Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, March 22, 1991 TAG: 9103220594
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: E-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: TRACIE FELLERS STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
He was favored to win a gold medal at the 1988 Winter Olympics in the touted Battle of the Brians - his strongest competition for the medal was U.S. skater Brian Boitano. The showdown between the two men was the source of nearly as much media hype as the ballyhooed battle between Debi Thomas and Katarina Witt.
Orser, who ended up with a silver medal after the Calgary games, left amateur skating - along with the worldwide attention and adulation it generates - after the 1988 world championships.
Now there are no more attempts to gain an elusive gold medal, no more STARS ON ICE: 7:30 tonight at the Roanoke Civic Center Coliseum. $14-$16. 981-1201. eight-hour training sessions to achieve technical perfection, no more international competitions against current masters of the sport - like reigning world champion and fellow Canadian Kurt Browning.
Orser, an eight-time Canadian champion who won his first Olympic silver medal in 1984 and a world championship in 1987, admits to missing the intensity of it all.
But he hasn't hung up his skates. Since becoming a professional skater, Orser, 29, has been carving out a niche for himself on and off the ice.
He's toured with the Discover Card Stars on Ice since the 1988-89 season and was the North American men's professional champion in 1989. Last year he won an Emmy award for his performance in "Carmen on Ice," an ice show that aired on HBO and also featured East German skating star Katarina Witt.
Now Orser is dividing his time between performing and his latest challenge: producing ice shows with his own production company.
As part of Stars on Ice, Orser skates solo and with a talented troupe including Olympic medalists Scott Hamilton, Rosalynn Sumners and brother-sister team Kitty and Peter Carruthers.
The 30-city tour, which also features a guest appearance by 1976 Olympic gold medalist Dorothy Hamill, stops at the Roanoke Civic Center tonight.
In a phone interview from his home in Toronto, Orser talked about making the transition from amateur to professional performer. "It's reallly hard to compare the two because they're both so different," he said.
"This is definitely more fun, though I do miss some of the intense training that I did for 15 years."
Orser, known for triple jumps, back flips and theatrical flair on the ice, said he's more open to audiences when he skates now.
"As I was making the transition, I just sort of went with the feeling that I was getting from the audience," he said.
"You find that you get very spontaneous because every night you have a different crowd. You may have a group of teenage girls in the front row that you end up playing to because that's who's giving you the most response."
Orser said he also strives to stay on his toes technically for skating fans. "There are certain maneuvers that I do that are tough, that are very difficult, that I kind of challenge myself to do.
"People come to see the show because they remember the Olympics. They remember what I did in the Olympics and my technical ability, so it's important to give them that as well."
Orser started skating at age 5, drawn to the ice by hockey. By the time he was 9, coach Doug Leigh had recognized Orser's potential. Leigh remained Orser's coach throughout his successful amateur career.
After rising through the ranks of Canadian skaters, Orser placed second to Hamilton at the 1984 Winter Olympics and was favored to win the gold in 1988. But when the Battle of the Brians was all over, Boitano, who gave the performance of his career, had the gold. Orser had to settle for second place.
Orser still counts Boitano among a circle of friends in the skating business, a group that includes Witt and Soviets Sergei Grinkov and Ekaterina Gordeeva, who took the gold in the pairs competition in '88. "There's sort of the class of '88 . . . we've all kept in pretty close contact," Orser said. "We speak on the phone quite often."
Boitano and Witt even stopped at Orser's home for a "little get-together" after a recent show in Toronto, he said.
But touring and getting his production company on track don't leave Orser a lot of time for entertaining. Running the company, which has already produced a couple of ice shows in Canada, is "challenging, that's for sure," he said.
"As a performer, you take a lot of things for granted" - that a hotel room will be booked for you, that an airline ticket will be reserved for you, that the ice will be ready at the rink, he said.
But "somebody's got to make the calls, somebody's got to get the sponsorship and those are all the things that you have to do."
Orser has also branched out a bit with Stars on Ice this season. With the help of a friend, he came up with the concept for "Fame," one of the show's group numbers.
In the piece, performed to David Bowie's song of the same title, the skaters portray celebrities including Elvis, Marilyn Monroe, Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman. The number takes a funny look at the phenomenon of being famous, he said.
And what legendary star does Orser take on? None other than the King, of course. "It actually was a big hit in Memphis," where the tour went earlier this month, he said with a laugh.
Orser also generated the idea for the show's opening number, in which each skater acts as a different musical instrument.
At the beginning, each "instrument" is playing its own tune, regardless of the effect on the others, he said. But the instruments come together in harmony at the end. "It's a fun number."
Overall, "I think it's the best show we've ever done," Orser said. "The music selection is excellent, plus it's got a lot of energy."
Tickets for tonight's show can be charged by phone by calling 800-543-3041. All seats are reserved.
Keywords:
PROFILE
by CNB