Doug Webster/Ice Theater & 5/17 Salt Lake City show

[Sylvia]

Here's an interesting article about Doug Webster (Ice Theatre of NY) who's in Salt Lake City working with Stephanee Grosscup and many SLC skaters on a skating show to be performed this Saturday (May 17):
http://www.sltrib.com/2003/May/05162003/friday/57276.asp

Excerpt:

For the Spring Skating Show, Webster choreographed a community theater-on-ice piece involving more than 35 skaters of all levels and ages. Though some of the skaters are trained competitors, many are recreational skaters with no experience in ice dancing.
"It was a challenge, not only to create the choreography, but to create the skaters," said Webster.
The theatrical events of the piece begin in the imagination of a little boy, played by 4-year-old Nathan Chen. In the opening section of "Now That Was Weird," kids and adults from the center's recreational programs will skate with colored ribbons, forming patterns of color and movement. For this cast of ice-dance novices, Webster's choreography is "mostly a matter of traffic management," but the piece also includes a solo ice-dance segment performed by Salt Lake City skater Stephanie Rosenthal, this year's Pacific Coast junior ladies champion.
...

The Salt Lake City Sports Complex, 645 S. Guardsman Way, Salt Lake City, presents a free Spring Skating Show Saturday at 6 p.m.


A.H.Black, if you see this in time and can go, please report back!

[coppelia]

From the article:

"Dancers are looking for the flow of movement, and ice skating is an even more pure expression of that," Webster said. "It overcomes friction, whereas dancers are stuck to the floor. We fly -- dancers long for that."


As a dancer myself, I've been thinking this since I saw my first skating show. The glide in skating and the ability to jump higher it something dancers are very jealous of. :D

If you're in the SLC area, I recommend getting out to see this. Doug Webster is a wonderful guy who puts together a great show.

[A.H.Black]

Thanks Sylvia. I have been checking the club site to see if there was any announcement about the spring show and they haven't updated anything since sectionals.

This show is free!. It's usually overpriced. I may be able to get there. We'll see. Maybe some of my local "lurking" friends will go.

[A.H.Black]

I went to the show tonight. It's a good thing I went semi-on time because it only lasted forty minutes. It was pretty much a club show. Stephanie Rosenthal skated a solo to Miss Otis Regrets. There was a longer number specifically embracing the USFSA's Ice Theater program. I'm not as familiar with Doug Websters choreography as I am with Stephanie Grosscup's. I think they were both involved with this number. The four-year-old skater mentioned in the article, Nathan Chen was very cute. He is a small four and looks more like a big two, but a four-year-old who can do a spiral, a spin, and play hop scotch on the ice is pretty impressive.

I always like to see the older group of skaters. Stephanie Grosscup has been such a good influence on them and it's so nice to see a young group of skaters who all have a sense of grace about them. She makes sure they all know about open shoulders, stretched arms and lovely hands. I've watched the transformation for years with appreciation.

Katherine Sharp and Kent Weigle also skated a starlight waltz. Kent was part of the 1976 Dance championship team and skated at the '76 Olympics. He still has that great posture.