SKATE CAMP COACHES
Robin Cousins MBE
Robin won the World Free Skating Championship Gold Medal three times (78,79,80) along with World Championship Silver (79,80) but won European Championship Gold and the Olympic Gold Medal for Men’s Figure Skating in Lake Placid in 1980. That year, Robin was awarded the M.B.E. by Her Majesty the Queen at Buckingham Palace for his services to sport.
A highly successful professional career followed. Winning over 20 professional skating titles including the World Professional Championship 3 times. He appeared as special guest star with Holiday On Ice, with whom he set a new, and currently unbroken, box office records for attendance, selling out London’s Wembley Arena for it’s six-week run.
In 1983 Robin set up his own ice company, choreographing hugely successful shows such as Electric Ice, which not only toured worldwide but also had a seventeen-week sell-out run at the Victoria Palace Theatre in London’s West End. During this time Robin set some world Records for the Guinness Book – the Longest Axel jump record still stands today.
Robin’s productions with Feld Entertainment include, as choreographer, Disney’s Toy Story on Ice, which toured the world for 7 years and as director and choreographer for both The Wizard of Oz on Ice, and Andrew Lloyd-Webber’s Starlight Express on Ice.
Robin has a longstanding involvement with Holiday on Ice, which has seen him star in, direct and choreograph 18 different productions including, Fantasy, Mystery, Spirit, Peter Pan and Tropicana, the latter being the result of his friendship with superstar Barry Manilow. Who’s music was the backbone of the show.
For their 65th anniversary Robin created the world’s biggest pinwheel for a Guinness Book world record with 65 skaters on a specially constructed rink. (See it on You Tube under world’s biggest pinwheel)
His last production ‘Robin Cousins’ ICE’ had its world premiere in January 2014 and toured in the UK
Away from the ice, Robin went back to his roots and forged a very successful theatrical career, in a variety roles including The Prince in ‘Rogers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella’ (MUNY St Louis) Munkustrap in ‘Cats’ (UK Tour) Frank-n-Furter in the 20th anniversary production of ‘The Rocky Horror Show’ (London and UK tour) Teen Angel in ‘Grease’ (London and UK Tour) and as Billy Flynn in the acclaimed London production of ‘Chicago’.
Robin also has a successful one-man Cabaret show ‘6 Degrees of Gene Kelly’ which he performs around the country.
Robin worked as a Team GB Ambassador for the London 2012 Olympics and 2014Winter Games in Sochi Russia and will repeat this at the PeyongChang Games in 2018
On TV Robin has been part of the BBC Olympic commentary team since 1984 and was the Head Judge on the very popular “Dancing on Ice” which ran for 9 seasons on ITV
Robin’s latest role is that of High Performance Manager for the National Skating Association’s Elite Figure Skating Squad for the 2018 Olympics in PyeongChang South Korea
Mark Alan Naylor
Overview
There’s no one else in this country who has my show and professional experience. I have done numerous productions for Holiday on Ice as either their main choreographer or show’s director around the world. This was after I successfully toured the world with Disney on Ice as both a principal solo and pair performer and male line captain.
After an exciting creation of the 74th show for Holiday on Ice entitled, ‘Atlantis’ last fall, I immediately started work on the freshly relaunched ‘Dancing on Ice’. I was ITV’s main skating consultant and head coach for all the competing celebrities. As the show progressed, I became the choreographer for the weekly opening routines as well as the ‘voting window’ couple routines. It was a great experience working alongside the show’s newly appointed creative director, Elizabeth Honan (Strictly Come Dancing, Britain’s Got Talent, Classic Fm Live at the Royal Albert Hall) and creating new pieces combining her impressive dance knowledge and my skating experience.
Besides my show background, I have extensive pair skating knowledge as proven with creating our only senior elite pair team in the UK during the 2016-2017 season.
Along with technical experience of pairs and singles skating, I have a great ear for music and movement. I have done ‘skating and performance’ camps around the country in connection with NISA and within different skating clubs. I’ve also orchestrated a ‘pair and dance’ tryout at my first British Skating Championships.
Education
University of Delaware, Newark, DE
Major: Biology; Minor: Medical Humanities
Bachelor of Arts degree, May 1992
Activities
Figure Skater
U.S. Figure Skating Association Tests Passed:
Gold in Figures, Freestyle and Pairs
International and World Pairs Competitor
Member United States International Team 3 years
Professional Coaching
- Level 2 NISA Qualified Coach with all required specifications
- created and trained the UK’s only elite pair team to the World Championships in 2017 (Zoe Jones and Christopher Boyadji)
- had previously trained the UK’s only elite pair team in their last season and took them to their first Grand Prix Event in Nagano, Japan (Amani Fancy and Christopher Boyadji)
- choreography for the following members of the elite skating squad in the UK
- Graham Newbury (current no. 2 senior man)
- Kristen Spours
- Anna Litvinenko
Professional Choreography
ITV – ‘Dancing on Ice’ , Head Coach and Choreographer
Series 1 (2017 – 2018)
ITV – ‘Ice Rink on the Estate’
October – November 2014
Assistant Show Producer, Choreographer and Music Clearance
Olympic Torch Relay, ‘Torch Gala Event’ Nottingham, U.K.
