Johnny Weir is a special contributor to IceNetwork.com this week with a story about a show he recently performed in in Russia, called "Ice Stories." Weir says the aim of the show was to promote culture and sport in St. Petersburg.
The actual show was fantastic. I skated three numbers, including one special performance with Voronov and Konstantin Menshov. I performed "Ave Maria" and my old Russian exhibition number, "Yunona y Avos." The crowd response was so positive, and I really enjoyed skating for the St. Petersburg audience.
As an homage to my upcoming free program, the producer of the show asked if we could do a performance to the Russian version of "Belle" from the musical Notre Dame de Paris. There are three male characters in this song, so I skated with Voronov and Menshov. I think it was definitely the most interesting performance of the night and the most fun for us to skate. The audience went crazy with the "Bravos" before we even finished. I can say, though, that "Belle" is not a part of my competitive program.
Weir also writes about how he also practiced at the Academy Club in St. Petersburg, where Alexei Evgenevich Urmanov and Oleg Kimovich Vassiliev train skaters. He closes with this: "I hope that the momentum I gained in St. Petersburg will carry over to Skate America and the rest of my season."