John Curry

Figure Skater

• Born: September 9, 1949
• Birthplace: Birmingham, Warwickshire (now in West Midlands), England
• Died: April 15, 1994
• Place of death: Binton, Warwickshire, England

Sport: Figure skating

Early Life

John Curry was born on September 9, 1949, in Birmingham, England, and grew up in Manchester. Even as a toddler, he wanted to take dance lessons, but the idea was unacceptable to the working-class family in which he was reared. When he was seven, however, his parents allowed him to take skating lessons because they felt that skating was more masculine than dancing.

John took his skating lessons seriously. As a youth, he spent most of his time after school training himself for competitions. Whenever he had free time, he secretly studied dance. Eventually, his interests in dance and skating merged into one preoccupation. As a result, he lost points in the first competitions that he entered for “over-artistry.” His desire to win was so strong, though, that he began incorporating the traditional costume and required steps into his routine.

The Road to Excellence

By the time John was in his early twenties, he had won so many championships that he began to think seriously about entering the Olympics. Even though John could skate well enough to win the local figure skating competitions, he realized that he had to add a spectacular element to his skating in order to become a world champion. In the early 1970’s, he enlisted the help of skating coach Gustav Lussi, who taught John to jump by putting him in a confined space and telling him to “leap.” This strenuous exercise forced him to develop his muscle coordination.

John’s extensive preparation finally paid off in 1976. He started the year by winning the European Championships. Then, at the 1976 Olympics at Innsbruck, Austria, John dazzled the crowd by skating to a piece entitled “After All” that had been choreographed especially for him by dancer and choreographer Twyla Tharp. His performance, which one judge compared to ballet on ice, won him the gold medal in men’s figure skating. John rounded out the year’s achievements by winning the World Figure Skating Championships. His feats on ice prompted former champion Dick Button to call him “one of the greatest skaters of all time.”

The Emerging Champion

Like other figure skating champions before him, John turned professional after winning the Olympic gold. He was offered high-paying jobs with various ice shows, but he turned them down to pursue his own vision. Bored with the spectacle that most ice shows offered, John wanted to transform ice skating into a physical representation of music.

To accomplish his dream, John created a new art form that combined skating and dancing. After showcasing his “ice dancing” in a television spectacular, John decided to create an even more elaborate production. He choreographed two numbers himself and then commissioned choreographers such as Jean-Pierre Bonnefous and Peter Martins from the New York City Ballet to stage eight other numbers. He also formed a troupe with energetic young skaters, such as JoJo Starbuck. The result was “John Curry’s Ice Dancing,” which performed to rave reviews in London, New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco in 1978. John’s impressive range was most effectively displayed in Claude DeBussy’s “Afternoon of a Faun.” Although this piece had been the trademark of the ballet star Vaslav Nijinsky, John proved that it could be equally exciting when performed on ice.

In 1979, John decided to take his concept of ice dancing a step further. He started a school to train skaters who wanted to learn to dance on ice. His approach was based on one concept. He believed that every step, movement, and gesture had equal value. Thus, to John, jumping, which is a vital element of the routines of most figure skaters, was no more important than a slow glide. John had to evolve an entirely new series of exercises in order to get his point across to his students.

John’s school eventually produced an entire company of performers called “The John Curry Skating Company.” In 1984, John decided to return to the format that had made “John Curry’s Ice Dancing” so successful. On July 25, the John Curry Skating Company brought its new revue to the Metropolitan Opera House in New York, where sold-out performances earned standing ovations. Of the twenty-four works on the program, John had choreographed fifteen. By this time, he had developed into such a fine ice choreographer that many critics felt that his work was better than that of the other choreographers who were featured in the production. Aside from an adventuresome piece called “Glides,” John’s best work was generally agreed to be the pieces that he wrote for soloists such as David Santee, Dorothy Hamill, and JoJo Starbuck.

The company’s 1985-1986 tour was launched at the Kennedy Center Opera House. One of the new works on the program, “Skating Class,” was based on the company’s daily workout. This was said to be the first group exercise for figure skaters.

Continuing the Story

At the end of the 1985-1986 tour, John’s company fell apart. Its collapse can be attributed to the public’s changing attitude toward skating. Audiences seemed to value competition over expressiveness. Disillusioned by the failure of his company, John temporarily abandoned skating for an acting career.

For the remainder of the decade, John made occasional performances in various productions. In 1988, he presented two solos on a one-time-only program by the Ice Theatre of New York, a nonprofit skating organization. Then, in 1989, he upstaged all the other performers in a television performance entitled “The Ice Stars’ Hollywood Revue.” Even though he was rapidly approaching middle age, John seemed to be as agile as ever. However, John—an open member of New York City’s gay community—contracted AIDS and succumbed to a heart attack when he was only forty-four.

Summary

John Curry will be remembered as one of the greatest figure skaters of all time who won the Olympic gold medal in men’s figure skating in 1976. However, John was also an innovator who added his own unique touch to both teaching techniques and choreography. Like all men of vision, he had the courage to depart from the mainstream and do things his own way.

Bibliography

Hines, James R. Figure Skating: A History. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 2006.

Oglanby, Elva. Black Ice: The Life and Death of John Curry. London: Gollancz, 1995.

Wallechinsky, David, and Jaime Loucky. The Complete Book of the Winter Olympics. Wilmington, Del.: Sport Media, 2005.