Dupayage & Nabais: Balancing Artistry and Ambition

by Maria Bagdasarova | On-Ice Photos by Yoriko Suzuki

Marie Dupayage and Thomas Nabais, a French ice dance duo competing in their fourth senior season, have captured the attention of audiences around the world with their distinctive artistic vision and musicality. On December 20-21, 2024, they will compete in the French National Championships making their bid to qualify for the 2025 European Championships in Tallinn, Estonia, at the end of January. France has three spots, and the competition will be fierce as they strive to earn their place at this prestigious event.

Marie and Thomas began their 2024/2025 season with a strong performance at the French Masters in late September, securing second place and surpassing their training mates Loïcia Demougeot and Théo le Mercier. However, they struggled to replicate that success internationally. At the Denis Ten Memorial Challenge in Astana in October, they finished eighth, and at their first Grand Prix of the season, the Grand Prix de France in Angers, they placed last out of 10 teams. For the first time, they were beaten by their French teammates Natacha Lagouge and Arnaud Caffa, leading to concerns about their third-place standing in France.

In Angers, the team openly acknowledged the hurdles they faced navigating the demanding early stages of their season, particularly with preparation and refining their programs. Thomas candidly shared that their preparation was not as timely as they had hoped and that the duo had yet not mastered their programs enough to deliver the level they were used to.

“We weren’t ready when we wanted to be. This explains the reserved performances in Kazakhstan and at Grand Prix de France,” he admitted.

Marie echoed his sentiments, emphasizing the importance of feeling at ease with their programs: “We need to take ownership of our routines to perform them to their full potential. I’m confident we’ll get there as the season progresses. It’s all part of the journey.”

For the rhythm dance this season, the duo with their coach Karine Arribert opted for a less conventional approach, integrating psychedelic elements from the ’60s and ’70s to differentiate themselves from the prevalent disco themes selected by many teams. However, feedback from early competitions revealed that their artistic intentions were not fully resonating with judges or audiences.

“The challenge with having such a broad range of options is that we tried to create something original that still reflected who we are while staying within the theme proposed by the ISU. At the start of the season, we realized that the first piece of music in our short program was perhaps too subdued. After our initial competitions and discussions with Karine, we decided to change it for something livelier, something that would encourage the audience to clap along more,” Marie explains.

“In Kazakhstan, we realized that the judges didn’t fully understand the story we were trying to tell with our program. We wanted to do something different. Knowing there would be a lot of disco, we aimed to stand out by going for something more psychedelic. It’s another aspect of the ’60s and ’70s, not just disco. The movements may be less recognizable, but they’re still rooted in that era. However, we understood from the feedback that the judges weren’t entirely aligned with our vision. Compared to other teams, our program wasn’t colorful or dynamic enough. It lacked energy and vibrancy. So, we decided to make changes,” Thomas adds.

They replaced the first piece of music, “White Rabbit” by Jefferson Airplane, which they initially used at the start of the season, with “Love Is All” by Roger Glover and Ronnie James Dio for Angers. They kept the second piece, “Move Over” by Janis Joplin.

Perhaps this change gives an additional explanation of the underwhelming performance in Angers. The team had been working hard on the new music, which required a complete overhaul of the program. Every element shifted, and some were completely changed. For example, the lift wasn’t originally in the place it appeared in Angers, and even in the second piece of music, which remained, many transitions were reworked.

“We put in a lot of effort to make it smooth and cohesive, but it was still fresh for us,” Thomas explained.

Their free dance to ‘Weakend’ and ‘Delighted’ by Benjamin Clementine incorporates spiritually evocative music with lyrics exploring the themes of vulnerability, fragility, reflection and gratitude in the face of life’s challenges. Marie described it as a spiritual journey.

“Initially, Karine suggested the music to us, focusing more on the energy it brought rather than the lyrics. Over time, as we listened closely to the words, we realized their deeper meaning. There’s a spiritual element to them. That’s something we’re trying to convey in certain parts of our program. It’s not overly literal, but we do want to take the audience on this journey.”

