ICE SKATING REVIEW; A Warm Marriage of Art and Athletics on Ice

Copyright 1998 The New York Times Company

Madison Square Garden was packed on Saturday night for "Discover Stars on Ice," now in its 12th touring season. It is a hybrid show, accenting both the athletic and the artistic and as such, one of the best on the rink.

Those looking for pure artistry will find it in the ice-dancing team of Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean. Those who appreciate the standard moves or "elements" of competitive skating will find them in the solos of Kristi Yamaguchi and the athletic bravura of Kurt Browning and Brian Orser, both of whom are nonetheless individualistic performers.

Occasionally, the two aspects come together as embodied in the lyrical virtuosity of Paul Wylie and the pop brilliance of the acrobatic Russian Pairs Team, Elena Bechke and Denis Petrov. Even Scott Hamilton, still anything but a slouch at back flips and multiple revolutions in the air, channels his exuberant athleticism into wittily defined characterization. Springing high in his jumps, Mr. Hamilton was in terrific form.

He has returned to the show of which he was a co-founder after treatment for cancer last year, and he received a hero's welcome when he stepped onto the ice. As a co-producer he has hired the right director-choreographers, Sandra Bezic and Michael Seibert, who received collaborative input from Lea Ann Miller and Torvill and Dean.

" 'Discover Stars on Ice Presented by Smucker's' " (the complete title acknowledges the primary sponsors, Discover Card and Smucker's preserves) is not a theatrical production but it has attitudes if not attitude.

"Get the Led Out," mostly to music by Led Zeppelin, introduces the cast in black leather pants and red tops. Ms. Yamaguchi gets stuck with a disco-driven Valley Girl persona while Ekaterina Gordeeva, in her purity of line, becomes a virginal Lolita. In an Elvis Presley suite, Mr. Browning gets to choose between the two and gets both.

The highlight of the first session is the Bechke-Petrov duet, a hip courtship full of tosses and lifts in which Ms. Miller, the choreographer, plays straight to the pair's power and timing.

The evening's only triple axel, three revolutions in the air, comes from Mr. Browning in "Fun and Games," a spoof on the Olympics. Like his fellow Canadian, Mr. Orser, Mr. Browning gives the tricks a poetic edge. There is a mastering grace to both skaters.

Ms. Torvill and Mr. Dean offer an excerpt from their recent British show, "Ice Adventures." Travelers with a railroad trunk here, they also use a newspaper as a prop while flipping in and out of embraces before giving us their version of the tango.

As always, they come up with new movements that never resemble conventional dancing transposed to the ice. In their second duet set to Paul Simon's "Still Crazy After All These Years," the partnering is tricky, with hooked behind-the-back arms used for wrap-around embraces. With twists and tumbles, the duet is a complex metaphor for a lasting relationship. At the end Mr. Dean kisses Ms. Torvill's hand.