Kurt Browning's...Gotta Dance

Have you ever caught yourself dancing a soft shoe in front of a full-length mirror, tapped to your heart's content to a few bars of 'Singing in the Rain' or sung your favourite tune full-out in the shower? What a glorious feeling - spontaneous, exhilarating and totally of the moment!

The evening of Friday, October 26th seemed like any other. Clusters of people were milling about with umbrellas, entering through the doors of the massive dome-shaped building - General Motors Place - in drizzly Vancouver, British Columbia. But tonight was different. As soon as you entered the dim arena, your eyes couldn't help but be drawn to the black-curtained stage with four columns rising up out of the darkness casting a rose-coloured glow...welcoming you - beckoning you to an evening on Broadway!

There was energy in the air and a sense of expectancy. A hush fell over the crowd as their eyes focused on the dark-haired prima ballerina in a red dress at centre stage seductively dancing and carrying a pair of black figure skates to a gentleman on the ice. Seconds later the tempo increased and the music, "Gotta Dance," exploded as the handpicked cast was introduced to the audience for an evening of adult entertainment they would not soon forget.

"I wanted to go back in time a bit and try and present an evening of entertainment that was maybe a little unexpected, a few moments that they were going to be able to go home and talk about and, hopefully, more than they thought they were going to get," said the star performer, four-time World and Canadian Champion, Kurt Browning.

And who better to share the spotlight with than his life partner, Sonia Rodriguez, a principal dancer with the National Ballet of Canada. "Just having her lifestyle exposed to me has been motivating and it's also had an affect on me. We also realized that our careers are not the kind of careers that last for a long, long time, so if we don't start doing projects together, we're going to look back and go 'darn, we should really have done more together", said Browning.

"The opening number is really, totally Kurt," summed up his good friend, Josee Chouinard. It offered a little taste of "You've Got to Dance" to get the audience in the mood before leading into a quick flashback to "Singing in the Rain," one of Browning's signature pieces. This time, the charismatic Browning was joined by an entourage of three lovely ladies in pale-coloured raincoats, who were none other than Canada's Josee Chouinard, Yuka Sato of Japan and ice dancer Renee Roca.

The show had a little bit of everything - jazz, blues, tap, soft shoe, hip hop, swing, Latin, rock and classical ballet. "It's an honour to be part of it," said Steven Cousins, eight-time British Champion. Throw in names of Broadway stars like Ben Vereen, Ann Reinking and Tommy Tune and it's hard to go wrong. "To get the people that we've got in the show - it's pretty amazing. All three are legends in their own right and then add on Ed Robertson from the Barenaked Ladies and the other talent here from skating - probably never been seen and ever to be seen again," he added.

By all counts it was a show whose time had come. "I think the two are not far apart at all, as a matter of fact, they're all one because it's all theatrics. One is on the ice and the other's on the stage so, it's marrying the two together. The possibilities are endless when you think about the potential it has. I think it's the survival point for both areas of the arts," said the highly respected Tony Award winner, Ben Vereen. Vereen has performed in numerous Broadway hits such as "Pippin," "Sweet Charity," "Hair" and "Jesus Christ Superstar" and is well remembered for his performance as Chicken George in the television mini-series "Roots."

Ann Reinking couldn't think of a better way of showing the correlation - the familial relationship between skating and dance, than to bring the two together in this classy veue. "Every dancer I know loves skating and every skater I know loves dancing," she said. And as much as the skaters were in awe of the distinctive company they were in, so were the dancers to be sharing the limelight. "I had the great privilege of meeting and getting to know John Curry and he just loved dancing, the ballet and wanted to incorporate more and more of that in his work. To be good at anything takes so much work, so I identify with their quest and I believe that they identify with ours because they're so similar. I was very flattered when they asked me to be part of this," said Reinking.

And how magical it was to watch Ann dance to one of her favourite pieces, Fosse's "Cool Hand Luke," as she snapped her fingers rhythmically to the Spanish number. It was a sensual interpretation that could have easily melted the ice. Completely captivating!

