01x04 - Show Stoppers

[bunniefuu]

[♪ soft music playing]

[Katie] So, listen,
I need more presenting,

pretend like it's a show.

When you're going into
your crossovers,

do pretty crossovers
into the spiral. Okay, group?

Where's Adrianna?

What happened?

-I don't understand.
-Wait, hold on. Hold on.

Can you cut my mic,
please? Thank you.

[microphone feedback]

[thunder rumbling]

[birds chirping]

[Adrianna] Not getting the solo,
it was really sad for me.

A lot of people tell me,
you can't get everything.

But I feel like
nobody understands

how much I work
to get those things.

Sometimes when people say
"I'm doing too much,"

they should just compliment me

because my "doing too much"
has got me this far.

[♪ music fades]

[Dwayne] Are you excited
for practice today?

Adrianna?

-Adrianna?
-You must not be asking me.

-That's not-- No.
-[♪ pensive music playing]

I'm excited to go
to South Africa and... [sighs]

[Dwayne] It's gonna be
an amazing trip, so...

Even when she's down,
she always finds a way to,

you know, come up
and always find a way

to be successful
at whatever she does.

Whatever it is.
She never gives up.

She always finds a way.

But you came a long way,
so you know,

just a little bit more patience,

you know... [chuckles]
...you're getting there.

You can just keep getting better
and better and more confident

until you just--
I mean, that's the goal, so...

[sighs sharply] Yeah.

[Makiko]
We want to help Adrianna

as much as we can.

So we try to lead her to the way
that she can accomplish.

You know, it's not just us,
it's like Coach Ila

is a really good character
for her.

-[♪ music fades]
-[♪ intriguing music playing]

[indistinct chatter]

[Ila] Adrianna!
Adrianna, come here.

Come here.

I spoke to Adrianna
about her audition.

Rejection hurts.

Not getting something
when you tried

and you know you did well,
that hurts.

And so when she, like,
feels that way, like, I can--

I resonate with that.

But I gotta move forward.

For me? Oh, no, you guys
are gonna make me cry.

-[girl] Hi, Ila.
-[gasps] Hi, honey.

Happy Valentine's Day.

[sobs] Oh, my God.

[girl] She wrote you
an entire letter.

[inhales sharply] Oh,
I can't even read it right now.

I'll cry.

As someone
who's really dedicated

to the program, I still feel,
like, really disappointed.

But in this card
that I made for Ila,

I mentioned that

she's always someone
I could lean on.

[sobs] Oh, my God.

-[♪ music fades]
-Thirty-two? I'm not 32.

I'm not 32.

No, I'm not 32.
[chuckles] I'm 20.

I know I judge her
for being old,

but she really feels like
an older sister,

even though she's old.

[indistinct chatter]

Oh your hair! It's so cute.

[♪ mystical music playing]

-[girl 1] Hi.
-[girl 2] Hi.

How are you doing?

-[girl 2] Tired.
-Hmm.

[Raquea] I am so happy
and I'm so excited.

We're going to give this
community a big grand show.

Your family, your community
is paying to come and see you.

We're going to bring
these people to tears

because they're going to see
brown girls on the ice

like they've never
seen us before.

[♪ upbeat music playing]

We spend long nights
preparing for the ice show.

[girls chuckle]

This is a competition, who does
the best facial expression.

[Sam] Is the Ice Show a big deal?

Yeah. [chuckles]
The Ice Show is.

I think you just have to
breathe through it

-and keep going.
-[exhales sharply]

-[woman] Do a slide.
-[indistinct chatter]

[Katie] It just always feels
like a crunch,

and I think that's why
it's always like...

[grunts] ...running like
wild chickens

or chickens
with their head chomped off.

Okay, we'll try and do
a little bit on the ice today.

-Okay.
-Okay? So go do that now.

[Ashley] It does get
a bit chaotic.

I've skated in 11 Ice Shows,
and even now,

when I'm nervous,
I'll freeze up.

[girl] Five, six, seven, eight.

-Oh, my God.
-[all chuckle]

Ashley, you gotta get up bro.

I'm trying! [chuckles]

Look at Tori, she looks like--
The shoes. [chuckles]

Tori’s shoes!

[cameraman] Okay, that's good.
I just wanted to get the shoes.

[Tori] The Ice Show isn't just
about figure skating,

[phone chimes]

[Tori] One of the things
that inspired me

to pursue acting or theater.

Oh! Wakanda forever. [grunts]

And so, it just like, brings out
what your dreams are

and makes you want
to persevere to get to them.

