In ice dance’s current sea of soft lyricals, a free dance with some grit is bound to stand out. And from a team whose last free showed a buoyant, vintage bent, the contrast is even more striking. Karina Manta and Joe Johnson, seventh at last season’s U.S. Nationals and bronze medalists at 2015’s Autumn Classic…
It was a classic quote of much-debated origin — “Success is not final, failure is not fatal. It is the courage to continue that counts” — that concluded the ice dance team’s reflective Facebook post, a season wrap-up tradition begun in the wake of a devastating Canadian Nationals, where an element error meant the difference…
If American ice dancers Kaitlin Hawayek and Jean-Luc Baker know their stylistic strengths, they know even better how they aim to expand them — beginning with a season’s debut at this week’s Finlandia Trophy. Their new short dance, featuring “Waltz of the Flowers” and “Dance of the Parents” from The Nutcracker, came through collaboration between…
Taking on a Ravensburger Waltz with a classical ballet twist was a task Alexandra Paul and Mitch Islam were loath to take lightly. “Any time you tackle a new program, there are countless hours that go into researching, choreographing and perfecting the style of movement,” said Islam. “With a world-renowned style like ballet, you have…
Elegant and agile, few images in skating are more celebrated than that of the ballerina on ice, the dancer on blades. It’s away from the spotlight that the magic is born — through nine hour training days, frequent commutes or specialized injury. A childhood in the studio cedes to sessions in skates; a youthful career…
