It really is figure skating like you have never seen it before. There is something raw, something wild, yet extremely skilled about performances from Nordic Ice Theatre; I think over and above all else, the feeling is ‘this is utterly beautiful and different’’.
So why is it so different? Well the first thing that struck me is the use of live musicians on the ice; I mean actual musicians on the ice, as in cellists, violinists, pianists and more, actually on the ice with the figure skaters. There is no mistaking the power of live instruments, but when combined with figure skating, the result is magical, something that becomes so much more than the sum of its parts.
An artistic figure skating first for Norway
Nordic Ice Theatre (or Nordice as it is also known) is the first ice-theatre company in Norway, and is only the second ice theatre in all of Scandinavia, Ice Theatre of Stockholm being the other. There is something beautiful in the way that artistic figure skating and live musicians fit into the Norwegian landscape, like it should have always been there, a oneness that the Nordic ice-theatre company have captured effortlessly in the following video ‘From Bergen With Love’.
From Bergen With Love
This video was filmed in an unusually cold and frosty winter, which is out of character for Europe’s rainiest city; This celebration of love, art, Bergen and the beautiful Norwegian landscape is captured in movement on ice to the crystal sounds of piano.
So what’s the future for Nordic Ice Theatre and artistic figure skating in Norway
Nordic Ice Theatre’s immediate future
For Nordic Ice theatre the future is certainly bright, I as asked Margret on the Ice Twizzle podcast what lay ahead for the newly formed ice-theatre?
Listen to the podcast interview with Margret from Nordic Ice Theatre here.
Winter Tales
She mentions shows that they had planned that had been shelved by the pandemic and one that was born in it, ‘Winter Tales’.
Though Margret remains slightly tight-lipped about ‘Winter Tales’, the trailer tempts us with performance that is Nordice’s own special brand of different. What ‘Winter Tales’ is all about remains a mystery; one thing is for certain though, we can expect it to be a magical combination of figure skating, beautiful choreography and music from musicians on ice that are a performance all of their own, the combination is sure to be another enchanting experience from Nordic Ice Theatre. Check out the ‘Winter Tales’ trailer below.
The future of artistic figure skating in Norway
There is no doubt that Nordic Ice Theatre are pathfinders in Norway, a path that more will tread behind them, join by their side, and move forward with Nordice to bring artistic figure skating in Norway to the forefront, potentially to a world stage. Margret hopes that one of the effects of the creation of Nordic Ice Theatre is to inspire others to create art on ice.
Artistic figure skating though not at all new, as organisations like Ice Theatre of New York lay testament, but is yet to receive anything like the attention it deserves. I cannot help but feel that we are in a golden age of artistic ice skating, I think that in 100 years time, people will look back at ice-theatre companies like Nordic Ice Theatre and realise that this was the time when anything was possible, when a bold few, helped create and bring to the people a beautiful art form.
In short, Norway will be better for having Nordic Ice Theatre in its midst and will move forward in artistic figure skating as a result.
The artists behind Nordic Ice Theatre
Małgorzata Osypińska (Margret)
There is a strong influence to the artistic, to the ballet, to the beauty of dance and movement, that is true of all members of the Nordic Ice-Theatre Company, not the least of which is Małgorzata Osypińska (Margret). Margret is well schooled in arts having studied a BA in dance and a MA in choreography and dance theory. Margret is the founder and Artistic Director of Nordic Ice Theatre, she is a figure skater, dancer, choreographer, dance and skating teacher/coach. Margret is currently a dance teacher at Culture School Øygarden.
Maciej Kuś
Margret is joined on ice by Maciej Kuś, a figure skater of distinction. In some of the artistic performances you will see Maciej performing complex jumps amongs artistic transitions, these are skills gained no-doubt in his previous figure skating career in which he was a multiple polish national champion and representative. Maciej has competed at World Championships as both a junior and senior competitor, at the Nebelhorn Trophy, The Golden Spin of Zagreb, the Finlandia Trophy and more. Maciej is currently a coach at Bergen Kunstløpklubb.
Beate-Helene Andersen
On ice skills don’t end there, Margret and Maciej are joined by figure skater Beate-Helene Andersen, a Bergen native who has placed well at Norwegian championships on several occasions. From her beginnings as a figure skater at the age of three, Beate-Helene is now a coach at Loddefjord Idrettslag and is the coach of synchronised skating team The Bergen Umbrellas.
Vanessa Gjerde
Vanessa joined Nordic Ice Theatre in 2021; a skater since the age of seven, Vanessa has competed both nationally and internationally representing Bergen Kunstløpklubb, Loddefjord Idrettslag and Fana Idrettslag.
As well as winning the international competition ‘Skate Copenhagen’ in the Junior category, Vanessa has won the ´Vestlandsmesterskapet´ competition in several categories and placed 5th in the Norwegian Championships at both juniors and seniors.
Vanessa is also trained in classical dance and joins Nordic Ice Theatre as their youngest member.
Then of course there are the collaborating artists, musicians of exceptional abilities, like:
Julia Malik
Julia holds a masters degree in Cello and is an accomplished singer both in the field of opera and as an oratorio and a lead singer.Julia has received scholarships and prizes from so many international music institutions, just to list them would boggle the mind. She is currently a member of Liedklasse at the Hochschule für Musik und Darstellende Kunst in Stuttgart, is the founder and CEO of Sunrise Bridge Music Production and is the Musical Director of Nordic Ice Theatre.
Anders Hannevold
Anders is a composer and a classical pianist, with a MA in composition from the Grieg Academy in Bergen, he is a member of the Norwegian Society of Composers and has worked as a pianist world wide. Anders is a board member of ‘Ny Musikk’ association, a teacher and a freelance pianist.
Vladimira Scigulinska
Vladimira is a professional violinist with a MA in Violin Performance; she has been a member of many orchestras, the Czech National Symphony Orchestra and Vienna Royal Symphony Orchestra to name just two.Vladimira is currently an employee of the State Philharmonic Orchestra in Košice, playing in the first violin section.
