The Northeastern Figure Skating Club held their fifth annual Holiday Show Dec. 4 at Matthews Arena, with 46 skaters showing off individual and group routines in the end of the year celebration and fundraiser.
The team was riding high after finishing sixth place out of 24 teams at one of their three annual competitions, the Nov. 10 Violet Ice Classic, gathering a team record of 186 total points.
The show featured dozens of performances to holiday songs, skaters gliding across the ice to comforting hymns along with dramatic skits set to “Santa Tell Me”, among others.
President of the club and fourth-year biochemistry major Kristina Ruiz has been skating for 14 years. She was sold on Northeastern after hearing about its club figure skating team, and she’s stuck with it. The Holiday Showcase is one her favorite times of the year.
“It’s busy, but it’s really gratifying,” Ruiz said of the showcase. “A lot of members look forward to this event because they grew up competing, but don’t want to compete anymore, but still want to perform. They get to bring their friends and show their family and friends. And it’s always just a really fun time, no matter what happens, even if it’s put together last minute.”
The Holiday Show ranged from skating in sweats to “Mistletoe” by Justin Bieber, elegant performances set to “River” and “Hallelujah”, the “Reindeer Boogie” in a Reindeer onesie and a clever rendition of “Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer,” the evening had it all. The crowd was full of students and family eager to cheer on the skaters, and the commentators had a clever pun locked and loaded for every performance.
The team had only two weeks to learn the routines, practicing early in the morning and late at night to choreograph and practice for the holiday showcase.
“Practice is always really, really fun,” coach Julie Pondelli said. “Even really late at night the kids still show up consistently but you see them working together and enjoying their time, so it’s pretty awesome to see.”
The team prides itself on creating a warm and inviting space, establishing a bond among members.
“It’s definitely a big community and it’s great to see everyone very much interacting with each other and being very supportive where probably a lot of their experiences pre-college figure skating [are] not that way,” Pondelli said.
Fourth-year biology major Madeline Marks only took up skating in 2021, looking for a new hobby to keep herself occupied. She joined the figure skating club team with no competitive experience prior, but she’s loved it ever since. On Wednesday evening, she choreographed her first ever program, a routine to “Silent Night.”
“It’s the first time that I’ve ever choreographed a program for myself, so that was kind of nerve-wracking, but I kind of knew that this was the environment that I’d want to test that out in,” Marks said. “It’s been super fun skating with all of my friends that I’ve been skating with since I was a freshman.”
When Marks enters the arena for a competition or showcase, it’s her countless hours of practice that carry her. “This takes up many hours in my week, but it’s really nice to be able to work towards a program. It’s something that you just drill and drill and get better and better at. And eventually you kind of black out and just do your thing. And then you finish and the adrenaline rush is over and you just feel so happy.”
The event was filled with group performances and creative costumes, some of which Marks admitted were put together very quickly, but were captivating nonetheless. “The e-board number we choreographed this morning, as you can probably tell. None of us really knew the choreography,” she said.“Then we just kind of got on and we were like following each other and we messed up a few things but I was laughing my ass off while I was out there.”
The club wished two graduating skaters well with flowers, and the cozy evening ended with holiday carols, laughs and cheers from the enthused audience.
“I love watching everyone perform. It’s one of my favorite things because it’s something you look forward to for a long time, and being able to put on a show, just seeing people’s faces as they start their program, when they end their program, it’s my favorite part of watching the show,” said Ruiz.
The club team will be back in Matthews Arena for their annual Spring Showcase along with competitions at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Sacred Heart University in the spring semester.
