ABOUT US

Birgit Aust

After her degree in Political Sciences Birgit turned intensively towards the evanescent movement on the ice. The education of Laban Bartenieff Movement Studies with EUROLAB e.V. in Berlin encouraged her to build diverse bridges into new spaces apart the sport of figure skating. Developing new perspectives towards movement on ice she frequently recreates the process of learning and teaching in her work as a skating coach. Additionally she opened up various spaces of presentation.

"Contemporary ice skating...
… means freedom to me, change as main principle in the vivid movement connecting me, the ice and the world I’m living in. My base of movement research on the ice is the unique quality of playing with skates, ice and gravity."

Bram van Meggelen

Bram started skating in Alkmaar, close to Amsterdam at the age of 12. After competing he started doing bigger shows like Holiday on Ice. Bram got in touch with the ongoing activities in Berlin triggered by a Le Patin Libre performance Birgit organized in 2013. He joined the event alongside taking the creative workshops Birgit was leading as part of the event. From that point he followed the movement in Berlin. From there he started organizing the small festival together with Birgit and Elisa in 2016.

"Contemporary ice skating...
… in essence it means for me being totally in tune with yourself on the ice. When being in tune, expressing the feelings you have by gliding over the ice. This can be whatever."

Katja Grohmann

Until 2010 Katja skated national and international competitions for Erfurt, Thuringia. After studying Sports Science and moving to Leipzig she felt that something was completely left out in the movements on the ice compared to her experiences of contemporary dance. She started experimenting on her own with floor work and contemporary movement methods. Analyzing the way dancers move compared to skaters, she joined the dance education of Leipziger Tanztheater in 2017, which formed a new view on ice skating. Working in the field of outdoor education - a spirited pedagogical way to inspire young people - movement research on ice became essential practice for her. She is a strong supporter of the contemporary skating movement, dancer, choreograph and visionary.

"Contemporary ice skating...
... exploring the countless possibilities of movement on ice and breaking free of restrictions. Make skating about understanding the intention, the movement, your fellow human beings and yourself. An approach to life on a constantly challenging and questionable surface."

Elisa Siegmund

quickly became interested in the art of figure skating at the young age of 14. The search for this artistic form of expression led her into the world of dance. Studying at Germany's renowned dance Universities "Palucca - University of Dance" and "Folkwang - University of the Arts”, Elisa honed her craft of modern and contemporary dance through intensive studies. Her most significant teachers belonged to the first generation of the world-famous Pina Bausch dance ensemble. With further educational training courses in Germany and abroad, she is constantly expanding her vocabulary in a wide variety of dance styles. This training has always been part of her work around the world as a stage dancer, dance choreographer, ice show skater, ice show and figure skating choreographer and dance instructor for figure skaters. Developing her own special training method, she teaches off ice and on ice dance lessons for targeted figure skaters. Elisa has devoted herself intensively to contemporary skating since 2010.

"Contemporary ice skating...
… for me it is the breaking down of skating to its substance of gliding on the ice and the blending of this peculiarity of locomotion with facets of other artistic realms. In my case, this is especially characterized by body language and the language of dance. The desire to combine these movement languages with my skates and to transform the ice into a tool of artistic development as well as a new stage floor, is the basis of my creative work. Inspiration for this, I draw from life."

Julia Zehavi

Julia comes from the production side of events and while studying socio-economics she was fascinated by movements and people finding each other. While doing a lot of dance activities being a teenager and student, she found her way on the ice rather late and is still in the very beginning of discovering motion, impact and the beauty of letting it go on the ice.

"Contemporary ice skating...
... for me means discovering the medium ice in its whole perspective. Being ultimately free in the movement without restrictions or competitive output.”

Vitale Vaugin

Skating since the age of 5, Vitale competed as a kid and teenager but has always been primarily interested in the artistic side of Figure Skating. She intensively studied Modern and Contemporary dance, touring with a contemporary ballet company in Germany and Austria. Former show skater, she also produced and choreographed local productions. Certified choreographer and skater of American Ice Theatre, she is constantly seeking new ways of moving and expression through the medium of ice and is internationally involved in bringing the movement of Contemporary Ice Skating forward. As a full-time choreographer and dance teacher on the ice, she works primarily on merging dance and figure skating skills together. She developed her own teaching method based on Modern and Contemporary Dance to enhance expression and body movements through skating skills. Most recently, she started the first german Ballet sur glace / Theater on Ice team in 2018.

"Contemporary ice skating...
... is the exploration of the body and movement on ice, with an emphasis on the aesthetic and imagery, rather than athletic performance. A movement is only valid if it adds to the meaning of the piece and the emotion or message being conveyed. If figure skating is primarily a sport, contemporary ice skating is going beyond that vocabulary of definitive actions to create art."