Interview With Douglas Webster

Douglas Webster and Edward Villella. Darial Sneed photo.

In a professional career that has spanned decades, Douglas Webster has traveled the world choreographing for Disney On Ice, Stars On Ice, Holiday On Ice, The Sun Valley Ice Show and working on such productions as Winter Solstice On Ice and ABC's Skating With The Stars. He's performed in shows all around the world and worked closely with many of skating's best as the Artistic Director of the Ice Theatre Of New York. It was my absolute pleasure to have chance to tell the story of Doug's career through this wonderful interview! We talked about his favourite pieces, amateur career, ITNY, Dollywood Christmas On Ice, his favourite skaters, the future of the sport and much, much more:

Douglas teaching class in Sun Valley at the ITNY 2013 residency. Diane Dick photo.

Q: How did your love affair with skating begin and what can you share about your amateur career and what brought you to the Ice Theatre Of New York, where you are currently the Artistic Director?

A: As a child, I always like things that flowed. I skied both nordic and and alpine. I grew up in the mountains of New Hampshire and skating was a lake activity. There was a seasonal rink outdoors in front of the train station where I grew up. It was naturally frozen with just awful conditions but whenever I was outside it made me feel so happy. I moved over to skating as recreation pretty much full time as there was music and honestly... The Carpenters, Dan Fogelberg, Saturday Night Fever, Grease, etc... really, as a gay man, what would you choose... freezing on a chair lift or skating to fabulous music? I started competing later than most - around 13. I was too old to be a Juvenile at the time and there was no Open Juvenile, so I didn't compete till I got to Novice. Because of the recession in the 70's/early 80's, my family moved to Fairfax, Virginia where I was lucky enough to be coached by Audrey Weisiger, Ken Class, and Julie McKinstry as well as Nick Perna and a whole wonderful team of awesome information and experience. As I started so late, I had one goal: to make Nationals. I never really thought of making the Olympics as it seemed so unreasonable at the time but I did make the National Championships as a Novice Man when I was 17. I towered over Todd Eldredge! I always felt so strange wearing all that spandex being so much taller than everyone. (#awkwardmoments #tall #spandex #gay #why!) I never was much of a competitor but felt I’d completed my goal when I competed against Mark Mitchell as a Junior man at Easterns (he was Novice when I was in Juvenile, so I felt like I’d really accomplished something….not kidding here) and I got my tests and went off to The College of William and Mary. Two years later, Nathan Birch introduced me to Willy Bietak who had a show at Busch Gardens in Williamsburg. I got cast as the principal guy. I left W and M to go on the road with Willy’s show called Festival On Ice that soon turned into Broadway On Ice. I was made a principal guy and unbelievably was performing with Scott Hamilton, John Curry, Judy Blumberg and Michael Seibert, Tai and Randy, the list goes on and on… it was a dream come true for me! I even skated with my childhood hero, Lynn Holly Johnson from Ice Castles… she was Guinevere and I was Lancelot (thank you Sarah Kawahara)! It was in this show that I met Jamie Isley and Cindy Stuart, two amazing people I’ve been lucky to work with and remain friends with for years. I also met Judy Blumberg, who used to stand in the wings and watch my solo "If Ever I Would Leave You" and give me notes. Yikes! She later became my partner and one of my dearest friends. You never know where life can take you! During this time, I went to do Carmen On Ice in Spain where I met Val Levine. After Carmen, I went back to college, graduated and moved to New York City. Val was from New York and told me to come skate with the Ice Theatre Of New York. I moved to New York City and pursued acting and skating with the Ice Theatre in 1991. In 1996, I choreographed Appalachia Waltz with JoAnna Mendl Shaw and the rest is more than 20 years of history... to becoming Artistic Director! Life is the most interesting crossing of paths.

Q: For 20 years, you have worked with the Ice Theatre Of New York creating and choreographing original skating pieces that have pushed the boundaries of innovation. What choreography pieces stand out to you as your favourite and most daring works?

A: There are several important pieces. Appalachia Waltz signifies an expansive way of ensemble skating that was with three ice dance couples... the intent of this continues on in my work today. It also has a central love duet that both Judy Blumberg and I skated and remains my favourite skating moment ever. Transitions is a piece I made to represent four stages of transitioning through grief. I made this piece in 1998 and it was created in a time when many were still dying from HIV. This piece remains in our repertoire today and I think is my most important work. It is a tribute now to all those we've lost including John Curry, Brian Wright, Robert Wagenhoffer, Patrick Dean, Billy Lawe, Rob McCall and so many more! The light in our world was seriously diminished at this time and we need to remember these amazing artistic skaters with a memorial!
Departures is a piece made of an ascension of one angel originally played by Florentine Houdiniere. It was created right after 9/11 and is a tribute to those lost in the World Trade Center Disaster. It is in honor of Clarin Swartz who was on the original Ice Theatre Of New York board and was lost in the disaster. The piece is a depiction of give angels gently 'taking' another by the wings and allowing one to fly in the face of the fear and anguish of departure. Dare Greatly is a trio made to "Fix You" and arranged by the Vitamin String Quartet. It is in honor of Will Sears and was commissioned by his mother, Margarite Sears. The piece is a trio about the courage to be. When Will passed away sadly at such a young age, he was writing a screenplay called Dare Greatly. This piece is also in our repertoire this year and the ladies skating it (Eve Chalom, Carly Donowick and Natalia Zaitseva) are exceptional. Unforgettable is a piece that I made last year. It is so much cotton candy fun, romance and joy that it makes up for all the sad things mentioned before. It is wonderfully costumed by The Schulz Collection in a Gatsby look and is so thoughtfully acted and danced by the whole company. This piece features Ryan Bradley and Erin Reed and is also being shown this year. It was made with Richard Dwyer (Mr. Debonair) in mind. Reveries will be debuted this year. This collaboration with Edward Villella has been the most rewarding experience of my skating career. Watching Kim Navarro and Brent Bommentre portray the artist seeking his unattainable muse is something that I think about in my off time. The tapestry of movement and interweaving of the ensemble is so beautiful. I feel beyond grateful to have been a part of this gorgeous contribution to the world of figure skating.

 Finding Nemo for Disney commercial shoot. Heinz Klutemeyer photo.

Q: As a judge for Young Artists Showcase, you've seen just how impressive the new, younger wave of choreographers are in the sport. Why do you think YAS and G2C Seminars have been so successful and how can more skaters get into the world of choreography?