[Katie] And then skate back,
keep going.

There's always someone
who paved the way.

Mabel Fairbanks,
a Black skater from Harlem,

who was denied access
in certain spaces,

she had to learn how to skate
by watching from the sidelines.

And you go, one...

[Raquea] So this event's
letting our girls know

that you have the right
to be where you are.

So the assignment is to embody
being from Harlem, being a girl,

all the challenges.
Let that energy out on the ice.

Imagine if you embrace that.

-You're bringing the house down.
-[all cheer]

-[Katie] Shimmy and then lift.
-Oh, when we go around?

-[Katie] Yeah.
-So it goes...

To the back corner...

[Ariyana] I'm confident,
but at the same time,

I'm nervous.

This will be my first Ice Show
since COVID.

Yeah.

It's my senior year.

So, it's like my big comeback,
but also my big, like, goodbye.

[♪ Corinne Bailey Rae
"New York Transit Queen"]

♪ New York transit queen
New York transit queen ♪

♪ New York transit queen
little over 17 ♪

Ms. Millie?

-Yeah baby?
-It was green.

I know it was green, okay?
Don't get smart.

-I'm sorry, because everyone was moving.
-[chuckles] Ms. Millie!

-And I was like, "Oh..."
-[Ariyana] It was green.

[Nadia] It was green, yeah.

-[Ariyana] It was green.
-[chuckles]

Now that the Ice Show is

approaching...[chuckles]
...very quickly,

I do think I need
more practice from my solo.

[♪ upbeat music playing,
concludes]

[♪ soft music plays, stops]

Hello?

Uh, hello?

She started and stopped it.

[MC] Oh, I'm sorry.
Keep going, please.

[♪ soft music playing]

[Ariyana] My song,

I'm hoping to tweak it a little.
[chuckles]

It's really slow in, like, pace,
and it'll be more upbeat,

which I feel like
that's more me

'cause once I break out my show,
I'm just-- I'm out there.

♪ Stop trying
to please somebody else ♪

♪ And just be who I... ♪

Can we go from toe loops again?
That was much better.

I have Miss Vashti.
I love Miss Vashti.

Can we do three turns?

[Ariyana] I, like, begged her
to work with me.

She knows when
I'm having an off day

when no one else does.

That's better.

She picked my music.

[Vashti] Yeah.

I think of it as you against
the world because

it's just me on the ice
and everyone's looking at me.

[Vashti] Cross. And out,
out, down, up, stop.

[Vashti] Well, solos
is confronting for them because

they are on the ice
on their own.

Everything seems different
because not only do they not

have their sisters,
but the space seems bigger.

When you're just
on the ice by yourself,

it seems like
you're in a fishbowl.

But it's all mental.
It is a mental game.

[Vashti] Want water?

Yeah, you need to take a beat.

I need a sec.

You just need to chill,
because it's like acro.

So you just stop.

I think we do like a little...

[Vashti] She's such
a perfectionist.

Like, she wants to get out there
and have a perfect program,

feel a certain kind of way,
look a certain kind of way,

and until all those
boxes are ticked,

I think she's gonna feel like
things are not finished.

Turn?

Turn?

Step forward.

[Ariyana] For me, my injury,
since it was my foot,

it's been an adjustment.

So, I still get
nervous, but like,

the athlete's creed says

it's like, in life, like on ice,
when I fall, I get back up.

-[Vashti] Push back.
-[shrieks]

[girl] Are you okay?

I caught it.

That was good,
you just need to not rush it.

You can always
get back from a fall.

It's like that two steps back,
I'm going to just jump forward.

Just take your time,
before the cartwheel.

I felt like
I was going to hit someone.

That's okay.
When you do it, you won't.

And you've done it a few times.
Saturday will be done.

And then we just run it
over and over and over.

It's already looking
so much better.

That's why you're early,
because things are working.

The spin was good.
It was centered.

-Thank you. [chuckles softly]
-Centered!

-I'm proud of you, little bumble.
-[breathes heavily]

-[exhales]
-All right, go rest.

-I will.
-All right.

[Ariyana] Literally today
marked a year ago

that I broke my foot.

But you can't really
worry about the past.

Definitely don't have time
for that right now.

Watching Ariana,
what I have in my mind is

that's gonna be me next year.

[♪ upbeat music playing]

[Ashley] Bro, I carry bricks
on my back every day.

My bag is mad heavy.

