Stars On Ice 2018 Tour - US

[R.D.]

The tickets for the M&G was sold out when I got my ticket. My friend that I'm traveling with is going to the M&G but I think I'll have to get back after the show since I have to get up early Sunday.

Thanks for the info to you and iluvtodd!

No problem :thumbsup:

That's unfortunate about the M&G being sold out...and that's the (main) reason I'm not going this year. I might have been willing to try to make it work otherwise, but it is what it is and at least I was able to get to a few local shows this past winter.

 

[oatmella]

Wondering if anyone knows how many tickets they allot for meet&greet per show? They seemed to sell out super quickly this year.

 

[Skater Boy]

oh no that's horrible. Hope she is okay. But I dont think they were invited. Remember you have Davis and White, The Shibs and Hubbell and Donahoe. Jumps are watered down inshow skates so theres only so much dancing you need.

 

[Skater Boy]

Just had my first rehearsal!! I don't know if I'm allowed to discuss it, but it went really well, and I'm excited for the next one!

Awesome but for what??

 

[colton12314]

does anyone have an upload of the nbcsn broadcast?

 

[alyssamarie]

The show was amazing!!

 

[lurkz2]

The show was amazing!!

What were yr highlights? What made it so amazing (for you)?

 

[alyssamarie]

What were yr highlights? What made it so amazing (for you)?

Just being able to see everyone in person and being so close to them!! The whole atmosphere in the arena is different than watching a comp on the tv.

Also, I missed the group number after intermission if anyone has a video

 

[Barb]

Just being able to see everyone in person and being so close to them!! The whole atmosphere in the arena is different than watching a comp on the tv.

Also, I missed the group number after intermission if anyone has a video

wrong thread

 

[el henry]

So I did in fact make the arduous four mile journey to the arena for SOI last night in Allentown

Adam got by far the loudest cheers, but we were 70 miles from the Rippon homestead, I would expect no less. They mentioned more than once, Pennsylvania, home state of Adam. Glad for the props. The crowd was a little smaller than I expected, about half of the “lower bowl” filled (upper bowl closed, cheap seats were sold out) but I think folks from Philadelphia who might have ordinarily have come to this show, are so accustomed to going to Hershey, that they reserved early. That and the fact it was Thursday. We *are* the third largest metropolitan area in Pennsylvania, so I was hoping we might "represent" more so that the tour would return.

Since I am a Jason fan, I will start with that: both of Jason’s numbers slayed. That “Can’t Stop the Feeling” exhibition was a compilation of Jason’s greatest hits, with the worm, the handstand and the four Russian splits. The crowd loved it. And the falling to the ice with exhaustion at the end. So cute And of course "Hamilton". I saw Click Boom. Sigh.:luv17:

I think Adam and Mirai are spending time, understandably, on DWTS rather than practice here. They both fell on jumps and Adam landed other jumps hands down or two footed. The crowd could have cared less, as did I. He is the consummate showman and he was selling it. I also liked that we got, and I don’t know if because we were his Pennsylvania “home crowd”, some of the old, "brilliant bashful smile" Adam, instead of just "poseur sassy" Adam.

Nathan did quads. Plural. In a show. It is impressive. But I want to know why we can’t we have First Act Nathan (I don’t know the music, I’m not going to look it up) at every skate? Nathan who looks like the music speaks to him and he wants to say something on the ice, who looks like he actually enjoys skating? He was letting loose. I want *that* Nathan. Even though it’s a show, old Nathan came back for Nemesis. Technically impressive, but……

Cutest of all, though, of the non-skating parts, was Jason coming out to shill for votes for Adam and Mirai on DWTS. Zach was with him on the ice, but he didn’t get two words in edgewise. Jason was selling that like he sells his programs

Mirai’s first number was great, she was pouty and sexy, and she jumped right up after the fall and got back into the program, I don’t even remember the second number. I love Karen and I love her spirals, but she needs to sell more.

Folks, as far as I’m concerned, the lady of the hour was Bradie. Who was not even supposed to be here, according to the schedule. She is radiant, she is learning to project, and her jumps are tight, landed and one with the program. I also think “This is Me” is a great vehicle for her; I’m glad she is skating it.

Also, for those of you that have seen them, this will come as no surprise, but I’ve never seen them live. Meryl and Charlie, wowza! Their showmanship is up there with Jason’s and Adam’s. Charlie in particular is adorable. I don’t know enough about ice dancing to know if the lifts, tricks, skills, etc are great, and neither did ¾ of the audience. But they were smooth, polished, and not phoning it in. I was impressed.

