2013 LPIDC Program Notebook – Junior
SHORT DANCE
Group A
Elliana Pogrebinsky & Ross Gudis – Pink Panther
Perfectly slinky start to set the theme. Jump into their lift, nice effect. Leg lines slightly off in the pattern dance and a fall towards the end. Good recovery into the twizzles. Timing was a little rough in spots. 42.35
Melinda Meng & Andrew Meng – Pink Panther/Ain’t got that Swing
Maintained good speed in the circular step sequence. Third set of twizzles got out of unison. Nice transitions in the rotational lift, but a bit heavy on the landing. Nice characters throughout the whole program. 42.21
Marie-Frederique Julien & Simon Daze – ?
Fall on the twizzles and during the set down of their lift. A few stumbles throughout and they just seemed to be a bit unsure of themselves. Maybe just concentrating so hard on what they were doing, they tripped themselves up. Costumes were one of my favorites, though, and they had nice chemistry going. 18.14
Sofya Polischuck & Alexander Vakhnov – All that Jazz
Had trouble maintaining the space between them during the circular step sequence. Struggled going into the twizzles but recovered well. Nice deep knees in the pattern dance, which they skated with a lot of confidence. 37.40
Kelsey Barnes & Douglas Stevenson – Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend
Really nice matching free legs in the pattern dance. Good split position in the lift. Liked how they were styled and they had great expression. Overall it was skated well, but a bit slow. 28.56
Rachel Brozina & Nicholas Taylor – Gal of Mine/Girls, Girls, Girls
Rough time with the twizzles, out of unison and a foot down on the second set. Showed good speed in the pattern dance, no hesitation. Clean and fast rotational lift, nice set down. 32.99
Tory Patsis & Joseph Johnson – Charleston
Twizzles had a little bobble towards the very end, but overall they were well done. Struggled a bit in the midline step sequence. Pattern dance was skated very well. Another nominee for my favorite costumes. 43.13
Carolane Soucisse & Simon Tanguay – All that Jazz/Roxy
Kind of a rough skate for them today. Timing was off throughout the program and they just didn’t seem comfortable with it yet. Not a lot of character development or expression yet. Will definitely improve though; they have good overall skating skills. 39.39
Ashlyn Gaughan & Cody Lithco – Bewitched/Love
Nice pattern dance. Cute midline step sequence, using their bodies to spell out L-O-V-E. Her dress is beautiful, but I just didn’t like how it showed on the ice. It’s such a soft color, I kind of lost sight of her skating some times. 27.68
Audrey Croteau-Villeneuve & Dominic Barthe – Black Velvet/Pump Up the Jam
Solid midline step sequence. Twizzles were okay. Nice pattern dance. Overall, the program was skated well, but it almost felt too much in control. Maybe just a little looser and the choreography will look more natural. 37.88
Kaitlin Hawayek & Jean-Luc Baker – It Had to be You
Fast and clean twizzles. Pattern dance was snappy, loss of balance during the second pattern. Looked very confident and well-prepared for the start of their season. 54.32
Elena Isaycheva & Alexander Edmanov – ?
