Since joining my organization Teams Elite in 2018, I have had the opportunity to learn eight programs that my coaches have put their heart and soul into. Deep thought went into choosing the music, choreographing, and designing the costumes. I was given each of these programs in June and would work on them day after day until late February or early March. By the end of the season, they each held special meanings, carrying personal moments and memories I will cherish forever. I love every one of these programs so much, just some more than others. Here is a ranking of the eight programs I have skated over the past four-ish years from least to most loved.  

 

8. Rock n’ Roll Nutcracker (2018)

This was my first year on Teams Elite, and when I tried out I was not expecting to make a high level at all. I ended up making novice (the third highest level in skating) and it was a very challenging season. Looking back, the program wasn’t all that difficult, but at the time it was hard for me. But it also held a lot of special memories for me, being the first program to bring me to the National Championships, and pushed me to further my skating capabilities especially when it came to ballet technique. Overall, I loved this program, but as the years went on, I loved other programs more and was able to connect with other programs more than this one. I will say, I am unable to listen to any music from The Nutcracker during Christmas. I refuse. 

 

7. Hypnosis (2022)

This is actually a program for this year’s competitive season! It is my organization’s first year in the senior division (highest/Olympic level) and because of this my coach wanted to go a little out of the box for our short program theme. The idea is that us skaters are being hypnotized as we skate until the very end when we are snapped out of it. Unfortunately, I do not have a video of this program as we have yet to perform it, but for me it’s just not that exciting. I like the uniqueness and the underlying darkness, which is why I have it ranked higher than Nutcracker, but this program and me just don’t vibe. I honestly find it quite easy and boring to skate, but I hope the crowd doesn’t feel the same way… 

 

6. Britney Spears Medley (2022)

This is the senior team long program and don’t get me wrong, I love Britney! My coaches chose to use all remixes of her songs, and they’re really fun to skate to. But this program is just so long. It’s 4 minutes and 16 seconds and honestly feels like it goes on for forever when you’re in the middle of a run-through. As much as the length sucks, the actual content of the program is really cool. In the senior division, group lifts and an element called death spirals are introduced and make the senior division the most difficult. Those were really challenging to learn, but I really enjoy performing them with our music and I think they work really well together. All in all, this program is so cool and the dresses are really fun, but the length kills me, putting it in sixth place. 

 

5. Proud Mary (2019)

Proud Mary was my second season on Teams Elite and in the novice decision and I absolutely loved this program. It was fun, it was sassy, and it was really hard compared to the other teams that we competed against. When I look back at all the programs I’ve skated, this one stands out not only because it won a National Gold, but because I just remember having so much fun competing it every time. It didn’t matter the score we received because I genuinely just loved skating this program (but winning did make it even more enjoyable). My coach said that season that it was the best program she had choreographed to date, and I firmly believe that she was right. Maybe now the point wouldn’t stand, but at the time this program was so dynamic and different to everyone else’s that it stood out in such a positive way. I loved this program. 

 

4. Ouija (2021)

I got the opportunity to move up to the junior division in 2020, but as that was COVID year, we were unable to compete and instead really focused on our skating skills for the duration of the season. When we were able to come back fully and knew that a competition season was in the future, my coach introduced a short program theme that was so beyond what any of us were expecting: Ouija. If any of you are familiar with a Ouija board, the idea of the program was that we decided to play the board game, bringing in the spirits who at first were friendly and cordial but soon became violent and tried to take us over, ultimately killing one of us. It was a really challenging concept to grasp and really pushed me as a skater to work on my storytelling and bodily expression. As much as the program was a pain in the butt, I really really loved how different it was from anyone else in the division across the world. This program also won us a silver medal at the World Championships, locking in some really cherishable memories and moments that I will never ever forget. 

 

3. Dangerous (2022)

This is again a program from this year’s competitive season. Going into my second season in the junior division, we are currently ranked #1 in the world, meaning my coaches are pulling out all the stops to grant us the most success. They gave us the theme Dangerous, which is a mash-up of El Tango de Roxanne from Moulin Rouge and Dangerous by Michael Jackson. It sounds kind of crazy, but it is so good!! I’ve never done a tango program before, so learning how to express the style of tango definitely took some hard work, but I really really like this program. I think it’s going to draw the crowd in and get their attention instantly. I’m super excited to compete this program and the dresses are gorgeous. 

 

2. Black Eyed Peas Medley (2022)

Let me start this by saying this is hands down the hardest program I have ever skated. It is so freaking hard. Like I said earlier, being ranked #1 my coaches want to give us the best opportunity to win Worlds, and that means giving us a program that is 4 minutes of the hardest skills ever. I wish I had a video of this program because it truly is so good, but where we are right now in the season, we’re all struggling a little bit to get through it. But the music is a blast, and super upbeat and funky. As a team, we watched a senior team perform a Boom Boom Pow program last year in Poland, and immediately told our coach how much we wanted to skate to that music. Little did we know, our coaching staff had already decided that we were going to skate to Black Eyed Peas and when they saw how eager we were to skate to that music, they knew they had picked the right music for us. I think it really represents us as a team and I cannot wait to show everyone this program. Who knows, it might be my favorite by the time the season is over. 

 

1. Missy Elliott Medley (2021)

And last but not least, my all time favorite program that I’ve skated to: our 2021 junior long program, Missy Elliott. My mom is a huge Missy fan, so when I told her our music, she was ecstatic, and the music really grew on me. This program was so much fun. We brought in a choreographer to teach us hip hop moves and that was super cool. This program was a crowd favorite and we still have so many people come up to us and compliment it. From the beginning to the end, we had so much fun on the ice with this one. An article once referred to our team as a “walking party” and I think this program fully captured what that meant. It really brought out our individual and group personalities and I can’t say it enough, this program was just so so so fun to skate. Obviously when you go international, there is a difference in pop culture, and artists that might be more relevant in one area of the world are not in another. I think this was the case with Missy Elliott’s music, some spectators having never even heard of her, but they were able to connect with the program because of the overall joy that ran through the team as we performed the program. At the end of the season, my coach said that this program had left a lasting impact on a lot of people in the skating community, and he was so right. I will never forget this program, it has such a special place in my heart.