Johnny at Holiday Dreams on Ice
dress rehearsal, Friday, December 23.
He's not really skating in his sleep
(although I'm sure he could),
but he was definitely having a good time
during much of the two days of rehearsals...
(Blogger General's Warning: Do NOT Cheat By Scrolling Down To See Exactly How Much Fun He Was Having. Repeat: Do NOT. Scrolling Down May Cause Uncontrollable Fits of Giggling Combined With Sudden Blushing And Enormously Wide Grinning, And May Complicate Your Ability to Accomplish Anything At All For A Really Really Long Time. Also You'll Never Make It Back To Read The Rest Of This Entry....)
Holiday Dreams on Ice: I don't even know where to begin. What a simply fabulous experience from start to finish!
In a nutshell: The show itself was amazing. The skaters, from the littlest Future Stars to the seasoned pros, were all really, really good. (I have to say I was particularly impressed with the level of talent among the local Philly skaters. Not only did they rarely fall [insert Patrick Chan joke of your choice here], many could do really nice spins and jumps and smooth landings [see previous insert] that made every moment a pleasure to watch.) The young skaters' parents were a friendly and relaxed group, which helped immensely in the midst of the backstage chaos that is always standard in the days leading up to a show. The choreography for both the Future Stars and the pros was well done and exciting to see; the lighting guys were completely awesome; and the sound did NOT suck. Which is no easy feat in these acoustically-challenged ice venues.
And then there was the warm and inviting VIP party; the contingent of 21 Japanese fans who were so lovely and who I was simply thrilled to meet; all the other fans, some of whom I've met before so we're like old friends, and others who I finally got to meet for the first time but who still felt like old friends (Krista! Ruth! Bernadette! and so many others!); the dear, kind Weir family; and all the amazing Fireworks staffers who somehow pulled every crazy detail together and made the final product one of the best shows I've seen.
And, of course, Johnny.
He was flawless and brilliant, as always.
But he also radiated happiness in a megawatt way that brings tears to my eyes just remembering.
So it has taken me forever to put this first entry together because of the massive amount of photos we ended up with (4,000+) and all the wonderful memories. I keep trying to break it down into manageable chunks and then I start sifting through pics to find particular moments and then all of a sudden it's hours later and I still haven't written a thing and all I can think about is:
I don't believe we've ever had this many photos of Johnny smiling this much.
At any event. Ever.
So we'll start today with a few Johnny-centric representative shots to kind of sum up the whole vibe, which was: OMG he's in SUCH a good mood! Which, in addition to dazzling nonstop smiles and lots of goofing around during rehearsal (though never losing his intense focus on getting the choreography right and giving his best to the audience), he also conveyed through some expressive.... body language.
(As always, please click any photo twice for full-size view. Some are huuuuuuge. And just 3,991 more to come!)
Friday dress rehearsal,
LMFAO's "Sexy and I Know It."
He's feeling it.
Opening number Friday night at the show:
Once again, LMFAO's "Sexy and I Know It."
Love the audience reaction.
Yep, he's wearing the famed "Safety" pants
Yep, he's wearing the famed "Safety" pants
first seen when he skated to Dima Bilan's live performance
of "Safety" in Japan. He also wore them
for his performance to "Sexy and I Know It"
during Improv-Ice earlier this month--
can't wait to see that during the NBC broadcast
of Improv-Ice on January 15!
His entrance to Bad Romance.
Please click for full-size view so you can
truly appreciate the audience reaction here also,
truly appreciate the audience reaction here also,
including that of the young skaters
waiting in the wings to the left.
Opening of the second act,
skating with the other pros to a mashup of
Adele's "Rumor Has It" and "Someone Like You."
Adele's "Rumor Has It" and "Someone Like You."
This is the costume he premiered at last year's
Holiday Dreams on Ice to perform
"Dirty Love" for the first time.
Ave Maria.
Please, please click for full-size view.
Absolutely stunning.
I love how the blue spotlight
is softly shining down on him.
OK! But before we got to all that on Friday, there were Thursday's rehearsals...
...in which there was a lot of this...
...and then lots of this...
(Please pardon the video quality
or rather, the lack thereof.
Yes, I need a real video camera.)
(Please pardon the video quality
or rather, the lack thereof.
Yes, I need a real video camera.)
...and this...
(I can see why the rehearsals
are often referred to as "repetitions")...
...and also a WHOLE lot of this:
(The expression on his face here
just totally cracks me up.)
He and Armin engaged in multiple
ass-swivel competitions
throughout the day.
I think Johnny won every time.
Bonus pics!! Johnny at the VIP party
holding a vase of lovely white flowers accented with
pink and red peonies, sent by NYC fans.
And one more from Friday's dress rehearsal.
(This is the vertical expression
of his signature back-bend slide
that he does when he's running through a program
but not fully executing every single move.
But it's beautiful in itself.)
Yes!! We have video!! Here's the opening medley
including Johnny in the "Safety" pants!
Very special thanks to Wendy Stevenz
for valiantly filming everything
despite the fact that she was Freezing. To. Death.
See all her HDOI vids on her YouTube channel!
All photos © David Ingogly.
New Q and A! Go read it now!
I particularly like his answer to this one.
At last: Pop Star On Ice is now available on DVD!
Order yours today from the Pop Star On Ice website!
"Buy my single,'Dirty Love' via iTunes.
Tell all your friends to as well. The more copies sold
takes me one step closer to making a video! №1!"
THE WORLD NEEDS THIS VIDEO
IN THE SAME WAY THAT IT NEEDS AIR.
IN THE SAME WAY THAT IT NEEDS AIR.
You know what to do.
or just click the "Buy" button on the player
at the top of the blog!
at the top of the blog!
Hey, Welcome to My World also is available
as an eBook! More info on Johnny's website!
Bonus video via The Advocate, from their post titled:
"Possibly the Most Beautiful Ad for Marriage Equality We've Seen."
The video was produced by an equality group in Australia,
where nearly two-thirds of voters favor legalizing
gay marriage, according to The Advocate,
but prime minister Julia Gillard remains firmly opposed.
I agree with The Advocate:
This is one of the most eloquent illustrations I've seen
of this simple concept: Love is love.