Stumble in the midline step sequence. Good twizzles. Set down of their lift was rough. Looked like they were still developing the program and working through the elements. 30.91
Group B
Sarah Vadskjaer-Grapek & Malcom Jones – Gotye, Florence and the Machine
New dance couple, representing Denmark. Elements were all completed, but skated very slowly. Overall, they were very cautious throughout the program. Appears they are still getting used to each other’s timing and spacing. Will improve throughout the season. 29.97
Danielle Wu & Spencer Soo – Singing in the Rain/Good Morning
Nice twizzles to start. Love how they embrace the characters. Choreography and expression are in style with the music. Great presentation. 41.76
Darya Rumyantseva & Dmitrii Ryabchenko – On Our Own
Look like such a young team on the ice. May still be working on the speed and power necessary for the junior level, but they are off to a great start with their presence and ability to show expression. 32.33
Holly Moore & Daniel Klaber – All that Jazz
Nice chemistry and partnership. Very aware of where each other is on the ice, they’re able to maintain close spacing in the pattern dance and good unison in the twizzles. Style of music suits them. 45.95
Anna Bolshem & Ronald Zilberberg – Mr. Bigshot
Started with good twizzles. Step sequence and lift will need much more speed. Concentrating a lot on the choreography, so the program really lacked expression. 30.61
Lauren Leonesio & Quinn Chambers – Victor Victoria
Good twizzles, nice unison and speed throughout. Rotational lift was slow. Nice dance steps in the transitions; really kept with the style of the program. 33.35
Brianna Delmaestro & Timothy Lum – Tears on my Pillow/We go Together
Interesting 1950’s prom theme spin for the short dance. Pattern dance was skated very close together. Nice speed and edges displayed in their elements. Great job telling a story. 44.78
Lorraine McNamara & Quinn Carpenter – Folk music
Sultry style, showing a lot of growth and maturity. Might have missed the blade grab in the twizzles, looked a little messy. Love the details in her costume, they always do a great job styling themselves. 49.79
Jade Robitaille & Philippe Granger – Sweet Dreams/Tainted Love
Twizzles were good. Too much space between them in the circular step sequence. A few stumbles and missed hand holds. Although they struggled here, I think there’s good potential for this new partnership. 25.62
Tatiana Kozmava & Alexander Zolotarev – Too Darn Hot
Some trouble with their twizzles and they lost energy towards the end of the program, finishing a little late. That said, I really like this partnership. They’re well matched and I see a lot of potential here. 30.24
Rebecca Lucas & Yan Kazansky – Beyond the Sea
Struggled a bit today with their elements, but they fought through them. Looked like they were very into the program and that they were enjoying the music. Moving up from novice last season, it will take some time to develop the speed and power necessary for junior. 31.20
Tina Garabedian & Alexandre Laliberte – Triplets of Belleville
Good circular step sequence. Small balance check in the twizzles. Nice position in their upside down lift. They had a few timing issues, but overall, I thought it was a nice program. 39.53
Emily Day & Kevin Leahy – That’s Life
Twizzles were done well, kept in unison. There were some nice moments, but felt like they didn’t always connect to each other. Would love to see them carry the expression all the way through the program. I think if they could put the pieces together, it would bring their skating to whole other level. 37.71
Group C
Ksenia Konkina & Georgy Reviya –Putting on the Ritz (techno version)
Typically I don’t use this word in describing junior teams, but they are adorable. Young and small, they are not lacking in the energy department. They were moving so fast I think it actually may have hurt their elements. Will need to find a way to balance energy with control, but what a pleasure they were to watch. 32.85
Olivia Di Iorio & Alex Benoit – ?
Twizzles were not in unison. Good job on the step sequence. Overall, I liked their interpretation and I felt they skated the program smoothly. Just need to continue to work on this new partnership and developing their skills. 31.96
Rachel Parsons & Michael Parsons – ?
Balance check in their step sequence. Light on their feet in the Quickstep. Foot down in their second twizzle set. Not a clean program today, but they look well prepared. 44.77
Julia Biechler & Damian Dodge – ?
Elements were done well. They both have nice flexibility in their bodies and positions. See a lot of growth from last season. 38.78
Jessica Jiang & Tyler Miller – Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend/Fever
Twizzles had good flow, fell a little out of unison. Showing nice speed and control in the rotational lift. I enjoyed watching the program, they had a nice connection to each other and a natural expression. 38.52
Chloe Lewis & Logan Bye – Call Me Irresponsible Spacing was a problem for them today. They drifted in and out during the twizzles and their midline step sequence. Strong rotational lift with change of positions. They still look very young on the ice, but they continue to show a steady, progressive improvement in their skating. 43.34
Courtney Royer & Addison Voldeng – All that Jazz/Razzle Dazzle