June 28, 2012
Artistic Director and Choreographer
Itv’s ‘Dancing on Ice’ and Itv’s ‘Make Me a Skating Star’
Skating Coach and Assistant to Torvill & Dean for Group Skating Numbers
Series 3 (2007 – 2008)
Series 4 (2008 – 2009)
Series 5 (2009 – 2010)
Series 6 (2010 – 2011)
Series 7 (2011 – 2012)
Series 8 (2012 – 2013)
Series 9 (2013 – 2014)
Torvill and Dean’s ‘Dancing on Ice – the Live Tour’
Assistant Choreographer and Coach
The Bolero 25th Anniversary Tour – 2009
The Tour – 2010
The Tour – 2011
The Final Tour – 2014
The Return – 2018
Somerset House, ‘Official Winter Season Opening’, Somerset House, London
November 2011
Choreographer and Artistic Director of Skating Number
Professional and International Ice Show Choreography Experience
Holiday on Ice, ‘Atlantis’
Rehearsals in Lint, Belgium
Opening in Grefrath, Germany
October – November, 2017
Associate Choreographer and Assistant Director
Holiday on Ice, ‘Platinum’
Rehearsals in Utrecht, the Netherlands
Opening in Grefrath, Germany
October – November, 2013
Creative Director and Choreographer
Holiday on Ice, ‘Speed’
Rehearsals in Wezlar, Germany
November 2011
Consultant on Pair Teams
Haydenettes – Synchronized Skating Team
Rehearsals in Boston, MA, USA
October 2011
Consultant for Choreography and Lifts
Holiday on Ice, ‘Peter Pan’
Rehearsals and Opening in Guadalajara, Mexico
July 2011
Artistic Director
Holiday on Ice, ‘Mystery’
Rehearsals and Opening in Santiago, Chile
April 2011
Artistic Director
Haydenettes – Synchronized Skating Team
Rehearsals in Boston, MA, USA
October 2010
Consultant for Choreography and Lifts
Holiday on Ice, “Casino Show”
Rehearsals in Utrecht, the Netherlands
And Opening in Beirut, Lebanon May 2010
Choreographer and Director on-site
Holiday on Ice, “Tropicana”
Rehearsals in Utrecht, the Netherlands
And Opening in Hamburg, Germany 2009
Associate Choreographer
Holiday on Ice ‘Summer Skating Academy’- 2008 and 2009
Utrecht, the Netherlands
Director
Holiday on Ice, “Spirit”
Rehearsals in Utrecht, the Netherlands
And Opening in Hamburg, Germany 2007
Assistant Choreographer
Holiday on Ice, “Romanza”
Choreography for Belgian TV celebrity, Kelly Pfaff
Antwerp, Belgium
Creating two numbers to be used in the show and training Kelly
Melanj, January-February 2007 in Manila, Philippines
Choreographer
On this project, I wore different artistic titles. It was an exciting and challenging experience working with a new production and management team from the United States. I was in charge of scheduling, publicities, public speaking at various events, choreography for the show, costume design and at the end, assisting with lighting design. It was great organizing the various aspects of the show.
Holiday on Ice, “Mystery”
Rehearsals in Utrecht, the Netherlands
And Opening in Hamburg, Germany 2006
Assistant Choreographer
Holiday on Ice, “Peter Pan”
Rehearsals in Moscow, Russia
and Opening in Moscow, Russia, January 2006
Director and Choreographer
Rehearsals in Enschede, the Netherlands
and Opening in Paris, France 2005
Assistant Choreographer
Holiday on Ice, “Romanza”
Rehearsals in Enschede, the Netherlands
and Opening in Hamburg, Germany, 2005
Assistant Choreographer
Holiday on Ice, “Pinocchio”
Rehearsals and Opening of Show, Villahermosa, Mexico 2005
Director and Choreographer
Holiday on Ice, “Pinocchio”
Rehearsals in Arnhem, the Netherlands
and Opening in Amiens, France 2004
Director and Choreographer
Holiday on Ice, “Dreams”
Rehearsals in Enschede, the Netherlands
and Opening of Show, Hamburg, Germany 2004
Assistant Choreographer
Holiday on Ice, “Pinocchio”
Rehearsals and Opening in Singapore, Singapore 2004
Director and Choreographer
Professional Skating Experience
GPA French Tour
France, 2004
Principal Pair
Holiday on Ice, “Feria”
León, México, 2004
Principal Pair
Holiday on Ice, “Pinocchio on Ice”
French Tour, 2003
Principal Pair
Disney’s World on Ice, “Jungle Adventures”
Japan, Far East and Australia Tour, 2002 – 2003
West Coast Tour, 2001 – 2002
European Tour, 2000 – 2001
Principal Pair and Line Captain
Feld Entertainment’s “Grease on Ice”
U.S. Tour, 1998 – 2000
Principal Pair and Line Captain
Disney’s World on Ice, “Beauty and The Beast”
South American and Russian tours, 1997 –1998
European Tour (Principal Pair), 1996-1997
Feld Entertainment’s “Starlight Express”
U.S. Tour, 1997
Principal Pair and Line Captain
Disney’s “Music, Magic & Mickey”
U.S. Tour, 1995-1996
Principal Pair and Principal Soloist
Disney’s “Mickey’s Magical Tales”
European Tour, 1994-1995
Principal Pair
Il Mondo Di Caneva, Lazise Sul Garda, Italy
Through Glacier I.C.E. Productions, Orlando, FL
Summer 1994
Performance Director and Principal Pair Skater
“The Planets,” A&E Television
Rhombus Productions, Toronto, Canada – Winter 1994
Featuring the Duchenays and Brian Orser
Choreographer: Lar Lubovitch
Featured Skater
Grand Reopening of Greensboro Coliseum
Greensboro, NC
January 1994
Featured Pair Skater
Dream World Theme Park
Gold Coast, Australia
Summer 1993
Featured Pair Skater
Ice Capades
Continental Co. Tour, 1992-1993
Principal Pair Skater and Principal Male Understudy
Ice Capades
China Tour, 1992
