St. Louis, Jan 30, 1998
Jaimie & Laurel:
Jaime and I went to see SOI in St. Louis this past Friday Jan 30th (gee, has it already been a week since the show? :::pout:::) Anyway, we put our heads together the next day and this is what we came up with in the way of a review. Jaime did most of the actual "writing" on this, but my two cents (and then some) is definitely in there. I'd throw thoughts out, and she'd magically make them make sense ;-) Hope you all enjoy!!
Jaime muses before the show:
Another year, another show. They've all been different experiences ... I have my favorites, and my not-so-favorites, but through it all, one thing remains. That fluttery feeling in my stomach when I realize I'm there. It's Stars on Ice, and for better or worse, it's my show. There will always be that sense of possessiveness -- I';ve watched them for six years now, half of their existence. The sound of blades scraping across the ice will never fail to excite me, and I have these skaters to thank for it. If I never go to another show, I'll never forget it.
Laura adds:
Although I haven't been to as many shows, over the past three years, I've developed the same possessiveness. This is the one show that I'l go out of my way to see live ... the little things that get my heart racing and my adrenaline flowing, the smell (yes I said the smell :)) of the ice and the sound of the blades. It a bit ironic how a love of;ice; can create such warm feelings. I love this show, I love these skaters, this is my time ... my time to forget all of my everyday stress, be completely selfish and let myself get lost in the magic of the ice for the evening .... sometimes even a complete weekend ;-)
One word:
Hypnotic. Thats the best short description of the show. I (Jaime) am not a fan of a good number of songs used, but they make it work, better than I ever thought possible. The lights, the choreography, the interaction between skaters and the transitions between programs ... they set a mood at the beginning, and they sustain it throughout. The mark of a truly professional show.
Laura adds:
I also, am not really a fan of Led Zeppelin, but somehow it works, and it works really well. Must be that magic; again. Another bit of irony, this year show, in my opinion is the best of the three that I;ve seen in person so far, and, some of my favorite parts of the show, the Zep pieces .... go figure. ;-)
And on to the show ... :
The first thing to mention about this show is the crowd. I (Jaime) have been to shows here in St. Louis for years, and I have never seen a more enthusiastic bunch. We could tell the skaters were feeding off of it.
Jump tally:
Notables ... Scott's triple lutz in With One More Look At You Kurt's triple axel as Cyril Lutz. Everyone was pretty much on in this regard, with only Scott falling (and that was a fluke, Denise Biellmann-I finished the double axel and whoopsthing). A couple of doubles, but other than that, everyone put their energy to good use.
Muses:
From our seats way up in the wild blue yonder (insert Air Force theme here), we were having trouble identifying which Muse was which. Brian Orser was the most noticeable -- during the first bit, he did a stag jump, and we simultaneously scared the people next to us by exclaiming “Brian!” This was pretty much the standard with our neighbors for the rest of the evening. :-) Actually, identifying the Muses was easier when one of them performed a ‘signature’ move ... when they were all doing the same thing, they were harder to spot, which I guess was the whole point. :-)
SOI Survival Kit, take 1:
The truly prepared skatefan will bring three boxes of Kleenex along for the ride. Box number one will be gone by the end of “With One More Look At You”, especially if you’re like me (Laura) after the triple lutz. :-) Box number two will come in handy during “The Story of My Life” [editorial comment: this review is being written by two people who have lost their mothers -- this version hits home rather hard for us] ... box number three is for “Go the Distance”, which comes off 100 times better in person than on TV, at least for us. It’s really hard to imagine what the show will be like without Paul.
The Costume Patrol:
We’ve decided what’s wrong with Kristi’s costume during SWAK. :-) (Oh, yeah, we’re real fashion experts, right?) Anyway ... she needs a hat. Get a new one, steal one from the Muses, whatever -- the whole thing would just look so much cooler with a black hat to go with the costume.
Reality Check:
Uh, “Swifty” ... Brett Hull’s gonna bring St. Louis the Stanley Cup? What dream world are you living in?
The Real Show:
It’s been mentioned before, but it bears repeating -- Paul Wylie is the one to watch during “Fun & Games”. I don’t think either of us caught any part of Roca & Sur -- we were too busy watching Paul. Also fun, during the second dance, is watching the rest of the bench -- Katia dances the dog around, Kristi and Kurt do some kind of arm dance ... what’s the point of watching the skating? :-)
SOI Survival Kit, take 2:
A bib. Maybe two, depending on your drool quotient. Allow us to digress and be completely female and shallow here for a second ... Paul in the opening Zep number (ah, hell, all the guys in leather pants). Kurt in Antares. All the guys this year are loose, they’re having fun, and they’re wreaking havoc with female hormones. Yowsa. (and, maybe Kurt should tuck in that shirt) ;-)
Get This Number on TV!!:
Bechke & Petrov’s “Joue Jusqu’au Matin”. Obviously meant to be a Landover (or whatever) technical program, with the throw sal and SBS doubles. But, a truly awesome program ... we need a copy of this on tape before these two leave us, too. Oh, yeah ... what a difference four years makes -- Elena & Denis went from making absolutely no impression on me (Jaime) the first year they were on the tour, to completely blowing me away with their Led Zeppelin number. How terribly cool ...
Stage Presence:
God, we missed Brian Orser. You must understand, before last night, Laura had never seen him live, and Jaime’s last time was the Nutcracker tour in December of ‘95. He has the uncanny ability to simply fill an arena from his small space on the ice. What gods at IMG do we have to sacrifice to in order to assure his spot in next year’s cast? :-)
SOI Survival Kit, take 3:
A fan. For the Elvis number. ‘nuff said.
The Great Mystery:
Our seats were right behind where Scotty (Swifty) sits during “Fun & Games.” Someone please tell us, whose picture does he have on the screen of his laptop?
In Conclusion:
Amazing show. The show has a couple of slow points, but we’re doing the positive thing here. You can tell what we look for and what we don’t ... the great stuff far, far outweighs the not-so-great. Just when you wonder what new concepts could possibly be lurking out there, the cast and crew surprise you again. Bravo, to everyone. [Jaime, the former lighting tech, thinks that the light designer and tech crew deserve a standing ovation of their own -- Laura agrees :-)]
Onward!:
How many hours ‘til Cincinnati? Second row, here we come!
Jaimie & Laura
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