Good midline step sequence. Not able to maintain unison in their twizzles. Quickstep looked confident. Speed and expression just weren’t consistent throughout the program. Will need to work on making it feel more complete. Good start. 33.01
Whitney Miller & Shane Firus – Thoroughly Modern Millie
Nice twizzles. Good control in the rotational lift and soft put down. New partnership, but they already have some nice chemistry on the ice and show a good awareness of each other. 41.21
Madeline Edwards & Zhao Kai Pang – Delightful/Anything Goes
Great job on all their elements. They have such soft knees and a wonderful connection between them. Program started strong and ended just as strong. 48.09
Marcha Kiatrungrit & Bradley Lawrence – Night and Day They looked like they were having fun, unfortunately they struggled a bit with the elements. Unison and timing were off slightly, but this is a new partnership. Expect them to develop nicely during the season. 31.94
Ksenia Vdovina & Andrey Nevisky – Do Right First half of the program was strong and the elements were well done. Not able to maintain that high level of energy and lost most of their speed towards the end of the program. Seemed to rush their final lift and finished behind the music. 32.11
Carolina Moscheni & Adam Domonkos Lukacs – Midline step sequence okay, lacking some power. Nice job on the rotational lift. I liked the look of this team together. The program felt more like an entertaining exhibition number and maybe not technically difficult enough for a competitive program. 33.51
FREE DANCE
Group A
Melinda Meng & Andrew Meng – Music from Kill Bill Volume 1
Nice position in the curve lift, went very well with the music. Twizzles were well done. Both the diagonal and circular step sequences looked okay. Unfortunate fall at the end of their lift. They did a nice job maintaining the theme of the music all the way through. Now they can concentrate on getting all the points they can out of their elements to bring their technical score up. 49.44
Sofya Polischuck & Alexander Vakhnov – Flamenco
Fast twizzles, had a lot of attitude that matched the music. Nice spin. Circular step sequence was okay, but they had trouble maintaining the speed and power throughout. Diagonal step sequence was good. They appeared very comfortable with the program. Need to work on bringing their opening attitude straight through to the end. 59.83
Anna Bolshem & Ronald Zilberberg – Soul Bossa Nova/You Showed Me
Twizzles were good, but they seemed to be having trouble getting any speed in their spin and step sequences. The music choices and costumes confused me. They used two selections from Austin Powers, not sure they blended well and based on the costumes, it didn’t appear they were trying to portray characters from the movies. I think it would help their overall development to go with an all out Austin Powers program, blue suit and all. Challenging themselves to be overly expressive. 47.64
Michael Parsons & Rachel Parsons – lyrical
Started with a very nice circular step sequence. Entrances into and exits out of lifts are so smooth. Little stumbles in the diagonal step sequence, but the twizzles were good. Loved the choreography and they had such a nice interpretation of the music. 71.36
Tatiana Kozmava & Alexander Zolotarev – Tango
Interesting entry into the straightline lift with her flipping over his back. Circular step sequence was good. Very acrobatic in their lifts. Spin had a little issue with their final position, and the twizzles had nice speed, but a bit of out of unison. Lost speed through the diagonal step sequence. Weren’t able to maintain the passion and power through to the end of the program, but looks really promising. 55.70
Audrey Croteau-Villeneuve & Dominic Barthe – Pearl Harbor?
Nice positions in the change of position lift, really pretty. Spin maintained good speed. Circular step sequence was strong. Good character development and storyline. Elements were all done well, but I think they can bring up their levels. I’m interested to see how this program develops throughout the season. 52.58
Kelsey Barnes & Douglas Stevenson – Spy theme
Twizzles were in unison, but a bit slow. Circular and diagonal step sequences both looked good. Spin had nice speed. Weird transition into the rotational lift, looked rough overall. Skated well and were fairly expressive throughout, just a bit on the slow side. Seemed comfortable with the more technical elements and they can get those levels. I think they’re capable of bringing up the PCS marks to match their technical by working on the basics. Nice progress for them this season. 51.52
Elliana Pogrebinsky & Ross Gudis – El Conquistidor
Strong diagonal step sequence to start. Nice stretch positions in the spin. Twizzles were done well. Music interpretation was okay. Flamenco requires that passion and energy all the way through. Unfortunately, the lifts got a little rough towards the end. A good start though on a program with such challenging music. 64.77
Emily Day & Kevin Leahy – dramatic
All three sets of their twizzles were good. Nice diagonal and circular step sequences. Lifts were strong and very secure. Not able to maintain their speed throughout the lift. Music was very dramatic and they did a good job with it. Unfortunately, he stood out more to me. His costume had more going on than hers and my eye kept getting drawn to him, I think, because of that. 55.90
Lauren Leonesio & Quinn Chambers – ?