A: I think YAS and Grassroots To Champions are so successful because they provide opportunity to create and to learn in a very unique way. YAS, in particular, is wonderful as it provides a platform to create. For some reason, people often need a “reason” to create. People like to be rewarded for what they aspire to. When I asked Brian Wright how to become a choreographer, he said, “just show up.” That’s what these young choreographers are doing, they are showing up to an opportunity that gives them visibility and and a foundation to make art. Everyone can get into the world of choreography. What’s most important is that one does it because it is a passion and a love. One can’t be attached to the outcome of what one creates... just make art and love what you do. The importance is to create at all costs.

Q:You have a background in acting. What skills did you learn from theatre that helped you most in the skating world?

A: I studied the Meiser technique with the wonderful Barbara Marchant in New York City. I learned: 1. have an objective, 2. Play your actions, 3. understand who you are and what you want, 4. be clear about the emotional life, 5. be specific with your choices and make them bold and clear. I also learned from being a storyteller… studying literature and art and understanding music, theory, dance, etc. I would take classes at William and Mary like Ethnomusicology….I was very lucky!

Q: Who is the most fascinating person you have worked with over the years?

A: Definitely Edward Villella! His stories about being a principal dancer with the New York City Ballet and working with Balanchine and then going on to start his own company (Miami City Ballet) are a gift to me on every level. I am blown away by this experience!

Chuky Klapow, Douglas and Cindy Stuart working on High School Musical

Q: You've worked with Stars On Ice, Disney On Ice, Holiday On Ice and the Sun Valley Ice Show, as well as working for ABC's Skating With The Stars. In all of your years working with skaters, what have been your funniest - and most interesting - experiences?

A: Each show brings its own joys and funny experiences. Making a production is like having a child. There is so much that goes into each one creatively, technically; there are so many people involved. I think the one thing that people think about choreography is how creative one can be, but the career is more about how you get along with people and how you teach the work as well as the business of the work; the meetings and negotiations. Choreography is about 10% of a big job! My favourite experiences have been playing the Reverend in Footloose, skating in the opening of the 2002 Olympics, working on High School Musical with Cindy and Chucky, choreographing my first reality show for Holiday On Ice (Sterren Dansen op Het Ijs) and making The Wizard of Oz for the Autostadt in Germany. Each job is so special to me, but the production team and the cast are what I’ll remember the most.

Q: You did a show called Dollywood Christmas On Ice at the Dollywood Theme Park in Tennessee. Are you a big Dolly Parton fan and what can you share about this show?

A: I love Dolly! This was an awesome show that Ice Theatre Of New York co-produced with Dollywood Entertainment. I was the director of the show as well so enjoyed being involved in all aspects of this including the arrangements, the video projections, the choreography, the costumes. There are two versions (2012 and 2011). It is a very joyful show and I feel proud of the work.

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Q: Who are your three favourite skaters of all time and why?

A: Well, there are so many! I feel bad not including Janet Lynn, Dorothy Hamill, Judy and Michael, Tai and Randy (I mean their Meco Wiz of Oz… awesome!), Robin Cousins, and all the current skaters I admire so much, but my top three are Sonja Henie (because of her beauty and her ability to take show biz of skating to new heights!), Dick Button (because he was so groundbreaking and has become such an historian and still remains part of the growth of our sport) and John Curry (because he changed the way people see figure skating…and created the two off-shoots: The Next Ice Age and the Ice Theatre of New York. And because he was a courageous soul who I wish I could talk to today).

Q: What's one thing about you most people don't know?

A: I like being quiet and alone in Maine.

Q: With the current judging system and the changes in technology over the last few years, skating isn't reaching audiences on television in the same way it did before. How do you think that figure skating can get more bodies in those seats at live events?

A: I think skating needs to become an objectified jumping sport. Put the laser gun on people and measure height, distance, rotation, etc. This would be awesome... double axel... Slam! You’re out. There is no way skating will become a viable sport in any way if it remains subjectively judged. The whole thing is absurd. As far as shows, people need to be reinvigorated to the emotion, to production, to lighting, to sets, to costumes. I think it’s time to bring glamour, showgirls, great skating and fabulous everything back to skating and entertainment… and I have a show to do it called 'The New Yorker'. People need to be immersed in an experience. The star skating vehicles are no longer interesting to mass audiences—people need some production! I think Ice Theatre Of New York has created a great foundation to see skating in a new way this year! I hope people turn up to see this awesome company of skaters. The work is accessible and the talent is strong!

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.

Winter Sports Without The Winter: Skating In Africa

Figure skating is not the sport it once was. At the very first ISU organized World Championships in 1896, only skaters from three countries - Germany, Austria and Russia - were represented. Now, figure skating is truly an international sport, with the International Skating Union having member federations on every continent except Antarctica. You never know, those penguins might get organized... then look out! At any rate, for decades competitive skating has been dominated by North American, Russian, European and (in recent years) Asian skaters. The last place you'd probably think to look for ice time is among the Giza pyramids, the Ngorongoro Crater, Victoria Falls, the Nile River or the Sahara Desert, but Africa is a continent not only with a promising future in the sport but an interesting past.

In 1909, Mrs. Dale Lace was responsible for starting Africa's very first ice rink in Johannesburg, South Africa. The rink was situated on Eloff Street in Johannesburg at the South African Party's club. In 1937, the South African Ice Skating Association was founded and The Wembley Ice Rink built in Springfield, Johannesburg. The following year, it became the first ISU member on the African continent. Its first president, Professor J.Y.T. Greig presided over the organization which ruled both figure and speed skating until 1950. Early competitions were mainly held in ice dancing although singles and pairs disciplines were contested at the country's first National Championships in 1947. In 1955, South Africa's second rink was opened in Durban. Sadly, in 1968 Margaret Betts and the pairs team of Glenda and Brian O'Shea were the final skaters to ultimately compete at the World Championships for over twenty years when South Africa was revoked the right to send skaters abroad to international competitions due to the countries apartheid and racial segregration of the era.  

