The creative minds behind Turin’s standout skating programs
At the 2019 ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final in Turin, every leading program carried two identities. It had to satisfy the technical demands of the current judging system, yet it also needed a recognizable atmosphere, emotional direction, and visual shape. Choreography was the bridge between those requirements.
The choreographers who shaped this season's top programs worked across several traditions. Some built routines around musical phrasing and classical skating lines; others emphasized theatrical character, contemporary movement, or the physical relationship between partners. Their choices influenced how audiences remembered a performance long after the scores were posted.
The Senior and Junior events at Palavela offered a particularly useful snapshot of modern skating. Men’s, ladies’, pairs, and ice dance programs each demanded a different kind of design. A solo skater could create a character through posture and gesture, while a pair or dance team had to make shared timing and distance look effortless.
Choreography became part of the competitive strategy
A successful program begins well before the first jump or lift. The choreographer decides where the skater should accelerate, when the music needs space, and how transitions can connect one scoring element to the next. Those decisions affect skating skills, interpretation, composition, and the overall impression of the performance.
The strongest routines in the 2019–20 season did not treat choreography as decoration between technical elements. Steps, turns, holds, and changes of direction were integrated into the musical structure. When a jump came after a deliberate build-up, it felt like part of the story rather than an interruption. When a skater exited an element into a clear gesture, the program retained momentum.
This approach was especially important under the Grade of Execution system. A technically difficult element could receive greater value when it arrived with speed, control, and musical purpose. Choreographers therefore worked closely with coaches to balance difficulty and readability. The result was a season in which program identity became almost as important as the music itself.
Men’s programs balanced force with character
Nathan Chen’s short program to “La Bohème,” choreographed by Shae-Lynn Bourne, showed how a technically powerful skater could move into a more vulnerable dramatic space. Bourne’s design encouraged expressive arms, changes in body line, and a sense of emotional tension. Chen’s skating retained its speed and precision, but the program asked the audience to notice the character between the elements.
His free skate to music from Rocketman, created with Marie-France Dubreuil, followed a different path. The routine had a larger theatrical scale and a more openly performative tone. Dubreuil’s choreography used expansive movement and clear musical punctuation, giving Chen opportunities to project confidence across the rink. The contrast between his two programs made the season feel carefully curated rather than technically repetitive.
Yuzuru Hanyu’s programs also demonstrated the value of a strong artistic framework. His short program, “Otonal,” was choreographed by Jeffrey Buttle, while “Origin” drew on work by Shae-Lynn Bourne. These routines connected Hanyu’s skating to established artistic references, with detailed edges, controlled upper-body movement, and deliberate emotional pacing.
The design of Hanyu’s programs gave his skating a sense of continuity. Each gesture appeared purposeful, and the transitions often carried as much personality as the major elements. Shoma Uno’s work with choreographers including Benoît Richaud and Mihoko Higuchi offered a different kind of intensity, using angular movement and restless energy to reflect his distinctive skating style.
Ladies’ skating found new ways to tell a story
The ladies’ field displayed a striking variety of choreographic voices. Alina Zagitova’s programs depended on speed, sharp accents, and carefully placed technical content, while the emerging Russian skaters brought a polished theatrical quality to music drawn from film and popular culture. Their routines were designed for immediate recognition, but successful performances still required detail in the hands, head position, and transitions.
Anna Shcherbakova’s programs, shaped within the choreographic system led by Daniil Gleichengauz, emphasized dramatic transformation. Her free skate to “The Firebird” created a clear visual arc, moving from restrained passages into more explosive sections. The choreography supported her ability to combine difficult jumping content with a composed, almost otherworldly presentation.
Alexandra Trusova’s programs had a different purpose. Her routines placed the extraordinary force of her jumping at the center, but the choreography helped establish a coherent visual identity around that technical ambition. Music, arm movements, and transitions created anticipation before the major elements, giving the program a structure beyond a sequence of jumps.
Rika Kihira brought a softer musical intelligence to the field. Her programs used refined edges, flowing transitions, and understated gestures. The work associated with choreographers such as Shae-Lynn Bourne and Benoît Richaud helped her present technical difficulty without losing delicacy. That balance made her skating particularly effective in quieter musical passages.
| Skater or team | Program character | Choreographic emphasis |
|---|---|---|
| Nathan Chen | Theatrical and energetic | Musical punctuation, projection, expansive transitions |
| Yuzuru Hanyu | Dramatic and classically detailed | Character, edge quality, controlled gestures |
| Anna Shcherbakova | Transformative and cinematic | Contrast, atmosphere, rising dramatic tension |
| Rika Kihira | Fluid and refined | Musical phrasing, softness, continuous movement |
| Sui and Han | Emotional and expansive | Partnership, lyrical timing, connected lifts |
| Papadakis and Cizeron | Contemporary and immersive | Flow, line, shared rhythm, visual unity |
Pair programs turned partnership into language
Pairs choreography requires constant negotiation between two bodies. A lift must be technically secure, but it also needs preparation and release that match the music. Side-by-side jumps need visual unity, while throws must appear to grow naturally from the preceding movement. The choreographer’s task is to make risk look inevitable.
