BxN1MDOF-Ca/

ETA 3 fan cams from the Toronto show:

(3:23) Weaver & Poje, Groove me/Land of 1000 Dances, Toronto

(3:34) Weaver & Poje, Uninvited, Toronto

(6:24) Cast_finale, Toronto

2 fan cams from Hamilton on May 5th:

"Trusty and True" group number: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i85W6stoknY

"With a Little Help From My Friends" group umber and finale (Gogolev is announced first): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iEMaqpJ0uBI
 
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I am so excited to go on Saturday night. For the first time ever I have tickets to the "Meet & Greet". My husband is a pretty good sport about figure skating and it is, after all, the night before mother's day - but he is not happy about the meet and greet. He is so appalled at the idea, for some reason, that he is making me laugh. Maybe it will not be as bad as he thinks??
 
puglover said:
I am so excited to go on Saturday night. For the first time ever I have tickets to the "Meet & Greet". My husband is a pretty good sport about figure skating and it is, after all, the night before mother's day - but he is not happy about the meet and greet. He is so appalled at the idea, for some reason, that he is making me laugh. Maybe it will not be as bad as he thinks??
Click to expand...
Huh? Why appalled? I went to one in TO years ago and it was fun! Skaters signed autographs, exchanged a few lines of niceties and posed for a photo before moving on to the next. Most fun was watching little girls in their skating costumes showing off for the skaters (who were absolutely wonderful with them). Who cares what he thinks. Make him stand in a corner while you enjoy yourself!
 
Scrufflet said:
Huh? Why appalled? I went to one in TO years ago and it was fun! Skaters signed autographs, exchanged a few lines of niceties and posed for a photo before moving on to the next. Most fun was watching little girls in their skating costumes showing off for the skaters (who were absolutely wonderful with them). Who cares what he thinks. Make him stand in a corner while you enjoy yourself!
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I think it will be fun and he really is a good sport which is why his reaction is amusing to me. I come from a football family and personally can't stand it but I watch with them to share their excitement. I do have my limits though so I can understand he does as well.
 
The Calgary show was great!! The saddle dome seems so huge to me I can never tell the size of the audience but certainly less than last year but very enthusiastic. I loved Piper and Paul and Starry, starry night and I got to tell them that at the meet and greet so that made my year in skating, Kaitlyn and Andrew were amazing as well. Patrick !!! - the list goes on and on. A lovely evening:40beers:
 
Kurt mentioned in one of his many television appearances promoting the SOI shows that the audiences pay for parking, buy popcorn, buy tickets and so the skaters owe them a good show. I don't think that means error free - but it seems to me that there are subtle differences between amateur competition/performing and moving on to these professional shows. Kurt obviously gets this - we happened to be able to be there for a special reception in Calgary as well as the meet and greet and he puts himself out there to really connect with the audience - both in mass and individually. I saw some difference in how the veterans made eye contact and seemed engaged in the PR part of it. Tons of credit, from me, at least, to Patrick, Nam and Piper and Paul who are part of the "young ens" but also seem to get the importance of reaching out to fans young and old.
 
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Well, my lowlight was missing @Rosaleen and @kalamalka. Dinner before Rock the Rink at UBC?

I liked nearly everything. My least favorite bits were Browning's clown fillers but the clown program itself was really well conceived and performed. My least favorite programs were by the singles women -- yes, that's what they're called in Canada -- because, for me, Joannie Rochette broke the sultry, flirtatious mold, but I was thrilled to see Medvedeva and Osmond skate. I'm sad Buttle that wasn't in the show and glad that Nyugen got the chance.

My highlights were:
  • Stojko's exquisite timing and physical economy. He would make an amazing Flamenco dancer with those skills. His posture was beautiful, and he looks to be in phenomenal shape.
  • Vincent. I'm still :wuzrobbed because my Friday night flight to Anaheim was canceled due to weather, and I missed seeing the competition FD in person, but feel privileged to have seen it live in any version.
  • Patrick Chan's skating in the group number where he was wearing sunglasses and "Suit and Tie," which he skated at another level of physical expression. The man can dance.
ETA: the previously mentioned overhead lifts from Duhamel/Radford.
 
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Sylvia said:
Personal highlights from the final Vancouver show on Thursday @alilou, @victoriajh, @kwanfan1818 ? :)

Found 2 fan cams:

Kurt Browning's "If You Could Read My Mind": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_ptFZydGEs

Elvis Stojko's "Original Fire" by Audioslave (partial): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9Eaj7i8THA
Click to expand...

Thanks for the prompt @Sylvia.

There were so many highlights I hardly know where to start, and I forget a lot!
I sat completely enraptured through all the group numbers - I have no idea of the music - but the opening number, the 90's number, and the one where they're all dressed in pink and grey for the opening of the second act all were beautiful. I don't remember the closing number but I know I loved that too, but not as much as the other ones.

Kurt's clown number was very original, very clever, and well done. Thoroughly enjoyed it. Kurt at his best. Not so much the Gordon Lightfoot number. He's 52. He doesn't skate the way he did when he was young. Yeah, I know it's Kurt, but it's time for him to stop.
Canada clearly still LOVES Elvis. Oh the roar of the crowd! I enjoyed him. He's not a pretty skater but he is compelling and very entertaining. He's full-on and it's exciting!
Kaetlyn was charming, but struggling and probably tired. Poor girl needs a break I think. I loved the idea of the Tina Turner number, and the choreography, but she just didn't skate it with the passion that I've seen from her doing say the Piaf SP or Black Swan. It needed much more commitment. Can't remember her second number.
Megan and Eric - Oh the baby bump was on full display, and you could tell they were understandably being careful (no jumps of throws) but still lovely to watch and some fabulous end to end lifts.
Patrick :swoon: :inavoid: smooth as butter as usual. Can't remember the music for his first number. I've read the two songs he skated to and I'm a bit confused because there was no mention of To Build a Home. I could swear his second number was to To Build a Home, and it was absolutely sublime.
It's probably been about 14 years since I first saw Andrew Poje live. I am still in love with him :swoon: Kaitlin's not bad too. I loved watching them sweep around the ice and was completely engaged in both programs they did but preferred the first softer one to the latin one.
Nam absolutely held his own with the rest of the cast. He was great. I do remember his first number (wearing a Canuck red and black plaid shirt) and loved it. His second number was quieter I think, either way it was good.
Evgenia - so good to finally see her live. Hated the Ariana Grande number - a lot because I can't stand the message of the song - but neither did she convince me in her performance. Her second number OTOH was beautiful.
Piper and Paul's first number was charming and entertaining. Vincent OTOH was in another world altogether. Sublime :inavoid: So glad I got to see it live.

I think that's everyone. Honestly I just fangirled my way through the entire thing. Canada is sooo blessed with men skaters especially: Kurt, Elvis, Patrick, Eric, Poje, Poirier, Nam - seeing them all sweeping around the ice together - what's not to love.
I had a centre on-ice seat, the best seat in the house, and loved every minute of it. Sooo much fun!

Great dinner with @kwanfan1818 beforehand, and got to visit with @Rosaleen and @kalamalka during the interval - icing on the cake.
 
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