She’s either a doll or statue that he brings to life and they did a good job making you believe in their characters. Twizzles had a slight balance check. Circular step sequence was okay, but slow. The spin was fine, but I found the positions awkward and not pleasing to the eye. Interesting choreography, he could bring his expression and energy level up a bit to match hers. They have nice ice presence. 50.61
Rachel Brozina & Nicholas Taylor – Zorba the Greek
Twizzles were well done, nice unison. Good diagonal step sequence, had me a little nervous when they ended so close to the boards. Liked the choreography in their circular step sequence, keeping it in character. Spin also tried to incorporate the theme. May want to explore some other variations for the choreography, so it’s not all the same arm movements. Great start to the season for them. 60.00
Courtney Royer & Addison Voldeng – Cirque Twizzles in unison and good speed. Spin was nice. Loved the circus style entries they had into their lifts. Would be great if they could carry the characters into the choreography of their step sequences as well. My only critique is with the costumes. I would give him a black bow tie; I think the matching blue bow tie takes away from his overall look. When I think of Cirque, I think colorful. If possible, I’d add colors to her costume in some way. The blue dress and the blue arm gloves, well, it’s a lot of blue. Loved the program. 60.45
Group B
March Kiatrungrit & Bradley Lawrence – Mr. Lover/Calabria
Started with an upside lift. Twizzles and diagonal step sequence were good. Their spin was clean. Circular step sequence was slow. They could work on connecting more with each other and expressing through the program and use more dance movement in their upper body. 50.02
Darya Rumyantseva & Dmitrii Rybachenko – Falling/Mercy
Twizzles were good. Nice, solid circular step sequence. Liked their positions in the spin. Some awkward lift positions, though. Program lacked some energy and transitions need to be improved as they continue to develop through the season. 58.36
Ksenia Vdovina & Andrey Neviskiy – ?
Diagonal step sequence was okay, into nice twizzles. Circular step sequence seemed very simple. Lifts were rushed and they just didn’t hold positions. They’re a tall team and if they can learn to take advantage of their long lines, it would improve their presentation greatly. 46.49
Madeline Edwards & Zhao Kai Pang – Les Miserables
She gets into some very pretty positions in their lifts. They have such a nice chemistry between them. Twizzles were very fast and in control. Diagonal step sequence and spin were strong. Incredible trust in each other, she throws herself right into positions without hesitation. 72.49
Ashlyn Gaughan & Coldy Lithco – Balletic, waltzy theme
She took a hard fall in the warm up, good to see her able to perform. Nice position in the spin. Circular step sequence was good, twizzles in unison. Program was slow overall and the rhythm of the music didn’t change much. 43.88
Carolina Moscheni & Adam Domonkos Lukacs – Michael Jackson
Twizzles had nice speed, but not in unison. Circular step sequence was very good. I love their transitions, thought they maintained a good dance aspect all the way through. Potential is there for a high-energy program, they’ll just need to pace themselves a bit more so they can make it to the end without getting tired. 60.15
Tory Patsis & Joseph Johnson – Robot theme/Don’t Hold Back
Little balance check in the opening twizzles. No problems with either of their step sequences and the spin felt like it belonged with the music. Interesting choreography; I really enjoyed the theme. It’s a challenge to portray a stiff robot, but still keep it a dance program. 60.69
Elena Isaycheva & Alexander Evmenov – Bollywood style
Straightline lift was slow, but their spin was good. Unfortunate falls in the circular step sequence, but rebounded for a good midline step sequence. At times they looked unsure of the choreography and I got the feeling that this program was still very new for them. Maybe still in the developmental process, but good for them for putting this out there and having a critique. 46.48
Olivia Di Iorio & Alex Benoit – Never Ending Road (?)
Some trouble with the twizzles, drifting apart and balance check. Nice spin and diagonal step sequence was good. Not sure if I got the music name correct, but it was so lyrical and they were so soft and flowing with it. Such great potential with this program; I look forward to seeing it later in the season. 57.92
Julia Biechler & Damian Dodge – Smile/The Artist
Twizzles showed nice unison and speed throughout. Nice spin. They’re both so expressive. Slight balance check at the end of the circular step sequence. Good overall performance by them. They kept the energy up through the end of the program. 64.57
Jessica Jiang & Tyler Miller – Latin theme/Santana
Twizzles were very fast, but not able to keep them in unison. A bit off balance towards the end of the circular step sequence. Nice spin. Had trouble with the lifts not being super clean and overall a bit wobbly in some places. Good start, though. Will improve in those areas over time. 57.88
Lorraine McNamara & Quinn Carpenter – ?