Wembley Ice Court in Johannesburg, South Africa

It wasn't until 1970, when more rinks popped up around South Africa that the South African Ice Skating Association became a true governing body of the sport with headquarters in Natal. In 1973, history was made when the first international competition was held in Johannesburg and a National Judges Committee was formed. Two years later, the first Skate Safari international competition was held, with competitors from Austria, Great Britain, Luxembourg, West Germany and the U.S. all competing against South African skaters. However, it wasn't until 1992 that South African skaters were readmitted to international competition for the first time in 23 years after being banned. The first skaters to compete at the World Championships after the ISU lifted the ban were Dino Quattrocecere, Juanita-Anne Yorke and ice dancers Fiona Kirk and Clinton King. In 1994, speed skating split from SAISA and the South African Figure Skating Association became its own entity. South Africa was represented in both the 1994 and 1998 Winter Olympics in figure skating but unfortunately no South African skaters have qualified to compete since. Reigning Senior Ladies champion Lejeanne Marais is the sole skater representing South Africa competing at the 2013 Nebelhorn Trophy Olympic qualifying event and hopes to chance all that for that the better.

South Africa's Shirene Human competing at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan

The second African nation to gain membership to the International Skating Union was Morocco, and the Association of Moroccan Ice Sports has already started fielding competitive skaters. Annual National Championships were established in Morocco at the MEGA MALL Ice Rink in 2010 and a Moroccan Figure Skating Cup competition has been held since 2011. Aya Sayah and Hamza El Guerrab won the 2012 Figure Skating Moroccan Cup held in Rabat on the 9th of June, 2012 in the Junior Ice Dance category. Senior ice dancers Asmae Samri and Nicolas Salicis made their international debut at the 2012 ISU Adult Figure Skating Competition in Oberstdorf, Germany, finishing 5th in the Masters category. In March 2013, Moroccan singles skaters Hajar Rakik, Sarra El Oufir and Kenza Mahmoudi travelled to Cieszyn, Poland and gained valuable experience competing at the ISU World Development Trophy. 

Moroccan ice dancers Asmae Samri and Nicolas Salicis at the 2012 ISU International Adult Competition

Morocco and South Africa are not the only African countries to have ice rinks... and skating programs available. Tunisia's first ice rink to open was The Blue Ice complex in the Yasmine Hammamet resort. Egypt has rinks in the Ancient Egypt Mall in Cairo, at Family Land in Maadi, Helwan, and at Genena Mall in Cairo. Côte d'Ivoire has a rink in the Hotel d'Ivoire in Abidjan. The largest ice rink in Africa is the Solar Ice Rink, which was opened in the Panari Hotel in Nairobi, Kenya in 2005.

Skaters at the Solar Ice Rink in Nairobi, Kenya

Unbeknownst to much of the rest of the world, figure skating is truly a sport practiced in all corners of the earth these days. There are skaters from Grenada in the Caribbean, Brazil, Argentina, New Zealand, India, Hawaii, Iceland, Africa and everywhere in between all getting out on the ice and pursuing their passion. Who knows? The 2018 Winter Olympic Games will be in Pyeongchang, South Korea and that's a long time from now. Anything can happen. Even the unexpected.

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of the figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.

Kim Lucine's Super Mario Program And Shepherd's Pie

I keep on watching it again and again. Up, B, A, left, left, get that mushroom! I'm sorry, but I think Kim Lucine's Super Mario Brothers short program is the best thing since sliced bread. And sliced bread is pretty damn fancy if you ask me! Seriously though, I have to give two jazz hands up and a Hey Girl Hey! to this program and I don't even like Super Mario. Growing up, we'd play every so often when visiting family friends but it wasn't really our thing. The only computer/video games I ever really got into were the Monkey Island ones... and I got into those ones like crazy... that's a whole other blog just waiting not to happen. Anyway, I'm going on... "I love Annie Lennox but I drink a little".
What I think is so amazing about Lucine's program is not only that he's being unique, entertaining the audience and not just the judges, musical and creative, but that he's taking a risk. When you skate to theme music for a video game that's that recognizable, you need to able to pull it off... especially in a short program where the technical aspect of the program is so paramount. I don't know if you choose to see it, but a good 80% of the programs in ISU eligible skating competitions that you see out there are "safe". In an Olympic year, that goes up to 95%. If you look at skaters program choices this year, you are seeing some of the "safest" choices going. Let's review some of the Olympic medal hopeful's music choices, shall we? We've got "The Firebird", Sergei Rachmaninoff's "Piano Concerto No. 2", "Jesus Christ Superstar", "Sheherazade", "Sleeping Beauty", "Romeo And Juliet", "Carmen", "Carmen", "Carmen", "Carmen", "Swan Lake", Rhapsody On A Theme Of I Couldn't Give 2 Shits, Kentucky Fried Chicken And A Pizza Piazzolla. Everyone's doing what they think will appease the judges and it takes a special, fearless kind of skater - especially in an Olympic year - to attempt something this original. Bravo Kim for being that skater!

You have to wait for it... the real fun starts after the first two jumping passes!

It's funny... not so long ago there were a lot more Kim Lucines... skaters like Toller Cranston, Gary Beacom, Susanna Rakhamo and Petri Kokko, Laurent Tobel, Surya Bonaly, Laetitia Hubert, Sandra Garde, Alexandr Fadeev, Philippe Candeloro, Shawn Sawyer, Allen Schramm, Stannick Jeanette, Olga Markova, Ilia Klimkin, Natalia Bestemianova and Andrei Bukin, Vanessa Gusmeroli, Eric Millot, Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean, Ilia Klimkin, Isabelle and Paul Duchesnay and countless others who weren't afraid to go against the grain and try new things. As Dick Button famously said, "GOOD FOR YOU, LUCINDA RUH!" There's another one. But why aren't skaters these days putting them out there and being a little more risky and creative in their program choices? I think the answer lies partly in the difficulty of structuring the kinds of things these IJS programs demand to music and partly in skaters hiring the right choreographers. There are certain (very popular) choreographers out there that honestly only seem to put out the same thing. It's like someone who doesn't cook but can make, for instance, a really good shepherd's pie. If you ask them to make you chicken supreme, it might be right nasty like... but honest to Pete (who's Pete anyway?), they make a great shepherd's pie. Having established that's the only thing they cook and how well they cook it, naturally that's going to be the recipe they always offer people and take pride in, that recipe that wins cooking competitions and omnomnom's... You can serve that pie on a million different plates with different music (or muzak) playing in the background, but it's still going to be shepherd's pie. I hope you like shepherd's pie by the way, because it's on the menu this year for lunch and supper. Room service? Shepherd's pie. I might start taking up playing Super Mario video games at this rate. Thanks again Kim Lucine!

