Subscribers to TFTI’s Weekly Protocol, and those who follow Twitter closely, will have heard by now many an opinion on certain of this season’s programs. But with this and with the diminution of the middle ranks particularly in dance since…
by Jacquelyn Thayer This week’s Grand Prix Final features a fair range of U.S. and Canadian teams. In pairs, Canada’s Meagan Duhamel and Eric Radford and Julianne Séguin and Charlie Bilodeau will make repeat appearances; in dance, last year’s three…
by Jacquelyn Thayer This Grand Prix ice dance team-by-team analysis has been expanded from recent Snapshot Stats features on Two for the Ice on Tumblr. CHOCK & BATES vs. WEAVER & POJE A pair of world medalist teams in an…
by Jacquelyn Thayer The free dance at 2016 Skate Canada International showcased little movement from the short — but did feature a range of high-scoring performances and more than a few technical twists. Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir successfully completed…
by Jacquelyn Thayer While the short dance event at 2016 Skate Canada International might have drawn most attention for its return of Olympic and world champs and its match-up of several recent high-scoring couples — the real joy lay in…
by Jacquelyn Thayer Victory at Autumn Classic International served as a successful first step of a two-year comeback plan for Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir. And shortly after, the team were back to work with free dance choreographer David Wilson.…
With Finlandia Trophy, the pre-Grand Prix — and most pivotal — stretch of the ISU’s 2016 Challenger Series has concluded, along with the debuts of most of the US and Canada’s international dance teams and pairs. Notable absences like Maia…
by Jacquelyn Thayer It’s common enough for skaters with neighboring levels of success — she a 2014 national novice champion with her previous partner, he 2015’s novice bronze medalist with his — to forge new partnerships as prior ones conclude.…
by Jacquelyn Thayer In ice dance’s current sea of soft lyricals, a free dance with some grit is bound to stand out. And from a team whose last free showed a buoyant, vintage bent, the contrast is even more striking.…
In the second question in Two for the Ice’s Ask the Expert series, ice dance coach and Mariposa School of Skating dance director David Islam — whose students have included current Junior Grand Prix competitors Hannah Whitley and Elliott Graham…
