Canadian Stars on Ice Review - London, ON - April 27, 2003

First off, I just want to say how THRILLED I was to have CSOI in MY city!!! :o) The pleasure of only having 10 minutes to drive instead of 1 hour or more!!! Also, I am not a good reviewer so I will do the best I can (first crack at this) I went to CSOI spoiler free this year, yes I looked at photos online of SOI but didn't watch and it was kinda nice for a change not knowing exactly what to expect.... so some of the numbers I don't have anything to compare them to.

The Great and Powerful Oz -
Not much to say about this except I loved the costumes!! And the reception in London was louder than any I've heard before! London has been good and ready for CSOI for years.

Born to be Wild - Steven Cousins
I wish I was able to see Alexei skate to it, but Steven was having a good time with it. It's great to see him back in action.

Bed of Roses - Kyoko Ina & John Zimmerman
Ok, it helps that I love this song to begin with but with Kyoko & John skating to it was wonderful, by the end I had chills... beautiful program.

My Favorite Things - Kurt Browning
I am not going to lie, I don't really care for this program... of course with it being Kurt he sells it very well, not many people could do what he does with that package. I rarely get bored with a Kurt program, but this one bores me. BUT, he skated great as usual. I don't know if this was mentioned in other reviews because I haven't had a chance to read them yet, but Kurt was wearing a Canadian Postal Uniform for this number *LOL*

Come Fly with Me - Jamie Sale & David Pelletier
I aboslutely love this number!! They are like Ginger Rogers & Fred Astaire out there, so light on their skates! Jamie fell on her throw triple, very shocking to see her fall on that... doesn't happen often. Funny... when I was at Holiday Festival On Ice in Kitchener, ON she fell on it there also. The fall didn't affect the program at all, they are a joy to watch.

Channel 1 Suite - Todd Eldredge
Music is good, but to me Todd is better suited for the dramatic ballads. Todd did not skate well during this number, he doubled everything but the triple sal or loop ?? Pretty slow going... he just didn't look comfortable. Awesome spins as usual!

Hotter than Blue - Jennifer Robinson, Steven Cousins, John Zimmerman
This was a cute number. Jennifer was one lucky lady out there let me tell you! There was one part where both Steven & John were spinning Jennifer and she lost her footing a bit, but it didn't disrupt anything. I liked the ending pose, Steven & John laid on the ice and Jennifer laid down while they held her in the air. One thing though, why is the dress lime green when the song has blue in the title? :o)

The Middle - Isabelle Brasseur & Lloyd Eisler
WOW!!! These two, even though I have seen most of their tricks before always get me going and I just can't believe what Isabelle is willing to do! My Dad went this time and he was just in awe of them, he just couldn't stop saying "HOLY COW!" One new move I hadn't seen before was where normally Isabelle's feet are holding on the Lloyd's neck and they spin... well this time, only one of her feet were behind his neck...she went in the split position!!!!

How Do you Keep the Music Playing - Kurt Browning
Kurt really shows how smooth of a skater he really is with this program... so soft on his skates, the audience was so quiet during this performance (you could have heard a pin drop) anyways, I was spell bound by this program and fell in love with him all over again. *sigh*

Power Play - Jamie Sale & David Pelletier, Elena Berezhnaya & Anton Sikharulidze, Todd Eldredge
Well... I am not sure about this one... it was interesting. For the most part I could make out what Todd was saying, but some of the poem I couldn't make out (if someone could post that poem again, I would appreciate it) It's great to see 4 people that were part of the biggest judging scandal in history on ice together... you can tell they all get along and they are both such talented teams.

*Intermission*

Studz - Elena, Isabelle, Kyoko, Jennifer, Jamie
Kurt, Steven, Todd, David, Alexei, John
I was really looking forward to this program!!! Looked at many pictures of it and couldn't wait. It was very cute how all the girls came out in cowboy boots and hats to dance along the ice surface... Jamie took her hat off, put it on the older guys head and man did she shake her stuff in front of him *LOL* We had Elena in our corner, she is so pretty.

