free dance to the music of Adele with Stacey Tookey, a resident choreographer and guest judge for Fox’s hit show. “We wanted to visit the off-ice dance world
for choreography because we knew it would shine a new light in our skating and bring a dif- ferent perspective to the ice,” Giulietti-Schmitt said. “Stacey was able to connect with us and give suggestions through her experiences that helped us tremendously. It was extremely beneficial to hear her interpretation of our music and how she would portray our characters, especially since she has choreographed her own number to ‘Turning Tables,’ which gave her national recognition and an Emmy nomination.” As components continue to factor into an
athlete’s chances for gold, top skaters and danc- ers are experiencing the benefits that come from each successful partnership between the masters of each sport. As a result, audiences and judging panels alike are getting a glimpse of the talent that makes the sport of figure skating so unique, the collaboration between athleticism and artist- ry.
“Te character of the dance tells the story
and even the idea behind specific movements,” Grinenko said. “Knowing those elements helps skaters express the program better. Being intro- duced to the technique and mechanics of that specific dance and learning how the body should move during that dance can make the program something really special.”
Stacey Tookey, center, a resident choreographer and guest judge on the Fox hit show “So You Think You Can Dance” worked with Lynn Kriengkrairut and Logan Giulietti-Schmitt on their free dance to music from Adele.
Corky Ballas, an undefeated eight-time U.S. dance champion, helped Maia and Alex Shibutaini with their programs.
Stars.” “We did a lot of training on the floor and
created many options of what I thought would work on the ice,” Grinenko said. “It was an amaz- ing experience. Working with such great couples like Meryl and Charlie and Tessa and Scott, it doesn’t get any better than that. Tey taught me the inside mechanics of what works and what doesn’t work on ice, which made it easier for me to create new ideas.” Echoing Ballas’s sentiments, Grinenko
agrees that the experts of dance have a lot to offer the world’s best skaters.
“I think the name of the sport speaks for it-
self, ice dancing, or dancing on ice,” Grinenko said. “Learning where the concept came from, the original dance of what skaters are trying to portray on the ice is extremely important. Tey
need to learn the character of the dance and emo- tionally connect with it.” As the opportunities from this somewhat
untapped resource reveal their benefits, the merg- ing-of-arts trend is on the rise. Davis and White have sought out ideas and inspiration from Anuja Rajendra, a leading Bollywood teacher for 2010’s short dance and this year, from Alex Wong, a for- mer “So You Tink You Can Dance” competitor and star of Newsies on Broadway. For their “Legion of Extraordinary Dancers”
free dance this season, 2012 Canadian ice danc- ing silver medalists Kaitlyn Weaver and Andrew Poje sought the help of Allison Holker, who ap- peared on “So You Tink You Can Dance” as both a competitor and an all-star, while 2012 U.S. pewter medalists Lynn Kriengkrairut and Logan Giulietti-Schmitt developed their 2013
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