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Stars on Ice Canada returns after two-year break with fabulous Elton John finale
The show opens with a group skate to ACDC’s Thunderstruck, and includes music by The Weeknd and Jon Batiste’s What a Wonderful World cover before a medley tribute to Elton John as the grand finale.
| Source: |
Edmonton Journal |
| Date: |
May 12, 2022 |
| Author: |
Fish Griwkowsky |
Elvis — and Kurt — are returning to the building!
After a two-year pandemic hiatus, Stars on Ice Canada is back for its
2022 tour, swooping in for a stop 4 p.m. Sunday at Rogers Place in a
rare mix of dance, music and multiple lifetimes of dedicated athletic
training.
Up high on the choreographed roster is four-time world figure skating
champion and four-time Canadian champion Kurt Browning, and Elvis
Stojko, two-time Olympic silver medalist, three-time world champion
and seven-time Canadian champion.
Also leaving curvilinear cuts in the ice are three-time and reigning
Canadian pair champions Kirsten Moore-Towers and Michael Marinaro,
two-time and reigning Canadian dance champions Piper Gilles and Paul
Poirier, and 2022 Canadian champion Keegan Messing.
Canadian junior champion and social media sensation Elladj Baldé is
also in the whirling buffet of action-packed talent set to driving
music.
A mix of solos, duets and four ensemble acts choreographed by world
champion and three-time Canadian champion Jeffrey Buttle, the show
runs two acts — a bit more than two and a half hours. There are a
total of 14 skaters performing.
“Each skater is on the ice about six times,” Buttle says, “so it’s a
pretty extensive show.
“This year’s theme is Journey. It’s sort of an opportunity to really
reflect on, after the Olympic year, how you got to where you are, and
the people that helped get you there.”
He fleshes out some of the performers, explaining, “What makes this
show so great is there’s such a wide variety of skill sets and
performances.
“Satoko Miyahara, who’s from Japan, she’s just this beautiful and
ethereal skater. Then you have Elladj Baldé on the tour for the first
time, and he’s just such an amazing entertainer and doing his
backflips. And you have the legendary Kurt Browning.
“Everyone offers a different flavour, and I think that there’s going
to be something that will resonate with everyone in the
audience.”
The choreographer laughs when asked if the performer-athletes felt a
bit rusty after the COVID-19 disruption.
“I think we’re all just so excited and relieved to be back on the ice
and in front of a live audience. It’s been such a long time and
something that we’ve obviously missed.”
He notes seeing the wide-eyed reactions of the kids in the crowd and
at the meet-and-greets is especially gratifying.
“It’s been a really tough period, these past two years, especially for
the young generation to be off the ice for so long,” says Buttle. “So
I think it’s a great opportunity for the kids to come meet some of
their idols and even get a little motivation and spark back in their
skating endeavours.”
The show opens with a group skate to AC/DC’s Thunderstruck, and
includes music by The Weeknd and Jon Batiste’s What a Wonderful World
cover. At the finale is a medley tribute to Elton John, celebrating
his 75th birthday this year, who Buttle says played the best concert
he’s ever been to.
“Mathieu Caron,” a Quebec costume designer, “went through Elton’s
career and picked out iconic looks and gave each one of the skaters
one of them. So it’s fun camp — which obviously it should be with
Elton John,” Buttle laughs.
He notes choreographing so many skaters at once is a little like
mapping out precision football plays, but everyone on the ice is
obviously well used to deploying clockwork timing in their competitive
careers.
“The tour is such a unique experience,” notes Buttle. “We’ve all been
competing either on our own or against each other. But this is really
an opportunity for us to really connect, and the audience has an
opportunity to really see that connection and feel it.
“There’s definitely a beautiful sense of camaraderie.”
Preview
Stars on Ice Canada
When 4 p.m. Sunday
Where Rogers Place
Tickets $33.45 and up at ticketmaster.ca
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