What does Reinking believe is every dancer's dream? "In skating, you get to glide and spin forever and ever. You get this wonderful slow motion - an infinity of motion that never stops," said Reinking, choreographer for the Joffrey Ballet and Broadway star of the hit musials, "Sweet Charity," "Bye-Bye-Birdie," "Chicago" and "Dancin," among others.

Her professional colleague, Tommy Tune, could not agree more. "They're able to do that magic floating thing that we want to do, that we dream of doing and they actually do," said the multiple Tony Award winner and recipient of numerous Drama Desk Awards.

So when Tune got the call to perform in the show, he couldn't resist. "Right away, I thought 'boy, wouldn't it be neat to create a number that I would do on the stage and that a fellow would be doing on the ice,'" he said. Surprisingly, with a little hard work and collaboration, the idea easily became more than a vision. "When I heard that Tommy Tune was doing it, I begged - actually begged, to do that piece," recalled Brian Orser, 1987 World Champion and eight-time Canadian Champion.

After being given the 'go ahead', Orser took his work seriously and did his homework. "It was important to me that when I went to New York that I was prepared. I wanted him to see that I'm eaqually as professional and that I'm not taking this for granted. I think an artist has a lot of respect for that. There's nothing worse than going in to work with someone and they really just don't care," explained Orser.

In a matter of hours, Tune and Orser were entirely in sync, tapping up a storm to "Now A Day" from the Broadway musical, "Chicago." "It was amazing. He blows my mind. He took fromm what I did and translated it into skating. Then, we actually do the same steps - it's like Christmas," said Tune.

"He was so excited about it," said Orser. "A couple of times when I skated back to him, he literally had tears in his eyes," he added.

It's a number that has become very familiar to Tune. Presently, Tune performs the number in the finale for his act on tour with "Symphony" but the piece was choreographed with the ice show in mind. "Tonight it really comes together because this was the impetus that had me choose this song," he said.

And it was easy to see why the piece would create such an emotional response. With an extraordinary stage presence, Tune's voice resonated to the 10,000 guests, likely the largest crowd he has ever performed in front of while the duo tap danced across their respective stages. "Brian is amazing - what he does wit his feet. He is really doing tap dance on the ice and I've never seen that; not the stuff that I do," said Tune. "To actually join in on the choreography and do some of the steps, I believe that's a first," said Orser.

It was a moment that was meant to be. "It's quite ironic because my mother used to tap dance and whenever I did a T.V. special, she would always say jokingly - she'd hint, 'if you ever need a tap dancer, I'm available.' So, wherever she is, I wouldn't at all be surprised if she's watching," said Orser of his late mother, Joanne.

But what truly made this show unique was the diversity of music and dance. "I think we're going to touch so many eras," said Chouinard who was skating to "Humoresque" and an upbeat Latin number entitled, "In My Shoes," which showed a lot of flair.

And true to Reinking's words, dance is the foundation from which all movement begins. Rodriguez and the dashing Rex Harrington danced a passionate pas de deux to Vivaldi's "Summer." The couple were involved in a sensual interplay expressing the mood of the music through its highs and lows. Most theatre and dance performances are staged in an intimate forum which holds about 3,000 people. Although initially a bit worried about filling the space in the enormous stadium, Rodriguez found there wasn't much difference. "It felt like home. It really felt like being on the stage that I'm used to," she said.

But Ed Robertson of the Barenaked Ladies looked entirely relaxed and in his element as he played his acoustic guitar to a piece of music simply entitled, "Kurt's Song." The two became friends after meeting at a Cirque de Soleil performance in Toronto, Ontario. "Kurt came up to me and said, 'I've got to introduce myself.' I said, 'no, actually once you've done a Coke commercial, you don't have to introduce yourself," laughed Robertson. After spending some time together just hanging out, Robertson disclosed his beef about figure skating. "It often seems the routines are harshly retrofitted onto music and don't always make a lot of sense to me musically," he explained. So, they collaborated one evening after dinner in Browning's living room to write a song. "We talked through the movement of the skating routine and the motion that he would want to do and wrote a song based on that dynamic. It was an easy process," said Robertson.