Now about the guys, there are a few words I can use to describe them.... hot, sexy, funny, sexy and did I mention HOT? Not only that, it was one of the most entertaining programs I have seen all the guys do, this by far beats out the Can Can from last year!

Amado Mio - Jennifer Robinson
This program is cute, but I don't know the story behind it yet. Does anyone know? Is she getting ready to go shopping, or is it she can't decide what to wear? I just love the red dress that Jennifer wears in this program, I think it's a 2 piece... red is a great color for her. For those who don't know... Jennifer's program revolves around a coat rack... she skates some then puts on this little black sweater, skates some more and puts on a jean jacket.. it ends off with her putting on a hat and grabs her purse then the song ends... the song is tango like music. It was then my mother realized that she was the only lady singles skater on the tour, I enjoy her but I hope they get more ladies for next year.

Disco Science - Steven Cousins
Sexy as ever!! Man can this guy dance and he choreographed this himself. I love anything this man does and his smile is like a Josee Chouinard smile... it goes right back the last row.

A Friend To Me - Isabelle Brasseur & Lloyd Eisler
What a beautiful program for these two! The words are so perfect for them and all they have been through together. They really amaze me how they can be so energetic and hyper with all those scary tricks and then go to a soft loving program. I had tears in my eyes about half way through until the end, it was just perfect.

Miserere - Todd Eldredge
Now this was more like Todd... his jumps were excellent, I think he doubled his triple lutz? But wow... so much power and he had much more life in him with this program than the other. Todd reminds me a lot of Paul Wylie with the dramatic programs, they suit them very well. Speaking of Paul, I miss h im and regret that I never got to see him live.

Mme. T After Hours - Elena Berezhnaya & Anton Sikharulidze
This was one of the best programs of the night to me! It started off with Anton on the ice covered in white satin material, then Kurt brings out Elena on a fridge cart. Kurt takes Elena off the cart who is also covered in white material and puts her on the ice, he proceeds to dust her off with a dusting broom... when Anton starts to move, Kurt gets curious and skates towards him, he goes to dust him off and out comes Anton!! Kurt lets out a huge scream and takes off! *LOL* It shocked me to see how much Anton got into his Elvis role! Anton's dancing at the beginning of the program was just hilarious but convincing. The music cuts with Marilyn Monroe were a bit odd but it was all good. Elena was a very cute Marilyn :o)

Racing - Alexei Yagudin
FINALLY!!!!!!!!! I hate the fact that he is hurting! To only see him skate one solo was dissapointing, but understandable. Alexei didn't look hurt though, he proceeded to do a 3/3 and also a 3/3/2 !! Sorry, I was so excited to see him again that I didn't pay attention to what jumps he did. He looked pretty tired by the end though... I LOVE this program.

Lovin' Touchin' Squeezin' - Jamie Sale & David Pelletier
Sizzling hot or what?? This one I have seen on TV twice so I knew it was going to be good... but live was much better. I tell ya, I wanted to take a cold shower after this was done *LOL* I guess what I am trying to say is that they really sell this program. It makes me sad that we don't see them as much now :o(

Slippery Side Up - Kurt Browning
*LOL* This was too cute! Some people think this program wasn't very good, but if they really watch they will see that Kurt works very hard during this program! I think this was also very cleverly choreographed, every time Kurt went to get the other side of the ice to catch up with the spot light, he got there doing a separate move each time... like foot work on one foot, spins etc... he is simply amazing!

Can't Stop - Cast
I really miss the longer cast finales... they seem to get shorter each year. Always enjoyable though. Mom and I noticed at the end of the finale Alexei looked very sore in the middle of the ice, he lost his balance. David Pelletier went over and gave him a hug... so he must have known he was hurting :o(

All in all a great show, always is.... but it was missing something, something very important..... BRIAN ORSER! :*(