Trusova, Kondratyuk, Kostornaya and Kunitsa? Choosing the best trial rental program!
Daria Kiryukhina September 16, 2024, 18:45 Moscow time Audio version: Your browser does not support the audio element.
Sasha read poetry, Mark lit up, and Alena and Gosha cast a spell in “The Master and Margarita.”
The best skaters of the Russian national team presented their programs for the new season on September 14 and 15 in St. Petersburg. With these performances they will delight fans at future competitions and at the same time win the sympathy of the judges. Many original ideas and non-standard approaches clearly demonstrate that our athletes are very creative and strive not only to demonstrate high results, but also to realize themselves as true artists.
Of course, it is very difficult to fully compare and evaluate programs that are so different in nature and intentions. However, let us continue to try, through joint efforts, to choose the best among them.
We selected 16 great productions as nominees. But if any of them were undeservedly missed, be sure to write them down in the comments!
If you think a program should be listed below, press the down arrow “↓”. If you want to move the program up in the rankings, press the up arrow “ ↑”.
Rating: Best Trial Rental Program!
Photo by: RIA Novosti
Alexandra Boykova and Dmitry Kozlovsky
The new short program by Alexandra Boykova and Dmitry Kozlovsky is simply spectacular! But only in the best sense. The transformation into the heroes of the film “Kill Bill” was 100% successful. Sasha turned out to be an excellent avenger of her ex, and her yellow jumpsuit with imitation of blood stains scares and causes a storm of delight. There is not a single boring or empty scene in the production, and the sequence of steps is absolutely phenomenal. It is a pity that the speech, according to the rules, lasts only three minutes. You can watch Sasha and Dima here endlessly.
Photo by: RIA Novosti
Sofya Akatieva, free program
Sofia Akatieva’s return after a long recovery due to a stress fracture turned out to be truly enchanting! In an elegant free program with music from the film “Admiral”, she flutters and enchants with every movement. The stunning dress suits the young student of Tutberidze very well, and the complex theme allows her to reveal her artistry to the fullest.
“My program is a tragic and very touching love story. Love that lives forever: between Anna Timireva and Alexander Kolchak. At the end of the program, my music contains poems dedicated to love. And I really feel this program. I really like putting it together. It is so touching, so melodic and I really like it. And I want to thank my coaches who put it together for me, who came up with such a wonderful idea, which is really magical,” said Akatieva during the skating test.
Photo by: RIA Novosti
Piotr Gumennik, free program
In Ilya Averbukh’s production, Pyotr Gumennik appears in the image of Eugene Onegin from the novel of the same name by Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin. To the music of the modern film adaptation of the work, the figure skater tells the famous love story of a handsome nobleman in expressive steps. A successful costume in the spirit of Pushkin’s times helps Peter to completely transform and believe that he is actually the same literary hero who suddenly left the pages of a book and appeared on the ice rink.
Photo by: RIA Novosti
Mark Kondratyuk, short program
Mark Kondratyuk’s incredibly short program shatters all previous ideas about figure skating performances. From the first note, the single skater excites the audience and only increases the courage as the skate progresses. The level of emotions breaks all records and the fiery path of the steps is a real breakthrough! This is exactly what the charismatic Mark needs. It is noticeable that he is having fun throughout the entire performance. At the same time, he will probably get tired of the fast pace, but this test, on the contrary, provokes him and reveals his inner strength. And the spectacular finale in the form of a dangerous pirouette on the head will be remembered forever by fans.
Photo by: RIA Novosti
Alexandra Stepanova and Ivan Bukin, free dance
With a new free dance, Alexandra Stepanova and Ivan Bukin confirmed their status as leaders among our dance duos. A beautifully intricate production that aims to be a work of art. The skaters traverse the ice in complete unity and easily adapt to the changing rhythms of the magnificent music. The fiery part pleases with a cool dance show, and the overall mood of the production captures the thoughts and feelings of fans.
Photo by: RIA Novosti
Sofia Muravyova, short program
Although Sofya Muravyova has skated many times in ice shows in Swan Lake, the image of the Black Swan is new for her and even represents a certain challenge. The transition to the dark side in the short program turned out to be successful: Plushenko’s student is very organic in the role of Odile. An unusual dress, which you want to carefully examine, emphasizes a non-standard approach to everything related to the production. Sonya’s skating deserves the definition of refined and refined. The girl perfectly demonstrates her skating skills and is particularly expressive in her entire body.
Photo by: RIA Novosti
Alena Kostornaya and Georgy Kunitsa, free program
“The Master and Margarita” performed by Alena Kostornaya and Georgy Kunitsa is definitely the start of test screenings! Natalya Linichuk presented them with a new program full of interesting details and already at the start of the season they are making a great impression. Many creative ideas and cool choreographies make you watch the athletes with bated breath. Alena and Gosha seem to hypnotize the audience while dancing in the devil’s ball. The intensity of emotions emanating from them envelops the ice rink. It seems that there were some witchcraft spells involved here? Or is all this the result of painstaking work?
In fact, it is impossible not to notice how much the skaters have progressed over the past summer: at this rate, they have every chance of climbing to the top in pairs skating. Their hard work and commitment to excellence will surely pay off.
