Skaters wing it at Improv-Ice

Imagine standing center ice, in the pitch black, with a bright, hot light shining in your face. You’re about to start a program for which you have nothing planned outside of maybe I’ll try to fit this jump in. You’re used to training the same routines over and over again, day in day out, but today you have to skate a program that you’ve only been assigned the music to a few hours earlier and only been given one hour to practice.

This is what skaters at last Tuesday’s Improv-Ice faced when they took to the ice at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. The first half of the show featured skaters performing never-before-seen programs to music picked earlier in the day by random selection. The second half brought with it a live performance by the Goo Goo Dolls, with skaters performing improv to the band‘s greatest hits.

This was definitely a cool concept for a show, and the skaters’ inability to have weeks to perfect their programs added a unique twist. With a lack of training time and set choreography, it seemed that most skaters found comfort in certain moves, which they performed numerous times within the same number. Jeffrey Buttle liked doing the “head roll,” Joannie Rochette stuck to her take on an artistic version of the “running man,” and Shae Lynn Bourne fancied strutting across the ice.

Brian Boitano

The show was taped for television and was hosted by Olympic gold medalists Brian Boitano and Kristi Yamaguchi. Although Yamaguchi was a pretty good host, Boitano’s hosting was a bit disappointing. Boitano comes across as really natural and fun-loving during his Food Network show, but on Tuesday it seemed like he took the playfulness he displays on his cooking show a little too far. Boitano struggled throughout the night with the delivery of his lines, many seeming forced and slightly off-putting. And at one point the former Olympic champion referred to 1994 Olympic silver medalist, Nancy Kerrigan, as “Fancy Nancy.”

Though Boitano and Yamaguchi didn’t play too big of a role in the event, they did have an opportunity to ask each skater one question after the skater’s first performance. Most skaters were really cute in their interviews. Obviously tired after their skates, they huffed and puffed out their answers, and the majority gave surprisingly spontaneous, real responses, which is a departure from some of the interviews we’re used to seeing skaters give during competitions.

Highlights? Nancy Kerrigan, who hasn’t performed publicly in quite some time and is know for her curt, awkward interviews, told the audience that while it was understandably nerve-wracking to perform a routine she was making up on the fly, one of the biggest obstacles for her was getting up the courage to put on a skin-tight skating dress. (Kerrigan recently gave birth to her third child.)

And Sasha Cohen, who took a hard fall on a triple lutz in her second number, told Boitano during her Q&A that she had a whole routine mapped out in her head before taking the ice, but what transpired once she was actually got out there was something completely different.

Jeff Buttle

I’m sure Cohen wasn’t alone in this respect, but despite the potential for some on-ice “freezes,” there were no real chorographical lapses or glaring mishaps. That said, the show wasn’t void of funny moments. Shae Lynn Bourne, a former world champion and acclaimed choreographer, skated with her usual sass but appeared to get so caught up in her performance that she completely missed her ending. To her shock, the music ended while she was mid-spin. She showed good humor, though, laughing off her gaff and then re-skating her planned ending sans music.

Unlike Bourne, Kurt Browning didn’t have any musical issues and seemed very comfortable in his improvisational role. In fact, he was so comfortable that he skated his second program in hockey skates and landed a double salchow, showing his impressive on-ice talent is not limited to the type of skates he is wearing. Jeffrey Buttle was also a standout of the show, landing a huge triple lutz and performing as if he had run his programs numerous times before.

I attended the show with the sole motivation of watching the skaters, but I have to mention the Goo Goo Dolls, who were an unexpected treat for the night. While I’m sure the band must have been slightly disappointed by the half-filled arena, they gained at least one new fan at the show. Their presence in the second half seemed to energize the skaters and audience, and the band put on a great show.

All in all it was an entertaining evening. It was a little bit surprising that some of the skaters would take a day or two off from training so soon before their respective Grand Prix events, but sometimes breaking up the monotony of training can invigorate a skater before the beginning of what is going to be a tough and stressful season.

I suggest Disson does more specials like this in the future. One thing that they could rework for these future events, though, is the whole “voting” concept. Apparently those in the audience last Tuesday, and those who watch the televised program, can vote online for their favorite improv performance. Unfortunately, this process wasn’t explained very well, and I’m unsure when voting begins and how it works. They should have completely left this element out of the program.

Voting confusion aside, it was a fun show and entertaining to see skaters out of their element. Improv-Ice will air December 25th at 3pm EST on NBC, and if you want to see which skaters have the goods to choreograph on the fly, I suggest you catch the broadcast.