Tag: ice dance

Behind the Program, Ep. 4: Paul and Islam, 2015-16 Short Dance

by Jacquelyn Thayer Taking on a Ravensburger Waltz with a classical ballet twist was a task Alexandra Paul and Mitch Islam were loath to take lightly. “Any time you tackle a new program, there are countless hours that go into…

For Orford and Hill, Happy Accidents Tell the Tale

by Jacquelyn Thayer A planned West Coast vacation for Canadian ice dancer Asher Hill — journeying from Vegas to L.A. up through Vancouver to meet with skating friends — prompted an unexpected invitation from British Columbia-based Nicole Orford, recently split…

Behind the Program, Ep. 2: Poulin and Servant, 2014-15 Free Dance

by Jacquelyn Thayer For Andréanne Poulin and Marc-André Servant, guided by the chance to try new program and musical styles, the logical senior follow-up to a lighthearted, character-heavy junior free dance — utilizing Alexandre Desplat’s whimsical Fantastic Mr. Fox score…

2015 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships: By the Numbers

Senior dance teams competing: 15 Senior pairs competing: 7 New teams: 5 Catherine Daigle-Roy & Dominic Barthe (sixth, dance, Skate Canada Challenge) Lubov Iliushechkina & Dylan Moscovitch (first, pairs, Skate Canada Challenge) Alexa Linden & Jean-Luc Jackson (eighth, dance, Skate…

2015 U.S. National Championships: By the Numbers

Senior dance teams competing: 17 *Alissandra Aronow & Collin Brubaker withdrew after qualification Senior pairs competing: 12 *Brianna de la Mora & Taylor Wilson withdrew after qualification New teams: 5 Marissa Castelli & Mervin Tran (first, pairs, Eastern Sectionals) Anya…

PCS: Connecting the Dots #4. The Weight of the Worlds

While our previous entries have focused exclusively on the question of PCS, an overall evaluation of fall results has prompted a secondary question: what relationship, if any, exists between the role of PCS and that of the ostensibly more objective…

Poulin and Servant Embrace the Bright Side

by Jacquelyn Thayer In the first four years together, ice dancers Andréanne Poulin and Marc-André Servant took a sober-minded view towards their work–an “intense, super-serious” mentality, in their words, that accompanied a 2012 Canadian junior national title and two Junior…

For Edwards and Pang, Experience is the Teacher

by Jacquelyn Thayer Entry to the senior ranks proved a trial by fire for Canadian ice dancers and 2014 World Junior bronze medalists Madeline Edwards and ZhaoKai Pang. While still competing as juniors internationally, their 2013 national title meant a…

Flashback Friday (Weekend Edition): 1998 Winter Olympics

The dance event in Nagano, Japan, at the 1998 Winter Olympics is remembered probably in significant part for an off-the-podium finish for reigning Canadian champions and World bronze medalists Shae-Lynn Bourne & Victor Kraatz — a result not wholly unjustified…