Wenjing Sui and Cong Han remained a powerful example of this approach. Their programs combined speed, emotional directness, and intricate partnership. Choreographic work associated with Lori Nichol helped them use changes in distance and body line to create a larger narrative. The pair could move from intimate mirrored sections to expansive lifts without breaking the musical flow.
Evgenia Tarasova and Vladimir Morozov offered a more forceful presence. Their programs relied on long skating strokes, dramatic lift positions, and a strong visual contrast between power and elegance. The choreography gave their elements a sense of scale, which was essential in a large arena such as Palavela.
The best pair programs also revealed character through connection. A hand placed slightly before the music, a turn toward a partner, or a carefully timed separation can communicate as much as a facial expression. At the Turin Final, those details made the discipline feel like a form of dialogue rather than synchronized athletics.
Ice dance made movement and relationship inseparable
Ice dance placed the greatest emphasis on sustained interaction. Teams had to remain connected through intricate patterns, while preserving speed, posture, and musical clarity. Choreographers designed routines in which the relationship between the partners became the central subject.
Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron were among the clearest representatives of this artistic direction. Their programs, developed with Marie-France Dubreuil, Patrice Lauzon, and Romain Haguenauer, used long lines, seamless changes of hold, and carefully controlled proximity. The pair often appeared to share one continuous movement rather than execute separate actions at the same time.
Their free dance, set to music connected with the film The Mission, relied on atmosphere and gradual emotional development. Instead of filling every beat with an obvious gesture, the choreography allowed breathing space. A tilt of the head or a change in the distance between the skaters could reshape the mood.
Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donohue presented a more overtly dramatic style. Their programs used character, tension, and bold shaping, drawing attention to the contrast between the partners. Victoria Sinitsina and Nikita Katsalapov brought their own blend of elegance and Russian theatricality, supported by choreography that highlighted posture, precision, and powerful unison movement.
These contrasting approaches showed why ice dance is so dependent on creative direction. There is no single definition of elegance. One team may create impact through silence and suspension; another may use sharp musical accents and expansive gestures. The choreographer establishes the language, but the skaters determine whether it feels authentic.
Collaboration shaped the final performance
Although choreography is often credited to one person or a small creative team, the finished program belongs to a wider process. Coaches adapt layouts around technical strengths, costume designers reinforce the visual idea, and skaters refine gestures through repetition. A routine may change substantially between its first workshop and its appearance at the Grand Prix Final.
Choreographers also had to understand the practical conditions of competition. A movement that looks striking in a studio may disappear in a crowded arena. Timing must remain clear under pressure, and transitions need enough speed to support the next element. The most experienced creative teams know how to make subtle details visible without making them exaggerated.
The event environment influenced how these performances were received. Spectators experienced the programs through live sound, arena lighting, and the collective reaction of the crowd. Journalists viewed them through practice sessions, mixed zones, press conferences, and post-event analysis; detailed media-center reporting helps explain how those different perspectives shaped coverage.
The choreographer’s contribution also extends to revision. A jump may move to a different musical phrase, a transition may be shortened, or a dramatic pause may be added after feedback from judges and coaches. This flexibility matters during a Grand Prix season, when skaters must maintain a program’s identity while improving its reliability.
What made the Turin programs memorable
Several qualities connected the most effective routines at the Final:
- A clear relationship between music and movement, with accents reflected in the skating rather than added superficially.
- Transitions that revealed personality and maintained speed between technical elements.
- Visual contrast, allowing quiet passages, explosive moments, and changes in scale to coexist.
- Choreography adapted to each skater’s strengths instead of imposing a generic performance style.
- A sense of progression, so the program developed emotionally from its opening pose to its final position.
The influence of choreographers was visible in every discipline, but it never replaced the athlete’s role. A carefully designed routine can suggest character, rhythm, and intention; the skater must give those ideas weight. Edge control, timing, stamina, and confidence determine whether the concept reaches the audience.
That is why the 2019 Turin Final remains valuable as a study of program construction. Its strongest performances were technically ambitious, yet they also had distinct voices. Viewers could recognize the difference between Chen’s theatrical energy, Hanyu’s dramatic detail, Kihira’s fluidity, Papadakis and Cizeron’s immersive partnership, and the many other styles represented at Palavela.
Revisit the Torino 2019 event coverage to explore the competitors, disciplines, schedules, results, venue experience, and exhibition gala. The programs become even more compelling when watched with attention to the creative decisions behind every entrance, transition, lift, and final pose.