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Kurt Browning: A Passion for Skating
Celebrating 25 years of Stars on Ice
| Source: |
Epoch Times |
| Date: |
April 29, 2015 |
| Author: |
Madalina Hubert |
Kurt Browning found his calling in skating as a child and he hasn't
let up since. By bringing home four Canadian and four World
championships in the late '80s and early '90s he became a dominant
figure in professional figure skating.
Since "Stars on Ice," Canadian edition, launched in 1991, Browning has
performed in every show and fans have loved him for it. This year as
he celebrates 25 years with the production, he is taking a creative
lead, directing and choreographing the show.
"This is where I want to be," he said in a phone interview.
"I'm 48 years old and things don't work as well as they used to, but
man, I get on the ice and the adrenaline goes, and so do I."
This year, Browning is adding in special moments of celebration,
recalling highlights of his skating career, a look back at memorable
"Stars on Ice" moments, and also achieving a choreographic dream—a
20-minute group number he has been planning since 1995.
"I hope it's going to be a lot of fun for people who like stage and
theatre and storytelling," he said.
Set to the music of rock band Supertramp and inspired by the lyrics of
their song "Rudy," ("Rudy's on a train to nowhere"), Browning is
taking both the audience and the skaters on a new adventure.
"I'm kind of a tramp, a vagabond who travels along, and I stumble
across a group of people who work in a factory and this factory
creates airplanes or jet engines or helicopters—any flying device," he
explains.
"But the world inside the factory is very sad—it's very controlled,
it's mean, people don't know how to be nice to each other, and through
acts of kindness with little paper airplanes as symbols, I kind of
inspire these people to see life again, to not be told what to do, to
actually have their own inspiration, their own motivation.
"And I kind of motivate a revolt, and what happens when these people
see there's something better than what they have now, and there's a
beautiful, very touching ending that we've worked very hard to
create."
He is particularly happy with the piece and his team.
"If you watch a young child skating, they're usually so proud of their
program and their music that they enjoy their skating so much, that
you do too. It doesn't matter if they fall, because you just feel the
joy from their skating," he said.
"And quite honestly, I think that's what you're going to feel from the
whole cast this year."
Another special moment will be a group number with Meagan Duhamel and
Eric Radford—who just won the world championship in Shanghai—and
bronze medallists Kaitlyn Weaver and Andrew Poje.
"We're giving them a quartet to celebrate that moment," he
said. "Kaitlyn usually dances with Andrew, but she's going to do lifts
with Eric, and Meagan is usually thrown by Eric but we're going to let
Andrew throw her instead.
"So skating fans are going to see something they never expected—Andrew
with Meagan and Kaitlyn with Eric."
Performing alongside them will be Olympic champions Tessa Virtue and
Scott Moir; Olympic medallists Patrick Chan, Joannie Rochette, Jeffrey
Buttle; three-time U.S. champion Ashley Wagner; and Canadian silver
medallist Shawn Sawyer.
Browning said this "Stars on Ice" is turning out to be his favourite
so far, but will it be his last?
"If I never come back, I feel like I will have had the goodbye I
wanted with this show. That said, you might see me next year."
"Stars on Ice" will visit 12 cities nationwide beginning in Halifax
on May 1 and wrapping up in Vancouver on May 21. For more details,
visit: www.starsonice.ca
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