I was looking forward to the Shibs and Coldplay, but it seemed a little sloppy to me, particularly the twizzles, which I adored in comps. But they performed “That’s Life” with verve and flair and crispness; I liked that a lot better.

Ashley was sassy, of course. Madi and Zach were technically impressive, but don’t speak to me. I enjoyed the group numbers, but I was getting my Jason on in any number he was in, so beats me what everyone else was doing.

Not so great: I didn’t understand the point of the one minute ice dance numbers, with Adam Maia and Alex in one and I even forget who was in the second. And lose lose lose the random “What the Olympics mean to me” (ETA; from fans, not the skaters, during the DEH finale) vids. Oh please…..

Is it a comp? No, it’s a show.

Is it worth it? You bet.

 

[alexaa]

So I did in fact make the arduous four mile journey to the arena for SOI last night in Allentown

Nathan did quads. Plural. In a show. It is impressive. But I want to know why we can’t we have First Act Nathan (I don’t know the music, I’m not going to look it up) at every skate? Nathan who looks like the music speaks to him and he wants to say something on the ice, who looks like he actually enjoys skating? He was letting loose. I want *that* Nathan. Even though it’s a show, old Nathan came back for Nemesis. Technically impressive, but……

The song is "Back from the Edge" by James Arthur. Nathan did the choreo himself, probably on the way from Milan to Japan. The song to Nathan fans, is about his journey from the disastrous OG to the redemption in the world. Lots of emotion there.

 

[oatmella]

Nathan’s self choreo ex programs are among his best! Clearly his song choice speaks to him.

el henry - glad you enjoyed that performance and that you got to see *that* Nathan

 

[w4300]

A week from tomorrow is my show in Chicago. Can't wait to see all the skaters.

 

[acapenci]

A week from tomorrow is my show in Chicago. Can't wait to see all the skaters.

I'm going to that same show, and I can't agree more!

 

[apgold]

As promised, I attended the Long Island show at Nassau Coliseum last evening. Overall, I really enjoyed seeing the cast perform and there were some amazing highlights and some other moments that left me scratching my head. I took some videos so check out the links embedded in the text below.

The crowd was very loud and supportive of all the skaters, but the screams were loudest for the Shibs, Nathan, Adam, Jason and Ashley. Most of the lower bowl was sold out but there were a lot of empty seats in the last few rows of the lower bowl and I was able to move my seat from the upper bowl.

My favorite number was Jason's "Can't Stop the Feeling." Although that song is played out by now, IMO, it's perfect for Jason's energy level. The four Russian splits were certainly a highlight!

I also loved seeing Ashley's "Lala Land" again after Nationals. I found myself in tears when she was finished and wished she could've skated that at the Olympics. At least the program lives on during this tour. Ashley, like Jason, was made for skating in shows.

Adam was great in both of his performances - an even more sassy version of "Let Me Think About it" (with the mesh tank returning) and the more delicate Adele's "Remedy." All of his jumps were clean although he did relatively easy ones. The crowd loved him, too!

I also enjoyed Nathan - I think I enjoy his show performances where he can really let loose as opposed to the quad fest he does in competition.

Karen was good here - her lutz looks better but she doesn't grab me as a show performer. Same with Bradie, I liked her "This is Me" performance but the music felt a bit big for her. She doesn't have the personality on the ice yet for such a big statement number. Her jumps as usual were immaculate and I see her growing as a performer. I think being on the tour will help her improve.

Enjoyed Madi and Zach - they did "Caught out in the Rain" and another number which was not as memorable.

Meryl and Charlie were also great - I was never a huge fan of theirs as competitors but they are the elders of this group and set that tone when they skated, real professionals.

I liked the Shibs brought back "Fix You" and mixed it with "Paradise." Fun to see those two programs merged like that!

Being a Mirai fan, I was excited to see her skate here but I found myself a bit underwhelmed. I liked "Body Language" and the sass she brings to it but having already seen it live in San Jose, I wasn't as engaged. Her "Wicked" number was fun, too but she stumbled on a few jumps in both programs. Her spins were gorgeous as usual. From her performance here, I'd be surprised if she continues to compete. Also, they introduced her as "Triple Axel Queen," but unlike earlier shows before Nationals, Mirai only did a 2A. Given she's been training for DWTS while on tour, I wasn't expecting to see a 3A but I felt it was a mixed message.

