FSWe will be at the Simsbury rink if you are going.

[FSWer]

Just wanted to tell everyone that I am going to be at the Simsbury ISCC. tomorrow (Sat.night) for the Skating Show. So if anyone else is going and wants to me me I should be easy to find. I will have on a red shirt and blue pants. If I'm not wearing my blue pants I should at least be wearing a sweater over my red shirt.Or a blue coat. Hope to meet some of you guys.

[Meredith]

Sure wish I was going, FSWer; it sounds like a great show and I would like to meet you.

I live too far away, though. Have fun and report back to us, will you?

Thanks,

Meredith

[CanAmSk8ter]

I thought about going, but I decided not to. I was able to find ice time at another rink tonight, so I'm going to skate instead. I just got to see everyone practice when I was there the other day anyway. Should be a good show, though.

[skateflo]

Well the ISCC send off party was great for everyone but Sasha Cohen. In the first half, she was the last skater, fell on one jump, doubled almost everything, and the applause was polite. I could feel everyone thinking "this is a World Champion potential!???" Tarasova was standing on the steps near me and there was stoney silence and focus - afterward she walked off in very measured steps. I'm sure Sasha got a talking to...She was much much better in the second half of the show, but still lacked luster, tension, enthusiasm, etc. They had put the rink lights up for the Worlds competitors to simulate the conditions at Worlds but it didn't help Cohen.

The Colonials synchonized skaters finished the show and got a rousing applause. I think people were hesitant to give a standing ovation having not given one for Cohen.

There is a new male on the scene - Andre Griazev and he is a cross between Kulik and Yagudin. This young man has huge potential. From Tarasova's calling out to him at the start, I gather he is someone she really wants to see exceed and is cooing her affection to him. He is learning fast how to connect with the audience. His second number was wonderful and I felt the best of the evening. I can see he and Roman Serzov challenging each other.

The dancers were all upper level, but nothing that really knocked my socks off. I was most disappointed (and surprised they were there) with Chait & Sakhnovsky - there programs were fast and no major mistakes, but the music seemed all one level and frentic as was the skating - got boring after awhile.

There was a young girl (?Ana Cantu?)in the first half that looked and skated like Cohen. Her staccato movements were sharp and very enthusiastic. While her elements were mostly there, she just needs time and polish and could easily be an elite winner.

Katie Orscher and Garrett Lucash - well Katie is very secure and her years of being a single skater shows well. Garrett looked a tad unstable, working too hard, and I feared he wouldn't get Katie up into position.

There is a new dance team (Russian) that have been together only 3 months but they sure skated like 3 years!

For those that came to see Cohen, I think they were very disappointed. But the rest of the cast, from the LTS tykes on up, kept the show worth going. I have never been to an ISCC show where it was so COLD!! Perhaps because of limited spotlights, but I never felt the rink heaters go on. Even on a regular day, this rink is never this cold!

Perhaps someone else there can give more technical details.

[FSWer]

I thought that how dare put Sasha last!!!!!! I bet she felt inselted.

[morganm]

Originally posted by FSWer
I thought that how dare put Sasha last!!!!!! I bet she felt inselted.

Actually, going last before intermission is the place of honor. Club shows and exhibitions with special guest skaters always put the star at the end of the first half. They usually also skate towards the end of the second half if they are exhibiting twice. I imagine Sasha would have been "insulted" if she had been skating elsewhere in the show.

[FSWer]

Could someone please help me understand?

[rinsk]

Well, think of it as saving the best for last. It's somewhat tradition that the top performer goes last (it's also that way generally in music recitals) but I'd assume it's also to keep the audience through the show (wouldn't it be such an insult if Sasha had skated first and some people had come just to watch Sasha and had left after she skate without watching anyone else?) and to make the other skaters look better because the audience isn't comparing them to the top skater (would you want to be a younger lower level skater and have to skate after Sasha Cohen?).