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of the figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.

Interview With Michael Tyllesen

For every one skater that achieves their ultimate goals, so many more don't. One skater that did everything they set out to do and then some and grew so much in the process is Denmark's Michael Tyllesen. A 6 time National Champion of Denmark, Michael twice represented his country at the Winter Olympics. After a 13th place finish in Lillehammer, he returned in Nagano and finished in the top ten. In eight trips to the European Championships and nine to the World Championships, the longevity of his eligible career was matched by the duration and success of his professional one. For nine years, Tyllesen was a principal skater with Holiday On Ice. Now working as a skating coach in Denmark, Michael took the time to reflect on his skating career, successes, training conditions in his country, Holiday On Ice, his favourite skaters and much more:

Q: You represented Denmark at the 1994 and 1998 Winter Olympics, placing 13th in 1994 and moving into the top ten at the Nagano Games. What are your favourite memories of your Olympic experiences and what did competing at the Games mean to you?

A: It was like a dream to be at the Olympic Games and it still sometimes feels like it was only a dream thinking back on it. I'm so happy to have achieved my biggest goal in skating, the Olympics, and to have experienced it 2 times. It was a big satisfaction to skate well at the Olympics, because the Olympics is something special, and even though I didn't skate perfect then I'm still satisfied with my performances and very happy to finish in the top 10 in 1998. The best memories from the Olympics was of course to skate at the Games and to leave the Games with a good result, but also to carry the flag for Denmark at the opening ceremony was amazing. But every day in general was full of unforgettable experiences and impressions.

Q: Speaking of competition, you were able to sustain a figure skating career that lasted an entire decade (1990-2000). What were the biggest challenges and rewards during your competitive career?

A: A big challenge was to make realistic new goals and to work hard towards them. All my skating dreams has come true. When I was young I dreamed about becoming National Champion. Then Nordic Champion. Then to participate in the Europeans and Worlds and maybe the Olympic Games. To finish 4 times in top 10 at Europeans and even finish 9th at the Olympics was more then I dreamed of when I was really young. Holiday On Ice was the same. I dreamed one day to become a star in Holiday On Ice too. The biggest rewards in my skating career are all the experiences I have had with my skating. All the competitions, the international training camps, training with some of the best skaters in the world (Lake Arrowhead and Edmonton) and all the nice people I have met and things I have experienced because of my skating. My skating career has given me many great memories and experiences. These are something nice to think back on and I have travelled and seen almost the whole world. My personal three best results I am most happy about were my 6th place at Europeans, 9th place at the Olympics and 3rd place at Skate Canada and being on the podium with the 2 Olympic medal winners Elvis Stojko and Ilia Kulik.

Q: I have never been to Denmark nor have many of my readers. What can you tell us about the figure skating program in your country? How has it evolved from when you first started skating to today and what makes it unique?

A: Back in the 80's, The Danish Skating Federation had a training center for the most talented skaters in Denmark. When I was 12 years old, I got the offer from the Danish Skating Federation to Live and train at the training Center. It meant that I had to move away from my parents and live in another city in a big house with 5 of Denmark's biggest talents. A family would take care of all of us and make dinner and so on for us. They lived on the first floor and all the skaters lived in basement and all skaters had their own room. We went to normal school in the day and skated together before and after school/work. We had a national coach and a choreographer to teach us. Besides the ice time, we had to do off-ice, weight training, dancing, running and stretching. We even got massage once week, so we had everything we needed. We paid a small amount each month for living and training at the training center and the rest was paid by the Danish Federation. I lived at the skating center for 4 years then it closed down. It was very expensive to run for the Danish Skating Federation and many skating clubs didn’t like that “their” skaters were taken away from their own coach. I'm so lucky I got to live and train at the skating center and having some good skaters to look up to and train with in a professional environment. We had everything we needed to become good skaters. Some of all the best skaters we have had in Denmark ever are from the time where the Skating Center existed and I would never have achieved the results I have, if I wouldn’t have lived there. It's very difficult to make good skaters in Denmark these days. It's a small country. We do have quite a lot of ice rinks, but we have to share the ice time with ice hockey. All skaters pay a monthly fee to the club and then the trainers give group lessons, so all the skaters have to share the lessons. Not all clubs allow private lessons and the talents are spread between the different clubs instead of all the talents training together at the same place. The sport has also become very expensive, so not all the skaters/parents can afford what it requires if you want to be on a high level. The Danish Skating Federation doesn’t really support the skaters with much money anymore. In Denmark, we have something called TEAM DENMARK, which is an organization who support all the best athletes in Denmark. You need to be a "TOP ELITE" sportsman/woman and place around the top 10 at Europeans or the top 15 at Worlds to get money support from them. I was lucky that I got a lot of money and support from Team Denmark and the Danish Skating Federation from I was 12 years old until I finished my amateur career in year 2000, because my parents would never be able to pay all the money it has cost for my skating. In the 90's, when I started competing at Europeans and Worlds, I combined my training in Denmark with 4 summers in Edmonton, Canada and later 4 summers and also winters in Lake Arrowhead, California, which was great.

Q: You are quite tall for a skater (over 6 feet) yet always seemed to strike such an elegant line on the ice. Did you take a lot of off ice dance training to achieve that kind of poise on the ice or did it just come naturally?

A: I have never done ice dance, but at an early age (12) I started to work with a choreographer at the Skating Center, Lorna Brown. I learned a lot from her and while working with her she showed me many videos with John Curry and Robin Cousins which was very inspiring. I have done classical ballet in a ballet school for 1-2 years in my teenage years and later 4 years of show dance in a real dance company. It was a lot of fun. I have always liked the artistic site of skating and it has always come naturally to me. You either have it in you - how to move - or you don’t. It’s correct that I’m a tall skater. I’m lucky my body turned out to look presentable on the ice. Ballet training has helped a lot. I have been lucky to work with some really great choreographers throughout my career who have made some great programs for me and helped me to become a better artistic skater. I see myself having the same kind of style as John Curry and Robin Cousins (tall and long lines) and I have several times been compared to both Robin and John Curry. One of the nicest compliments I ever got was from the English commentators on Eurosport, Simon Reed and Chris Howarth. They once said on TV while covering Europeans, after my program, that my performance was like turning back the time to John Curry.