And for the first time, Browning and Robertson put the song in motion together. "The song has been in the can for about four years. We've never had the chance to do it," said the musician. And as if they were playing in their own living room, Browning and Robertson staged an informal and impromptu dialogue, just two guys shooting the breeze. "I didn't think that they could pull it off with the microphones. You have thoughts while you're skating. If he's there playing live, maybe, I'd like to say 'are you sure you're not playing faster than you did it in practice?" Browning laughed. They're just two great guys sharing their exceptional talents with the rest of the world. "He's a gifted, gifted performer and his personality is exactly the same off the stage," said Browning of his good friend.

And it was also the first time Reinking, Vereen, and Tune collaborated as a group performing to the song, "Feeling Groovy." Totally synchronized, the trio looked as theough they had been doing this together for years. "We pulled it apart and mixed it around and came out with that," said Vereen.

For many, the music "Bojangles" has sentimental meaning and a special place in their heart. Browning's first agent, Michael Barnett, has wanted Browning to skate to this piece of music since 1988 and on this night, he finally got his wish. For three to four minutes, Vereen and Browning spun the story of 'Mr. Bojangles,' 'oh, he jumped up high and even clicked his heels. Boy, how that man can dance.'

"It's an intimate piece in a broad arena," said Vereen. "The quieter we are, the louder it becomes. The more personal we are, the more personable it is to the audience because they feel they are in on the secret," he said. And if that wasn't enough, Browning later revealed some of it was improv, "I only had time to put half of it together," he said.

Before bringing the house down, Sonia lived the dream of all dancers. "Lea Ann (Miller, choreographer for the T.V. special) found this great piece of music - it totally described the feeling that we long for, being able to fly. It was perfect," said Rodriguez. And with the support of two handsome men (Lloyd Eisler and Jason Dungjen), Rodriguez took to the air, perfectly positioned displaying a beautiful extension and line. Although ballet dancers are used to doing both solo and pair work, the momentum changes when you transfer the movement on ice. "I think as a dancer you always envy the fact that skaters can glide and be able to hold a position for longer than we would be able to because you have the momentum carrying you and the sensation of wind across your face," she said. It's a feeling beyond words and one Rodriguez is not likely to forget.

For Browning, the evening was a huge success. "It was better than I even thought." There's always a risk when producing a live television show and there's bound to be some jitters when it's your first experience. "there were a few moments (of stress) but to be honest, I was surprised that I was enjoying the whole process as much as I was. It was weird to have an idea and have it come to life. It was like having this little magic wand with all these great, talented people running around making it happen for me," shared Browning. Indeed, it was a magical evening! (To be aired on NBC/Global on December 2nd).

Moments with Kurt

"He's been a great supporter, friend, he's been a brother to me practically. He's been there on the worst moments and the great moments. Relationships get a little more important when you have to go through special moments. I think when you're competing at the Olympics and you're competing at World's - this is the ultimate of your career. When it goes well and when it doesn't go well, especially when it doesn't go well - you really know who's there for you and at that time, he was there and it's something I will never forget." (Josee Chouinard, three-time Canadian Champion)

"We haven't been with Kurt for a long time. He was someone that we were with all the time when we competed, so it kind of brings old memories back with Josee around. And you do miss those people. For some reason our schedule doesn't cross at the same places as often. I see him a few times a year but you miss someone who is so upbeat like he is and so much fun." (Isabelle Brasseur, 1993 World Champion, two-time Olympic Bronze Medalist and five-time Canadian Champion with Lloyd Eisler)

"He's someone that I really do admire as a skater - his talent and dedication. Always challenging - something that you couldn't even think of (choreographically) and he just comes up with it. I would never be able to do that. He does it like nothing and then I try to repeat back what he did and I'm like, 'Kurt, I think you're going to have to make it easier because I can't do it.' He's a master." (Yuka Sato, 1994 World Champion)

"Craziness, excitement," (Gorsha Sur, two-time U.S. Dance Champion), "the clown, the 10-year-old child, the prankster," (Renee Roca, three-time U.S. Dance Champion) "but amazingly talented." (Gorsha Sur)