Thomas acknowledges that this program is a new challenge for the team: “We’ve rarely skated to music with lyrics. Usually, we choose more classical pieces with lyrical melodies. This year, we wanted to change things up a bit while still staying true to our style. The lyrics give us an opportunity to lean into the story the artist is telling through the music. Karine focuses heavily on musicality in the choreography, but interpreting lyrics is a different dimension. We’re working on using the narrative in the music to enhance our performance. The goal is to achieve a seamless blend where the lyrics and the program feel like one cohesive piece. When we reach that level of precision and depth, I believe it will elevate not only the technical aspects but also the storytelling and character projection. It’s all interconnected, and that’s how we’ve approached our skating for years.”

Thomas and Marie’s style could be described as a blend of emotional depth and innovative artistry. Marie emphasizes the importance of what is called in French partage, the act of sharing, through their performances, seeking to connect with the audience and judges by conveying genuine emotion through dance and interpretation. Thomas highlights their focus on musicality, a strength shaped by their work with Karine Arribert. This musicality brings a unique harmony to their skating. Their ability to stay in sync, even when skating apart on the ice, reflects a strong connection and shared vision.

“I feel that’s one of our strengths. We also work very much in unison. We aim to differentiate ourselves through our style, musicality, and movement, striving to bring something innovative and fresh to the ice. While I imagine many skaters pursue this goal, it’s the direction we’re committed to building upon,” Thomas explains.

Marie and Thomas attribute much of their growth to their supportive environment in their skating club at Villard-de-Lans. Their primary coach, Karine Arribert sets the overall direction for their season. She is supported by Mahil Chantelauze, who co-coaches on the ice, and a network of specialists, including dance instructor Vladimir Pastoukhov, with whom they practice daily, and Cyril Le Goazigo, who oversees their physical conditioning. Their training also incorporates valuable insights from external experts who provide an outside look at their work. Tiffany Zahorski, a recently retired competitive skater, frequently provides fresh perspectives, while Alexis and Johanna Bergeon, world champions in ballroom dance, contribute to the refinement of the dance moves. Additionally, Gabriella Papadakis and her mother have offered technical guidance. Training alongside a growing group of junior and senior skaters also fosters a collaborative and stimulating atmosphere.

“The atmosphere here is fantastic,” Marie shared. “High-level competition is tough, but having peers who understand and support each other makes it easier to cope.”

At the 2024 NHK Trophy, Marie Dupayage and Thomas Nabais finished 8th, setting their season-best scores in the free dance and overall total. They also earned an 11th-place finish at the 2024 ISU CS Warsaw Cup, where they achieved their season-best rhythm dance score. Additionally, they secured victory at the Bosphorus Cup in Istanbul.

Their ultimate goal for the season is to qualify for the European Championships. Long-term, Marie and Thomas aspire to solidify their place as a distinguished senior ice dance team. “Our goal is to gain more range, power, and presence on the ice. While we know we’re shorter in height, we look up to couples who are not very tall but still excel and rank highly. Our focus is on becoming a strong consistent senior pair, not just in terms of competition results, but in terms of the way we present ourselves. We’re focused on stabilizing our elements and performances to be seen as a top senior pair,” Thomas said.

The duo draws inspiration from icons of ice dance like Olympic Champions Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron and multiple World medalists Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier.

“One couple I truly admire is Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier. I really appreciate the uniqueness they bring, the way they stand out. We saw their rhythm dance this season, and it was incredible in terms of creativity. This is exactly what I love about ice dance – the ability to create something different and distinguish yourself. Personally, I admire them a lot for this reason,” Thomas shared.

Marie added, “I’ve always admired Gabriella and Guillaume for the unique contributions they’ve made to our sport. Even though many now try to follow their lead, what they brought to the sport in terms of unity, exploration of skating quality, and dance remains very inspiring. Even though they’re no longer competing, I still deeply admire their work.”