Q: You were always known for your creativity during your programs and worked with choreographers like Igor Bobrin, who toured with his own ice theatre and his wife Natalia Bestemianova and her partner Andrei Bukin, who were very theatrical skaters in their own rights. During the 90's when you were competing, there were many skaters showing creativity in their musical and program theme choices but there seems to be a lot of repetition in many of the skaters music choices now. Why did you enjoy going in different directions and why do you think many skaters are playing it safe now?

A: In 1998, I wanted Toller Cranston to do my programs for the Olympics. I was fascinated with his big and extreme movements. He was too expensive, so instead I luckily found out about Igor Bobrin. He had done an excellent program for Krisztina Czako from Hungary, so I really wanted to work with him and he did programs for me my last 2 amateur seasons. I loved working with Igor Bobrin. He was so creative and made it much more fun to skate the programs because he made the programs so original. I admire him and learned a lot from him. He was so great also with mime/facial expressions. I wish I would have worked much more with him. I always chose the music for my programs myself. It's important to choose music you can “feel” and like to skate to. When I skated competition in the 90's not all guys cared so much about the choreography. They were more focused on the technical part. For me, I have always enjoyed the artistic part of skating - the creativity and finding music that I loved to skate to. I had some interesting designers for costumes who made my costumes a bit different and also choreographers who were very creative. I think the last few years much more guys have become much better artistic skaters. It's nice to see. It can be really difficult to find great and new music, so it will be very interesting to see next year when all skaters can skate to music with lyrics.
 
Q: After turning professional in 2000, you toured with Holiday On Ice. What was this experience like and how did it grow and change your skating?

A: I joined Holiday On Ice in October 2000. I had 9 great years skating with them as a principal skater. I got to see so many places in the world and perform for more then 1 million people during the 9 years. I loved the show biz life because I got to travel even more than when I did competitions. It was great to entertain people... the spotlights, the money... and I became an even better artistic skater because I could focus more on entertaining than only on the difficult jumps from competitions. I got to work with Robin Cousins as the choreographer when I was a principal skater in his show. It was so cool to work with him because I had always admired his skating and his style and I really admire all his work creating fantastic shows. He was an amazing performer and choreographer with his unique, different details to many of the simple steps. It was also great to work with the other choreographers I worked with during the 9 years with Holiday On Ice.

Q: Who are your three favourite skaters of all time and why?

A; I have more than 3! First of all, John Curry and Robin Cousins for the nice lines and amazing skating, steps and control on the ice. Everything fits perfect to the music! Brian Boitano is my favourite technical skater for his perfect jumps. I really love to watch Kurt Browning also. He is an amazing entertainer on the ice. From the newer skaters, I really like Michal Brezina and Patrick Chan. I also love to watch programs that Lori Nichol has choreographed. I really love her choreography.

Q: When was the last time you were on the ice?

A: My last performance as a professional was in 2009 with Holiday On Ice... but in December 2012 the Danish Skating Federation asked me to skate a number for their 100 Year Jubilee, so I did that.

Q: What is your current involvement in the sport and what keeps you the most busy in life these days?

A: Since January 2011, I am a head coach at a skating club in Copenhagen, so I'm on the ice 6 days a week teaching. I'm also sometimes commentating on Eurosport TV which is a lot of fun.

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of the figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.

The One Thing You Should Add To Your Bucket List

When I was a teenager growing up I would spend 5 days a week at school, 3-4 days a week on the ice and every spare moment I had watching skating. It was the 90's, so you'd have to be selective about what you'd watch. On a Saturday around 4 PM (for instance) there would often be 3-4 figure skating competitions or events being televised at the same time. That's where the good old trusty VHS came in. You'd watch one and tape the other(s). I remember doing the same thing at both of my grandmothers houses. I was extremely close to not only my parents but my grandmothers as well. I'd sit in my Nanny Jean's den and watch skating with her and remember us both shaking our heads watching Surya Bonaly rip off her silver medal at the 1994 World Championships. My Nanny Joyce would take me to the library in Dartmouth and I'd take out any skating video or book I could get my hands on. I had boxes and boxes of VHS tapes of skating (I still have a box in my storage room even today) and I couldn't get enough of watching entertainers that moved me. shockingly (I know), I loved professional skating way more than "amateur" skating and I remember one VHS tape I would have rented that really kickstarted my love of professional skating in particular.

World Champion Linda Fratianne skating to "The Last Man In My Life"

It was a compilation video of some of the best performances from the Landover World Professional Championships up to 1987. Keeping in mind that my first introduction to skaters like Katarina Witt, Gordeeva and Grinkov and Brian Boitano would have been in 1994, I was really just getting introduced to skaters whose skating I'd have a lifelong love affair with. On that video were Dorothy Hamill, Torvill and Dean, Robin Cousins (who I loved!), John Curry, The Protopopov's, Scott Hamilton... Probably Tai and Randy? I honestly don't remember. One of my favourites on that entire video was Linda Fratianne skating to "The Last Man In My Life". I watched and rewatched all of the performances over and over again and only now do I realize that generationally, I was pretty lucky. I could watch skating at its artistic and creative height in the 1990's live and get to know a whole era of amazing skaters through books and videos. I remember watching an instructional "learn to skate" video with Tai and Randy and just falling in love with them. Videos and books about John Curry introduced me to some of the most stunning skating I've seen to this day. A video produced by either the ISU or the CFSA (I forget?) really introduced me to the figures that were being phased out as I started and I was so amazed the last figures that were skated at a World Championships were right in my home province.

Olympic Gold Medallist John Curry skating to "La Valse"

So much has changed in the last couple decades and one of the greatest positives in this respect is YouTube! The fact that all of this wonderful skating is now available to today's skaters and fans at a single click is honestly really amazing. It's allowed me (and others) to learn about and from skaters that were before my time. We have John Curry, Janet Lynn, Robin Cousins, Toller Cranston, Katarina Witt and Torvill and Dean right at our fingertips. If there's one thing we can be thankful for in this age of technology... it's that great skating is available to us 24/7, with a single click. Add a day of revisiting the great skaters of eras past to your bucket list. I guarantee that you'll end the day with a smile on your face.

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of the figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.

