Decoding the Ice Dance Pattern Dance Steps This Season
Ice dance fans around the world treat the rhythm dance as the moment when a season's identity comes into focus. Rather than a freeform short program, the rhythm dance forces couples to commit to prescribed pattern dance steps drawn from the international skating union's approved list. The result feels almost like attending a ballroom that has been lifted onto frozen water, with the skating public looking on to see who can blend mandatory footwork with musical personality. For followers in Australia, who are used to staying up late to catch the European Grand Prix stops on SBS or Channel 7, the rhythm dance offers a concentrated burst of the storytelling that drives the discipline forward.
When the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final rolled into Turin in late 2019, the conversation around pattern dance steps was particularly lively. Couples had been working through their assigned patterns all autumn, and the grand prix final competition at the Palavela served as the first major collision of styles. The senior rhythm dance this season required two pattern dances performed back to back, and the choice of those two patterns shaped how every couple constructed their program from the opening edge to the closing element.
Why the rhythm dance reshapes pattern dance presentation
The rhythm dance was introduced to give couples a clearer structure than the old short dance allowed. Instead of choosing a generic dance style and inventing their own pattern, skaters are asked to perform two specific pattern dances selected from an approved international list. That change has shifted the emphasis from pure choreography to the marriage of compulsory edges, specific holds, and prescribed timing with the music they choose underneath.
For audiences, this means the pattern dance steps look more uniform at the start of each couple's program, then diverge as each team adds transitions, intricate lifts, and personal flourishes around the required sections. The set patterns act as a measuring stick: judges can hold every couple to the same set of key points, while still rewarding creativity in interpretation. The result is a rhythm dance that feels both constrained and surprisingly expressive, an unusual balance that is part of the discipline's modern charm.
The pattern dance steps also force skaters to demonstrate pure skating skill, not just performance. A clean edge, a deep knee, or a perfectly placed turn can earn levels that lift an entire score. In a discipline where partnerships sometimes lean on drama, the required patterns give technical purists something concrete to evaluate from the very first note.
The two senior pattern dances of the season
Senior couples this season are performing two patterns that pair unusual bedfellows. The first is the Midnight Blues, a slow, deliberate dance with a swing-influenced mood and a demanding set of twizzles. The second is the Quickstep, a brisk, upright dance that bursts with energy and demands precise footwork and tight hold changes. Together they give couples a chance to show a broad emotional palette within a single program segment.
Each pattern dance has its own required key points. For the Midnight Blues, skaters must hit specific edges across the floor, execute a sequence of swing rolls, and complete the prescribed twizzle sequence in time with the rhythm. The Quickstep, by contrast, leans on its roots in English ballroom dance: chasses, progressives, and a signature set of runs that demand quick rotation and impeccable unison. The discipline of cramming both into a program of roughly two and a half minutes has become the season's defining challenge.
The following comparison breaks down the headline features of each pattern dance, based on the international skating union's published specifications.
| Feature | Midnight Blues | Quickstep |
|---|---|---|
| Tempo range | Slow to moderate | Fast |
| Character | Smooth, swing-inflected | Light, bouncy |
| Hold pattern | Mostly closed, with brief open sections | Alternates closed and open |
| Required twizzles | One set, set pattern | One set, set pattern |
| Edge focus | Deep knee and soft edges | Quick edges with crisp pushes |
| Common difficulty | Sustained control over long phrases | Speed and timing precision |
The two dances also share an underlying feature: a set of required step sequences called key points that judges use to award levels. A couple that hits all of them with deep edges earns a higher grade of execution than one that simply executes the steps in the correct order.
Reading the judges' evaluation of pattern dance
Panel scores for the rhythm dance have a specific vocabulary, and a chunk of it refers directly to the pattern dance. The pattern dance type is called the Level, awarded from 1 to 4, while quality is captured under Grade of Execution. Couples with a clean level 4 across both patterns and positive GOEs can pull a sizeable lead out of the rhythm dance alone, which is why coaches invest so much time in polishing even the most basic steps.
Australian viewers catching the late-night Turin broadcast will have noticed how cleanly the top couples landed their levels, while lower-ranked teams often struggled to access bonus features like rotational lifts, twizzles in hold, or choreographic sequences that amplify the pattern. The discipline rewards patience, because earning level 4 on a pattern typically requires hitting multiple key points while maintaining musical phrasing, rather than simply rushing through the prescribed steps.
Another factor is the interplay between the two pattern dances. A couple can ride a strong Quickstep to mask a weaker Midnight Blues, or vice versa, but the cumulative effect is what matters. By the time the rhythm dance ends, the panel has a clear picture of a team's technical foundation, and that picture tends to hold up across the free dance.
Australian connections and how to follow the discipline
Australia does not field many senior ice dance teams on the Grand Prix circuit, but the discipline enjoys a devoted following across the country. Local rinks from the Macquarie Ice Rink in Sydney to the Olympic Ice Skating Centre in Melbourne run competitive sessions, and the Australian Figure Skating Championships regularly feature junior ice dance couples who aspire to international competition. Watching the world's best pattern dance steps can serve as a study session for those younger skaters, especially when they compare their own compulsory dances to the senior standard.
Australian fans also tend to engage with the sport through a familiar mix of broadcast highlights and online clips. SBS and Channel 7 have historically shown major figure skating events, while the international federation's official YouTube channel offers replays that work around the awkward time difference between Turin and Sydney. The general manager of any Australian figure skating club will tell you that a single well-timed clip of a clean Midnight Blues or a sparkling Quickstep can send enrolment numbers climbing the following week.
For those planning to watch future competitions, the rhythm dance is often the easiest segment to appreciate without insider knowledge. Two pattern dances, each with a distinctive character, performed back to back, tell you almost everything you need to know about a couple's chemistry and discipline. Once you know what to look for, the rest of the season's competitions feel far more readable.
Watching pattern dances with fresh eyes
The pattern dance steps of any given rhythm dance are easier to appreciate when you give yourself permission to study them slowly. Rather than trying to absorb everything from edge to edge on the first viewing, focus on one feature at a time: the holds, the twizzles, the musical phrasing. Treat each pattern dance as a short piece of music in its own right, and the technical detail will start to reveal itself on the second or third pass.
A few simple habits can sharpen your eye without requiring any insider knowledge of the sport.
- Watch each pattern dance as a whole unit before judging individual elements; musical phrasing matters as much as edge quality.
- Listen for the prescribed tempo of the music rather than the tempo the skaters are skating to, since couples sometimes push the pace.
- Count the key points out loud when a couple performs a pattern dance; they are publicly announced in some broadcasts and shown on the official judging app.
- Compare two or three different couples performing the same pattern dance in the same event; the contrast is the fastest way to learn what looks polished and what looks rushed.
- Rewind or replay the twizzle sections; they are short, visually striking, and a reliable marker of a couple's unison and timing.
- Skim the official technical panel calls after the event; reading them once will sharpen your eye for the rest of the season.
- Talk about the pattern dance steps with a friend or fellow skating enthusiast; two viewers always notice more than one.
Building a fan vocabulary around pattern dance steps is a long game, and the rewards compound across seasons. Once the vocabulary is in place, returning to a clean Midnight Blues or a sparkling Quickstep feels less like watching a routine and more like reading a familiar poem aloud. Stay curious, keep a notebook handy, and the rhythm dance will keep offering fresh things to notice, from the first autumn Grand Prix stop all the way through to the season's biggest finals.