As for the group numbers, I was coming into the arena during the opening number which I think was to Pink. "Feel it Still" was fun - a classic Jeff Buttle choreo guys number reminiscent of "The Walker" from a few seasons ago. I did like the one minute number with the Shibs and Adam to Aimee Mann's version of "One is the Loneliest Number." I posted a quick bit of it on IG and tagged Aimee Mann. She responded back with a an emoji that she loved seeing it! Very cool.

I really did not like "The Shape of You" with Meryl/Charlie, Madi/Zach and Ashley/Nathan. First of all, I can't stand the song (sorry Ed Sheeran fans) and it was so cringeworthy to pair 26 year old Ashley with 18 year old Nathan for a "sexy" number. Just EWWW. Whose idea was that? I get that they didn't want the Shibs to do that, but if they couldn't find a third pair that was appropriate, they should've scrapped it. Also, there were many families with young kids in the audience and lyrics such as "my bedsheets smell like you" is just icky.

The show ended just before 10PM with "You Will Be Found" from Dear Evan Hansen. I was able to UBER it back to the city and be home in an hour. My friend who went to the Meet and Greet texted me that the line was so long, she was still waiting on line after 11PM to meet the skaters.

 

[el henry]

whole post

Thanks for the review, @apgold, I enjoy reading them now in a different light that I have seen the show.

Since I can't identify jumps, I wouldn't have known if Mirai did a 3A or not, but you are right, the introduction "The triple axel queen" for Mirai with no 3A sends a mixed message. On the other hand, introducing Jason as "The always entertaining Jason Brown" could not have been more accurate

I think I benefitted by not knowing most of the music (on my own, without skating, I would have known "That's Life", and that's it). Yeech to some of those lyrics.

And thanks for the vids. I ended up tweeting a photo of my ticket (yes, ticket, as in a real live ticket) because my skills are so atrocious. Not that I tried all that many

 

[Ic3Rabbit]

For the record Mirai has been landing 3A's and Nathan 1-2 quads at some tour dates.

 

[el henry]

I think I mentioned in my review that Nathan landed quads, plural, at “my” show. That I could tell.

 

[OutsideEdge]

Hi, all! Long time lurker venturing into her first post here. My friend and I drove 250 miles up and back to Hershey for the show on Friday, so I thought I'd share our experience.

Overall I thought the show was fantastic. This is only my second SOI, and this one was way more fun than the one I attended 8 years ago. The show is fun and well put-together, and the cast this year has a lot of personality and charm.

High Points
- I can now say I've seen a quad in exhibition! Thanks for that, Nathan. I absolutely loved his "Back from the Edge" program in person. When he's able to have fun, he really is an interesting skater. He likes to move fast and stretch his torso and arms in lovely balletic ways, and it can be quite lovely to watch. I know he'll never be everyone's style, but I'm so excited to see what he does next season after seeing what he can do when he's having fun.
- Jason Brown's showmanship really is second to none. He brought to much charm and energy, and SOI is a great vehicle for him. Cartwheels on ice!
- I thought Ashley's "I'm Still Here" program was a real highlight. She's a lot of fun when she's up-tempo and enjoying herself, and the crowd got really into it.
- Charlie and Meryl. I've always appreciated them, but I definitely have a deeper love for them now. They are both beautiful, expressive skaters, and both of their programs came across so well emotionally. Charlie is also a total ham with the audience. It's hard not to love them.
- The ladies number and closing group number were both really nice. Using Dear Evan Hanson was a stroke of genius.

Low Points
- Oh my God, the "Shape of You" program made me deeply uncomfortable. Echoing what an earlier poster said, pairing Nathan and Ashley together was so cringe-worthy. There was a part where Nathan had to run his hand up her thigh and my friend and I both started giggling uncontrollably because it was so uncomfortable. It was probably a fine program if I could have looked at either of the other pairs, but I couldn't look away.
- The opening group number was super boring and I honestly can't remember anything about it except that I didn't like the costumes.
- I was a little underwhelmed by both Mirai and Adam, though both preformed well. I love them both, but somehow the energy I was hoping for just wasn't there. Neither challenged themselves much (which, understandable) and the result was kinda flat.
- Karen Chen was really hit-or-miss. There were moments when she looked great and moments where she looked very off. Her jumps were tough to watch and she fell on a couple of them. I hope she gets the equipment and coaching she needs for next season so she can put it all together.

Overall, it was a wonderful experience. Totally worth the drive. I can't wait to hear how much experience matches up!

 

[Ic3Rabbit]

^^Yeah sorry going to disagree on Mirai and Adam's performance quality at that show, it was right up there and electric.