Michelle Kwan Answering My Question On U.S. Figure Skating's Google Hangout

So yeah... mind = blown! I now know how those teenage girls who used to scream until they were blue in the face felt when Nick Carter from the Backstreet Boys looked at them. Well, maybe I'm not fangirling that much, but I am still beyond thrilled to have had chance to have my interview question answered by 9 time U.S. Champion and 5 time World Champion Michelle Kwan in this U.S. Figure Skating Google Hangout! I've interviewed (and met) by fair share of famous figure skaters. Meeting Brian Orser and Jamie Sale was amazing... interviewing one of my skating idols Anita Hartshorn was a dream... but this made my day/week/year! Forever immortalized on Skate Guard (it's at 7:47):

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of the figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.

Interview With Zabato Bebe

When I told Nancy Chacurian-Viveiros that my next interview victim was Zabato Bebe, she suggested I ask him 6.0 questions, one for every muscle in that six pack. As nice of a chesteses as it is (and it IS girl!), I just couldn't narrow it down to 6. I don't often rave about skaters. Let me stop right there - who am I kidding? I don't often rant about skaters as MUCH as I do about Zabato Bebe. From Vienna, Austria, Zabato is one of the most naturally talented and exciting skaters I've seen. He's a risk taker on the ice, isn't afraid of skating full out and has such a contagious spirit and love of performing that it's just unreal. He's competed in Young Artists Showcase, toured with World Professional Champions Anita Hartshorn and Frank Sweiding, competed internationally and stolen shows. His performances are complex, extroverted and full of transitions that would put the top men in the world to shame. Transitions, in my opinion, are supposed to look easy and make the elements flow together, not difficult.... and he constantly seems to accomplish this! It's not just the transitions, it's the explosiveness and passion in his skating that cannot be really described and done justice. It was my absolute pleasure to have chance to interview one of the most exciting skaters of our time. We talked about YAS, choreography, performance, professional skating and much, much more:

Q: You are a complete rock star on the ice! What gives you the confidence to take completely different styles of choreography and movement and deliver each with such energy and drive?

A: I don't know about being a rock star, but for me creating and performing different styles comes very naturally. While I was growing up, I was fortunate enough to be exposed to many different cultures and I was being influenced from people not only in figure skating but also in dance, art and acting. My Dad was a performer himself and my mom always encouraged me to work in a very creative way. My coaches always allowed me to experiment on the ice and to try new things that didn't necessarily bring me any points in the competitions. I believe those are the main ingredients that allow me to do the work that I'm doing today.

Q: You are a Quest For Creativity champion with Young Artists Showcase and competed in the 4th season of Young Artists Showcase, qualifying for the live finals this December. What were your goals when taking on this ultimate choreographic challenge?

A: Young Artists Showcase (MKYAS4) has been an incredible experience so far. It definitely pushed me out of my comfort zone sometimes and forced me to come up with creative ideas. The finals will be very different for me. Being a professional figure skater, I very rarely get to perform on a full size ice rink. This will take some time for me to get used to. There are two parts to the finals. Part 1 will be "Choreographers Choice", where I will perform a piece of my choosing and Part 2 will be "Secret Talent", where I will create a piece for four other skaters. I have yet to decide between two pieces - which one I would like to do for the first part of the finals. One is safe, which means that the choreography is set. I've performed it before and I know that the audience usually responds very positive to that piece. The other has never been seen before by a live audience and it might be a little bit provocative to some viewers. So there is still a decision to be made. The second part of the finals is also very challenging for me, because I've never choreographed for four people on a full size ice rink and also the music that was given to me will force me to come up with some creative ideas. As of right now I have no clue what I am going to do.

Q: How did you come up with the choreography for your "King Of Africa" and "Rolling In The Deep" programs? Both give me chills!

A: I'm not sure if I deserve much credit for those pieces. Disney created "The Lion King", one of my favourite movies. Some DJ's created an awesome remix of that amazing soundtrack and  when I was a child, my dad showed me some African dance moves. I just brought all those things together and put them onto the ice. "Rolling In The Deep" was a similar process.

Q: How did you learn the backflip and Cantilever and did they scare you in the learning process?

A: Both the Cantilever and the backflip required a lot of persistence. The hardest part was not to listen to the people who said that it was impossible, dangerous or just not worth it to learn those tricks.

Q: What is your background in (ISU) competitive skating?

A: I always enjoyed doing fun and interesting things. It wasn't always easy growing up in the competitive figure skating world. Of course I won some national an international competitions, but my real goal was always to wow the audience with something they've never seen before. Therefore, I chose the path of professional figure skating which allows me more creative freedom.

Q: What benefit is there to skaters interpreting and choreographing music and programs on their own?

A: What benefit is there to do what you enjoy doing? For me, making up choreography and allowing myself to get inspired from all different kinds of sources is just something I really enjoy. I am lucky that during my career as a principal skater, producers and choreographers allowed me and even encouraged me to bring my own influence to the production. The benefit for me is that my performances have more meaning to me and I believe the benefit for the audience is that it feels more authentic to them, which hopefully makes the whole experience more truthful and enjoyable.

Q: What skaters past and present interest you artistically and have that intangible quality where you just stop and watch?

A: One of my ultimate heroes when I was growing up was Philippe Candeloro. Seeing him on TV as a little boy inspired me to follow my creative urges on the ice. Performing in the same show with him in Qatar in February of 2013 was unquestionably a dream come true. As a professional, I look up to skaters like Kurt Browning who continues to create absolutely fantastic programs but also the group "Le Patin Libre" are one of the wonderful things that are happening in figure skating right now.

Q: I've been doing a lot of writing lately about the resurgance of interest in artistic and particularly professional (non ISU) skating. What do you hope to see as the future of professional and artistic skating?

A: I think there are a lot of very creative skaters out there who have a great potential to contribute to the professional and artistic figure skating world. There needs to be a bigger platform and more exposure for skaters who don't  want to to follow the IJS system but want to create artistry on ice. Young Artists Showcase and ProSkaters' Virtual Skate Off are great ways to make your work visible to a larger audience but I'd also love to see offline, in person professional competitions reappear.

Q: What is one piece of music that you long to skate to someday? what's your favourite song right now?

A: One day I would like to create a piece where the audience is the main part of the performance and dictates the rhythm to which the skater is skating.

Q: What gives you happiness and peace when stepping on the ice?

