Master Classes and Workshops

Plie Power Workshop
The Plie Power Workshop is a series of inspiring, creative seminars brought to you by the Ice Theatre of New York.

Ice Theatre of New York has brought some of the finest Master Class instructors to offer seminars and classes that enhance performance skills and the pure enjoyment of beautiful skating. These seminars are creative in nature and are meant to open the skaters' minds to new possibilities and combinations in skating and to expand the body’s vocabulary of movement.

Each Ice Theatre’s Master Class instructor has been chosen because of what (s)he has brought to the skating world through competitive or professional performance. These skaters and choreographers have broken boundaries in their profession and opened many doors.  Each instructor has designed a class based on the qualities of skating that have most interested them, and the class focuses on the skills they wish to pass on to other skaters. At Ice Theatre of New York, we wish that you too will achieve more than you thought possible.

PLIE POWER WORKSHOP Description

Mastery of the edges is the key to skating. The skater of the future will be the one who combines the athleticism of the triple jump with the artistry that comes only through the mastery of the edges. Jumps and flying spins are energetic developments of edges and turns that are performed on the surface of the ice. Balance on these basic edges and turns not only facilitate athleticism but also are inseparable from artistry. Style cannot develop in skaters with common balance mistakes: hyper extended spine, habitual foot flexing, unpointed toes, and drooping heads.

In the Ice Theatre workshops, skaters gain a repertory of exercises designed to develop skills necessary for accomplishing the athletic elements of skating. These exercises help create the freedom of ice movement essential to style. The workshop focuses in-depth on these basics:
•    Grounded knee bend (Plie)
•    Dynamic placement of the free leg
•    Twisting and the use of the arms to shape space
•    Full use of the eyes for balance and style
Through full and proper use of the body, skaters come in contact with their basic strengths and ultimately discover their own unique ice personalities.

Developed by John Curry as a daily class for his skating company, the format is now used to teach the Ice Theatre Ensemble. The workshop’s on-ice format is similar to that of a dance class with a large group lesson being taught to music. Participants perform a sequence of steps ranging from basic to advanced difficulty. Sequences are then performed in small groups to develop spatial sensitivity among skaters and to facilitate flow on open freestyle sessions. The basic material may be incorporated into skaters’ daily warm-up routines while more advanced sequences may be modified for use in programming.

Please contact the Ice Theatre Office today to inquire about the Plie Power Workshops at (212) 929-5811 or at itny@icetheatre.org.