The painfully miraculous dance on ice skit during Torville and Dean’s farewell tour is an attack on their signature Boléro. Set to a banjo-laced version of Ravel’s score, the scene encapsulates our fears: Will the former Olympians throw away their legacy by taking to the ice in their Nan era?
But Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean are a class act and leave the memories intact. This final show, a trip down memory lane, recounts their accents and revisits their totemic routine. With filmed chatter and a sparse schedule, they take us from their childhood meeting at Nottingham Ice Stadium (their “blonde prince” and “queen bee” personas established early on) to Olympic gold in 1984 and a resurgent career in reality TV.
Now in their mid-60s, the couple certainly lack the youthful flexibility and fire, but keep it classy. Only in the Fred and Ginger number, let’s face it, the music and dancing lift the effort off the line. In their prime, they brought cheek and heart to ice dancing—no wonder people thought they were an item, as their numbers often had an emotional charge (their coach insisted they maintain eye contact for an extra tingle). And even today, Dan is a charming partner while Torvill brings the drama, her big eyes registering Rogish’s mischief or suffering.
They hand off dazzling duties to a 15-strong company, many of whom are ice dancing pros. Danger can sharpen the edge of skating’s art, and some of these younger artists dare more: notably Philip Warren, all speed and swagger, and Vanessa James, whose unerring angles are performed by partner Eric Radford. The choreography is by Dean with Dan Whiston, and even the most recent numbers (circus, line dancing, ’80s montage) catch the Frisson: full of heart, bold tilts.
The stars themselves weave through the Scarlet and Black opener from The Greatest Showman, Long Summer and the silly Mack and Mabel. They can’t compete with their past, but when they do Boléro, it’s with an understated simplicity, reverently tracing their remarkable routine. Torville and Dean can’t stop time, but they are making some last golden memories.