A: I enjoy what I am doing. I love to step onto the ice every day and it doesn't even feel like work. What really brings me happiness are the excited faces of the audience when I perform for them and the comments I get via email, YouTube, Facebook and Twitter from people all over the world who tell me that they love my creations and even feel inspired by them. Knowing that I can bring joy to someone's life, even if it is just for a few minutes, is what keeps me going. By the way, you're doing an absolutely amazing job!

If you've been living under a rock somewhere and aren't already completely in love with Zabato's skating, you can check out his YouTube channel at http://www.youtube.com/Zabatino, his Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/Zabato.BB, his website http://www.zabato.net or Twitter at http://twitter.com/zabatobebe.

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of the figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.

Picture It... The Holy Roman Empire... 1610

It's time for another Sophia Petrillo moment. "Picture it... The Holy Roman Empire... 1610". Alright, maybe that was more than a little before Sophia's time, but the general vicinity isn't too far off. 

Rudolf II was of royal blood, a Habsburg and a former Archduke of Austria, King Of Bohemia, King Of Hungary and Croatia and the Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire from 1576 until his death in January of 1612. His story is and thoroughly fascinating one. His life and reign was riddled with rumors that he was a big old homo (such as myself). He was an avid collector and patron of the arts and had a vast number of very erotic artworks commissioned for him. He was a practitioner, almost obsessively, of occult arts and sciences and made it his lifelong goal to find the Philosopher's Stone (this is like something out of that Harry Potter!). He knew Nostradamus. He for a time owned The Voynick Manuscript, one of the most compelling and mysterious items in history. His son showed signs of schizophrenia and was widely believed to have murdered and disfigured a local woman. He died unmarried and stripped of all of his real power by his own brother... He lived quite a life. 

But what does a Holy Roman Emperor from the 1600's have to do with skating? More than you'd think. Being so preoccupied with his occult studies and interest in the arts that it actually was perceived by some as a problem when it came to doing his job, one particular artistic medium that drew Rudolf's interest was ice skating. In addition to botanical gardens, exotic animals and a curio cabinet (Kunstkammer) of bizarre and macabre specimens, he enjoyed skating so much that he had a large ice carnival constructed right in his court in 1610 (two years before his death) to popularize skating in Prague, Bohemia and his Empire.

Years after Rudolf's first real introduction of ice skating to the people of Prague, skating in Czechoslovakia (now the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic) has thrived. Alena Vrzanova, Eva Romanova and the late Pavel Roman and Ondrej Nepela all won world titles and today, skaters like Tomas Verner and Michal Brezina are real contenders for medals at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. Skating in Prague's rich back story started from royalty and skaters like Verner and Brezina hope to become skating royalty themselves. Full circle, pussycat!

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of the figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.

Interview With Phillip Mills

Sasha Cohen... Jill Trenary... Elaine Zayak... Calla Urbanski and Rocky Marval... Courtney Hicks... Kyoko Ina and Jason Dungjen... Ashley Wagner... the "Kween" herself Michelle Kwan... The list reads like a "who's who" of figure skating greats and all of them have not only their medals and U.S. titles in common. All of these skaters have had programs choreographed by one of figure skating's greatest choreographers, Phillip Mills. A highly successful gymnast and international star in the world of ballet, Phillip turned to the world of choreographing for figure skating and has choreographed for countless champions in singles, pairs and dance and helped lead them to National titles in the U.S. and around the world. Joining legendary coach Carlo Fassi as the choreographer at the Broadmoor World Arena and Ice Castle International Training Center, Mills went on to work with many more of the skating world's best and create pieces that complemented their own unique styles while bringing out the very best in them. It was my pleasure to have chance to ask Phillip about his many experiences in the figure skating world, his thoughts on what great choreography is all about and so much more:

Q: You have worked with a who's who of figure skating, choreographing legendary and memorable programs for everyone from Michelle Kwan to Katia Gordeeva, Elaine Zayak, Jill Trenary and so many more. Which skaters have you developed the closest bonds with over the years?

A: I would have to say my closest bond is with Sasha Cohen because I still see her occasionally and because of the number of programs I did for her over the years. Her personality and enthusiasm was invigorating every time we got in the rink for rehearsal. Elaine Zayak is truly a lady and was amazing during her comeback. I remember when I was choreographing her short program and saying "OK, now have to do a spiral sequence" and she said "Oh, I don't do spirals", and I responded "Honey, you may not do windows but now in this day and age you have to do a spiral sequence". When Frank Carroll asked me to choreograph for Michelle Kwan I was truly honored. I felt such a connection to Michelle because of the dignity and respect she gave to her sport. Lastly, my close bond to Tatsuki Machida from Japan is so inspirational to me  because his purity of movement. He came to me last year to do The Firebird after seeing Ashley Wagner in Black Swan. He did not know that as a professional dancer I had danced Prince Ivan and Kastchei the Evil Wizard.

Q: You have not choreographed Ashley Wagner's programs for the current season, having really helped transform Ashley with such beautiful programs as Pollock, Black Swan and The Red Violin. How did these programs come to life and what direction do you think Ashley will end up going in?

A: I was pleased that I was able to give Ashley Wagner her artistic voice. I had choreographed Somewhere In Time a few years back and was so excited when she called me to choreograph Black Swan for her. I knew I wanted to make a contrast between Odette and Odile from the classic Swan Lake in this piece. This was the jumping off point to develop Ashley's ability as a character actress in her skating. The hours I spent rehearsing her on the proper classical use of port de bras for the sinuous haunting flutter of the Black Swans wings was well worth it. She was shocked at how difficult it is to be as pulled up in her torso as dancers are all of the time. During the spiral sequence, I knew I was going to put the memorable port de bras on the staccato music to emphasize the frenetic nervousness Odette experiences in her transformation into Odile. Odette is beautiful and trusting, delicate and needy while Odile is underhanded and conniving and evil to the core. The bourrees had to be in the step sequence as they are the  essence of Odette and Odile. Samson and Delilah was a continuation of the great dramatic quality Ashley was growing into. I wanted to show many sides of her personality in her quest to give up the secret behind Samson's power and eventually his demise. The controversial color of the dress was intentional as a metaphor for the gold that Delilah would receive once she gave the vital information to destroy Samson. Jackson Pollock is one of my favorite artists because his paintings inspire movement and emotion when I study them. This enabled me to give Ashley an edgy fun loving twist in the short for the first year. I tried to capture her frivolity and excitement to inspire and entertain the audience and judges. The Red Violin was inspired because I am of Italian descent and I spent part of my ten years with Carlo and Christa Fassi in Italy where the Red Violin takes place.  The movie is outstanding and the story spellbinding to me. For two years, Ashley Wagner was my muse and I think I have opened up artistic doors for her to thrive and flourish under whomever she works with. It will be interesting to see where The Black Swan flies to next.