Such a dramatic start to the program and they get right into character. Fast rotational lift and good spin. Twizzles done very well. A few stumbles in the diagonal step sequence, but the circular was good. Their costumes got stuck together during the final lift, causing a scary moment. 71.11
Group C
Carolane Soucisse & Simon Tanguay – Spanish theme
Not able to grab the blade in the first twizzle set and a balance check in the second set. Lifts were well done, and I especially liked the entry into their straightline lift. Kept their characters in the step sequences, which is sometimes hard to do this early in the season. Unfortunate fall in transition. Really nice attention to details in all their elements. 62.34
Kaitlin Hawayek & Jean-Luc Baker – Amelie
Both showing great balance in the curve lift. Couldn’t tell if it touched the ice, but foot down in the second twizzle set. Good speed and power in their circular and diagonal step sequence. Good spin. Appeared to struggle a bit on the final choreographic lift. Look very prepared for the season. 74.05
Chloe Lewis & Logan Bye – Hava Nagila, Music from Schindler’s List
Soft knees in the circular step sequence. Nice control through the change of positions in their rotational lift. Twizzles skated very close together, but not in unison. They both have such nice skating skills. To take their skating to the next level, I’d love to see them work on projecting out more and just appearing bigger on the ice. 64.21
Brianna Delmaestro & Timothy Lum – Paso Doble
theme
Opening spin was good. Twizzles fell a bit out of unison on the second set, but they were fast. Circular step sequence done well. I liked how they continued to build the program and kept the energy up to match the strong music choice. 57.93
Whitney Miller & Shane Firus – French musical?
Twizzles fast and in unison. Did well in the circular and diagonal step sequences. Lifts looked confident. Maintained nice expression from both of them throughout the program. New partnership, still getting to know each other’s spacing and timing, but I think they already look really good together. 57.20
Rebecca Lucas & Yan Kazansky – My Sweet and Tender Beast
Had some trouble keeping the spin centered in one spot. Twizzles looked good throughout. Slight stumble coming out of the circular step sequence. Interesting straightline lift, no hands and in a low position. Not able to keep the speed up in the diagonal step sequence. Good expression between them and some nice moments. 47.02
Danielle Wu & Spencer Soo – West Side Story
Cool entry into their straightline lift. Twizzles were okay and the diagonal step sequence was good. Fast and controlled rotational lift. A tough fall in the circular step sequence really cost them. They connect so well to each other and there’s such nice eye contact between them. 56.97
Sarah Vadskjaer-Grapek & Malcolm Jones – Stay, by Rhianna
A new team, looked like they were still getting used to the program. Some trouble with the spin and a foot down will probably cost them a level. Lifts, twizzles and step sequences looked okay, but overall were very slow. It lacked expression, but I think that was because they were concentrating so much on the choreography. 43.10
Tina Garabedian & Alexandre Laliberte – Papa Was a Rolling Stone
Starting with a smooth circular step sequence, showing nice power. Good spin. Diagonal step sequence not quite as clean. They didn’t seem as comfortable with the second half of the program, so I think that affected the overall package. Scores should improve quite a bit when they’re able to end as strong as they start. 54.81
Holly Moore & Daniel Klaber – Latin theme
Good twizzles for their opening element. Nice diagonal step sequence. Spin had good speed throughout. Have to say he looks more comfortable with this dance style and is able to maintain a certain looseness in his body even within the elements. Together, they did a really nice job in the side-by-side dancing. Expression is great by both of them. If they could match up their dancing skills a bit more, they could really take this program to another level. 68.05
Jade Roitaille & Philippe Granger – Lord of the Dance
Foot down in the second twizzle set will cost them a level. Arrived at their spot a bit early and appeared that they had to pause a moment and wait for the music. Circular step sequence was slow, but in control. Little trouble with their rotational lift and their final step sequence was very slow and not in time with the music. With such precise music, it’s hard to hit every beat. I applaud them for challenging themselves. 45.47