Photo by: RIA Novosti
Elizaveta Khudayberdieva and Egor Bazin, rhythmic dance
Last year’s Russian runners-up will cheer up fans with cheerful performances throughout the season. In the new rhythmic dance, Egor transforms into the funny Austin Powers from the comedy of the same name, and Lisa plays his charming girlfriend. They are happy to misbehave, surprise with unexpected approaches to the elements and interact well with each other. Cool costumes inspired by the featured characters enhance the feeling of watching real footage from the film.
Photo by: RIA Novosti
Makar Ignatov, free program
Makar Ignatov’s touching production of the composition “Eternity” by the Machete group is dedicated to his beloved wife Alexandra Ignatova (née Trusova). The elegant program begins with touching verses and immediately touches the heart. Without unnecessary energy-consuming movements, the skater fascinates with the action on the ice and creates a fantastically sensual atmosphere.
“What kind of image? Eternity. I think the very succinct answer here is actually eternity. I think it’s very strong if you skate cleanly, with energy and pressure. It should be great,” Ignatov said during the skating test.
Photo by: RIA Novosti
Anastasia Mishina and Alexander Gallyamov, free program
The leaders of our team from among sports couples turned the new free program into a mini-concert of Michael Jackson’s hits. Nastya and Sasha divided the role of the King of Pop in half, but, despite the same movements, they reflected the image of the legendary star in different ways. Complex basic elements are organically intertwined in the program with all kinds of tricks, including the famous moonwalk.
After the performances, Gallyamov dedicated a post on social media to Michael Jackson:
“Dear Michael Jackson, I hope you are happy with this tribute.”
Photo by: RIA Novosti
Irina Khavronina and David Narizhny, free dance
The incredibly beautiful free dance by Irina Khavronina and David Narizhny has a very deep meaning. In it, the skaters reveal the story of a man’s struggle with an incurable disease. David plays the role of a terrible disease and tries to drag Ira down with him, but she resists until her last breath and finds, despite everything, joy in every moment.
The music for the dance, the composition Following a Bird by Ezio Bosso, was chosen by the athletes’ coach, Denis Samokhin.
“I chose composition for the free dance. We show through dance how a person with an incurable disease must hurry to live. It so happened that at the end of March my mother (trainer Natalya Dubinskaya) died from the same disease as the composer (Ezio Bosso). This is a great dedication to all people suffering from serious or terminal illnesses: the road will still end in one direction, but this is how one must hurry and want to live,” explained Denis Samokhin the idea of the program.
Photo by: RIA Novosti
Ksenia Sinitsyna, short program
Ksenia decided to experiment and create a program in an oriental style. The original production is full of various small movements, and the girl performs them with the same diligence as the main elements. The excellent work with her hands and body causes special admiration, and the steps are simply divine!
“It was staged by my choreographer Maria Kasumova. The program is oriental, with elements of fashion. I took separate voguing lessons from a teacher, I hope the audience liked it. Of course, not everything is completely worked out yet. You need more clarity, more confidence in your movements. So, there is something to work on ahead. And I hope that at the stages everything will go well,” Sinitsyna shared during the skating trials.
Photo by: RIA Novosti
Elizaveta Pasechnik and Dario Chirisano, rhythmic dance
The newly formed duo of Elizaveta Pasechnik and Dario Chirisano really lit up the new rhythm dance and opened huge stands at Yubileiny. Their mischievous antics make you want to jump and dance with them. Admittedly, it will hardly be possible to keep up with them on the ice. Not only do they effortlessly perform the most difficult steps and all kinds of tricks, but they also do it at high speed, precisely matching the frenetic tempo of the music.
Photo by: RIA Novosti
Alexandra Ignatova (Trusova), free program
The Olympic silver medalist made a grand return to the big sport in figure skating. In a heartbreaking free program with the song “They hit us, we flew,” Sasha conveyed a personal drama. She proved that her skating has become more mature and that the artistic side is no less important than technique. Nikita Mikhailov offered the skater music. She herself turned to him last fall when she wanted to put together a new program. An important highlight is the sound at the beginning of the poems, which the student herself reads.
“At first I read, then the blows start, the idea is that at that moment they hit me inside, they hit me to the core. Then the music comes, there is a change of mood. No matter how painful and difficult it may be for us, in the end we keep going. This is probably the idea. That is why the make-up is like that, that is why the dress is so minimalistic. I didn’t want the emphasis to be on anything but the eyes and the program,” Ignatova said during the skating trials.
Photo by: RIA Novosti
Mark Kondratyuk, free program
How cool that the European champion sweeps the entire season in a free program inspired by Bollywood movies! The Indian theme is reflected here in everything: from the music and costumes to the choreography and the performance of the single skater. It is curious that initially his coach Svetlana Sokolovskaya and director Nikita Mikhailov proposed such a program as a joke. However, in the end we brought it to life and got a mind-blowing result.
Photo by: RIA Novosti
Evgeniy Semenenko, short program
The two-time champion of Russia has a curious situation this year. For the new season, he was given two short programs at once. He decided to perform at test screenings in a production by foreign choreographer Ye Ji Shin to the soundtrack of the film “Dune.” Whether to change or not to change to another, he promised to decide depending on the reaction of the fans. And, apparently, this is not necessary: the audience was delighted with Evgeniy’s unusual performance, and he perfectly got used to the image of a resident of an endless and dangerous desert.