Q: How the transition from choreographing 6.0 programs to CoP programs changed the process for you? What challenges has it presented?

A: In the beginning, the transformation from 6.0 to IJS was a little stifling. I felt it was difficult for me to interject so many of the very special and unique moves many skaters can do into the programs for fear of losing the necessary opportunities  to garner more points from the system. Then one day, my long time friend and coach Cindy Caprel said to me "Phillip, you have been choreographing for IJS for years and did not realize it, go back and look at our National Champion Deanna Stellato's long program at Keri Lotion". Well I did just that and immediately was enlightened at how many transitions and few crossovers there were in the program. Also, the innovative spins in her program would be Level 4 spins today. From that day forward, I felt free and inspired to try to give each skater an artistically challenging and exciting program.

Q: What advice would you give someone wanting to get into the world of choreography?

A: I believe education is the key to excelling at anything in life. Having had the opportunity to perform professionally on stage for 13 years was the most valuable education I could have ever dreamed of. Dancing ballets by so many different wonderful choreographers in classical and contemporary and having the opportunity in a German Opera house to dance in the operas, operettas and musicals exposed me to just about every genre of dance except hip hop which was soon to be born. Classical ballet training is the foundation of all dance forms whether it be ballet, contemporary, folk, character, spanish, jazz, rock or lyrical. I would encourage anyone who wants to be a choreographer to take as many dance classes in various styles as they can. I would suggest studying piano or violin to fine tune their ear to the demands of many musical compositions today. I think the most important thing is to be inventive and not just regurgitate choreography they received while they were skaters... challenge themselves to go to the theater and inspire themselves to greater heights of expertise.

Q: What choreographers - on and off the ice - inspire you?

A: My favourite choreographer is George Balanchine of the New York City Ballet. Mr. B. is revered as the greatest choreographer of the twentieth century. I have to get my New York City Ballet fix once a year to take myself back to my roots so that I can better choreograph for my skaters. Jiri Kylian of the Netherlands Danse Theatre is also one of my favourites. His use of space and time is magnificent and the creative way he uses the dancers and the sets is riveting. In a modern era, I think Travis Wall from So You Think You Can Dance? is outstanding. He has his own special style and one cannot decipher what modern dance technique he has come from whether it be Graham, Cunningham, Horton, Limon or Lubovitch based. This is what I was talking about when referring to young choreographers finding their own path and not copying that style or technique they gained from their choreographers while skating.

Q: What pieces of choreography are you most proud of?

A: I am fortunate to have so many wonderful coaches entrust their skaters to me and I humbly thank them. I am proud of so many pieces I choreographed over the years. A few that stand out are Ashley Wagner in Black Swan,  Jill Trenary in Winter Games, Michelle Kwan in Hands and Kissing You, Sasha Cohen in Hallelujah and West Side Story and Tatsuki Machida in The Firebird and East of Eden. Also, Wynne and Druar's Tap Dance free dance I did with Sandra Hess and had the opportunity to do the actual tap dancing on the soundtrack and then matching the steps to make it look like they were doing the tap the audience was hearing.

Q: What are your favourite movies?

A: Although I love movies, I am really a reader. Usually I have three books going at once. One for enjoyment, one to learn something like archaeology for my son and one in German. I would have to say The Hours, Pollock and West Side Story are among my favorite movies.

Q: What's one thing that very few people know about you?

A: I began my classical ballet training very young on the sly to help my gymnastics. Coming from a gymnastics family and being a champion gymnast I needed an edge on the competition. Ballet gave me that edge as it does to any serious figure skater. Another thing no one knows about me is that at my age I can still stay up in a handstand to make my grandkids smile.

For more information about Phillip and his work, visit www.phillipmillschoreographer.com!

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.

Isabelle And Paul Duchesnay's The Planets

"Long ago, on a dark icy planet, the Gods gathered under Jupiter's watchful eye to create two perfect creatures. Having conjured the new beings from out of the ocean depths, the Gods then guided them on a breathtaking journey to maturity." The Planets with Isabelle and Paul Duchesnay was a tour de force and really a revolutionary piece of performance art when it was released by Rhombus Video in the mid 1990's and truly a collaboration that stands the test of time. Uniquely combining solo and ensemble skating, dance, underwater photography and imagery, The Planets created a new world combining imagination, skating, dance, mythology, theatre and the music of Gustav Holst (performed by the Montreal Symphony Orchestra) in a way that was truly remarkable and breathtaking.

Although the Duchesnays (who I just love) were the stars of this production, the skating cast also included 1987 World Champion Brian Orser. Dance was fused with skating, with dance performances by the Toronto Dance Theatre, Sonia Rodriguez, Learie McNicolls and Charles Kirby complementing the exquisite dancing on ice and underwater work in the setting of Mount Olympus. The performances were presented as entertainment to The Gods.

Choreography for The Planets was done by the gifted Lar Lubovitch, who studied at Juilliard under dance greats like Martha Graham and José Limón and has created works not only for Broadway stages but for the New York City Ballet, American Ballet Theatre, Paris Opera Ballet and Baryshnikov's White Oak Dance Project as well as his own Lar Lubovitch Dance Company. Lubovitch is no stranger to skating either, having choreographed a full length ice production of The Sleeping Beauty starring Robin Cousins and Rosalynn Sumners and worked with John Curry, Dorothy Hamill, Peggy Fleming and the Ice Theatre Of New York.

The Planets, which was originally broadcast by A&E in June 1995 and nominated for both Emmy and Grammy Awards, is definitely a piece of performance art and skating masterpiece worth revisiting... or discovering if you haven't yet. Broadcast Week (at the time of its release) described the production as "spectacular... in its beauty, grace and adoration of the pure flame of imagination... a sublimely elegant celebration of visual, aural and bodily splendour... a remarkably successful cross-fertilization of the popular and high performance arts". There's a certain sense of fantasy and getting lost in the pieces that comes in this particular production that is indescribable and perhaps a little magical. All the best skating is.

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of the figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.