BWW Preview: STARS ON ICE brings together Canada's Finest Figure Skaters Fresh from the Winter Olympic Games

Straight from the 2018 Winter Olympic Games, many medal-winning figure skaters that competed in Pyeongchang will be teaming up with some Canadian greats to form an extraordinary cast that will perform across Canada in the STARS ON ICE tour. Beginning in 1991, the Canadian tour once featured skating legends Kurt Browning and Brian Orser, and has continued ever since with many beloved people from the figure skating world over the years.

The 2018 tour will begin on April 27th in Halifax and make twelve stops across Canada with its final show in Vancouver on May 17th at Rogers Arena. The Canadian cast will include three-time Olympic Gold Medalists and three-time World Champion ice dancers Tessa Virtue & Scott Moir; Olympic Gold and Bronze Medalist and 2018 World Champion Kaetlyn Osmond; Olympic Gold Medalist, three-time World Champion, and ten-time Canadian National Champion Patrick Chan; Olympic Gold and Bronze Medalists and two-time World Champions Meagan Duhamel & Eric Radford; Olympic Gold Medalist, two-time Canadian National Champion and 2017 World Bronze Medalist Gabrielle Daleman; 2015 and 2016 Canadian National Ice Dance Champions and two-time World Medalists Kaitlyn Weaver & Andrew Poje; and Olympic Bronze Medalist and six-time consecutive European Champion Javier Fernandez. In addition to the skaters who recently competed in Pyeongchang, two-time Olympic Silver Medalist and three-time World Champion Elvis Stojko and Olympic Bronze Medalist and three-time Canadian National Champion Jeffrey Buttle will also be part of the cast.

As the most decorated figure skaters in Olympic history, Tessa Virtue & Scott Moir lead the STARS ON ICE tour. Competing in 3 Olympic games (Vancouver, Sochi, and Pyeongchang), 8 World Championships, and gaining 8 Canadian National titles, Virtue & Moir have had a truly remarkable career. During the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver, they made history as they are the only ice dance team to ever win a gold medal during an Olympic debut. Furthermore, they became the first and youngest ice dance team to ever win gold in an Olympic games. After winning two silver medals in Sochi in 2014, they took a break from competing. On February 20th, 2016, Virtue & Moir announced their return to competition and on the same date two years later they won the gold medal in Pyeongchang 2018; being the 20th pair to skate in both the short and free dance. Having skated together for 20 years (with 9 of them being with Stars on Ice), their undeniable chemistry and ability to connect with the audience through their skating has won the hearts of many people across Canada.

Throughout the history of figure skating, skaters have often been influenced by Broadway and movie musicals, with many drawing inspiration from the genre for music, character portrayal, choreography and storylines for their 3-4 minute programs. This Stars On Ice cast is no exception, and many of the cast members have some exceptional, medal-winning programs performed to Broadway or movie musical soundtracks. During the 2013-14 season, Kaetlyn Osmond's short program was to the songs "Big Spender" and "Rich Man's Frug" from the Broadway musical Sweet Charity (music and lyrics by Cy Coleman and Dorothy Fields). The youthful exuberance Osmond brought to the program was complemented by the catchy and familiar tunes from the musical. For his long program in 2009-10, Patrick Chan skated to "Phantasia" from the Phantom of the Opera (music by Andrew Lloyd Webber), which was the program he used to compete in the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver and 2011 World Championships resulting in an overall fifth place finish and his first world title respectively. Although Elvis Stokjo has not skated to music from a musical, he made his Broadway debut as Billy Flynn in the musical Chicago in 2014! Furthermore, ice dance pair Kaitlyn Weaver and Andrew Poje have done a number of programs to music from musicals, with one of the most memorable being their 2012-13 short dance to the music of Rodger and Hammerstein's "The Sound of Music." Fan-favourite songs from the musical including "Edelweiss," "Do-Re-Mi," and "My Favorite Things" were highlighted in the program, which encompassed the whirlwind of memories from the beloved movie musical.

Ice dance pair Tessa Virtue & Scott Moir have done many skating programs to music from musicals such as their original dance to "Won't You Charleston With Me?" in 2008-09 from the musical "The Boy Friend" and their free dance in 2011-12 to selections from the musical film "Funny Face." Most recently, their free dance for the 2017-18 season utilized the music from the movie musical Moulin Rouge (starring Nicole Kidman and Ewan McGregor), highlighting the songs: "The Show Must Go On," "El Tango De Roxanne," and "Come What May". The program gained immense popularity at the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics due to Virtue & Moir's pristine movements on the ice and the dance's impeccable choreography by Marie-France Dubreuil, David Wilson, and Samuel Chouinard, and ultimately culminated in the duo creating an unforgettable moment and winning their second ice dance Olympic Gold Medal, thereby cementing themselves in history as the Greatest of All Time in their sport .

Moulin Rouge (2001) is an Oscar nominated movie-musical that tells the story of how characters Christian, a writer, and Satine, a cabaret performer, fall in love. Christian and Satine's love story is very complicated with many ups and downs, and Virtue & Moir are able to capture the true essence of their relationship with their free dance. In the early stages of creating the program, they both knew that they wanted a program that produced raw emotion allowing the audience to truly feel something when they saw it. Through their displays of passion mixed with drama that is embedded within their skating, Virtue & Moir became Christian and Satine on the ice, exemplifying their artistry and immense dedication to their work. Virtue & Moir's Moulin Rouge program does not only feature their incredible skating but also brings forth a highly intricate storyline supplemented by the raw emotion reflecting both the jealousy, anger, and passionate love of Christian and Satine's story. Overall, Virtue & Moir's Moulin Rouge program sets itself apart from others as the multiple layers of the program convey deeper dimensions of feelings allowing the program to act as the manifestation of the artistic aspect of ice dance.

Stars on Ice is a show for all ages giving the audience a snapshot of the talent that represented Canada at the Olympic games. Featuring both solo and group performances from Canada's top figure skaters, it is guaranteed that it will be a night to remember!

Tickets for Investors Group Stars on Ice presented by Lindt at Rogers Arena in Vancouver on May 17th, 2018 at 7:00pm start at $25 and can be purchased online from www.starsonice.ca and www.ticketmaster.ca or by phone at 1-855-985-5000. Group discounts are available for parties of 10 or more.

Photo credit: Stars On Ice, 2018

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