[Ashley] It's my junior year,
and I'm realizing

high school goes by so fast.

Like, after next year,
it's like, oh, my gosh,

I'm gonna be on my own.

Like, on my own.

Like, what am I supposed
to do with that?

You know,
leaving to go to college.

It's like a bittersweet thing.

Tori? Tori? Tori?

Do you need the script?

Honestly, I'm not
gonna be upset,

because then I have my own room.

You can't take
the whole thing, Tori.

I still need it.

What happens to no script?

[Tori] This is, like,
kind of weird, but, like,

anywhere that Ashley goes,
like, I'm also with her.

Anywhere I go, she's with me.

At his age... [scoffs]
...nobody's that serious.

[Tori] It's kind of like
some destiny

that I don't know how to break.

[Sam] Are you trying to break it?

Yes. [chuckles]
I'm joking.

[Teacher] Are you excited?
You want it.

Pink Floyd!
You got to be Pink Floyd!

-Pink Floyd.
-Jump and say "Pink Floyd!"

-Go.
-Pink Floyd.

Yes, yes, yes.
I want to see that, okay?

[all humming]

[Ashley] When I'm thinking
about what's next,

one way I cope with that

is to just reflect on how my mom
always tells me

that one trait she notices in me
a lot is that I'm pretty calm,

especially when it comes
to being under pressure.

And I don't really see it.

But recently, I tried
to adopt that mentality

I just take a deep breath,
and I'll be like,

"Okay, let's do this."

[woman] One, two, three.

[all] ♪ Happy birthday to you ♪

♪ Happy birthday to you ♪

-[all cheer]

-[partygoer] Whoo-hoo!
-[all cheer]

[Ashley] The ice show always
falls around my birthday.

-Yeah.
-[whistles]

[Joann] Now, we're really happy
that everybody came to celebrate

with us.
We're going to Africa soon.

Ashley is turning 17.

-One, two...
-[Ashley] I feel ready this year

to see, like, what's up ahead,
especially, like,

with South Africa.

[chuckles] Um, yeah.
Say "hi" guys.

-Hello.
-Hi.

[chuckles]

[Ashley]
I feel like a way for me

to sort of get a feel of
what it's like

to be away from home.

-[all cheer]
-[giggles]

[Joann] Oh, and your
passport came today.

[Ashley] Oh, it did?
Can I... Wait, you have it?

[Joann] Yeah,
you want to see it?

Oh, thank you!

Wait. One is Tori's
and one is mine.

[Tori] We got our passports
at the exact same time.

Since I'm still waiting to find
out if a spot opens up on our

trip to South Africa,

I hope that
I get a chance to go.

Ashley, thank you so much
for the first piece of cake.

I mean, people see, like,
this goofy person,

but maybe under that

there's also a person
who's deep and, like, poetic

and just, like, gets everything.

So I have this, like,
feeling just inside my soul

that I'm going
to be on the trip.

-♪ If you're only dreaming ♪
-[Tori] ♪ Ooh, ah, ooh, ah ♪

-♪ Ooh, ah, ooh, ah ♪
-♪ Why are... ♪

-[chuckles] ♪...you screaming? ♪
-[Tori] ♪ Ooh, ah, ooh, ah ♪

♪ Calling all the monsters
calling all the monsters ♪

♪ Calling all the
calling all the ♪

Oh! Oh! Oh! Hey! Oh! Oh!

[chuckles]

♪ Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah ♪

♪ Coming to get you ♪

[all laugh]

[all laugh]

[♪ uplifting music playing]

[announcements over PA]

-I didn't go to sleep.
-[chuckles softly]

[chuckles] And I went through
the whole day without sleeping.

[laughs]

[Katie] We got Estelle
doing a last-minute touch-up,

and Leah keeps
redoing her braid.

[Vashti] This week, we're doing
tech and dress rehearsal,

where we make sure
the sound works,

the lighting works,
all the dresses fit well,

there's no costuming issues.

Where are we looking? Again.

[Vashti] I'm always
really nervous.

I try to internalize it so the
girls don't feel it.

I think I'm just
nervous for them,

because the show can kind

of take control,
and it's a beast of itself.

So you have to... kind of
manage yourself.

And I think that's the biggest
lesson for them.

[indistinct chatter]

I'm ready for my solo.

Oh, I got my nails done
for the shows.

They sort of match my sparkles.

[♪ upbeat music playing]

[Ariyana] My solo shows, like,

what I'm capable
of doing on the ice.

But stress of the ice show

is definitely...
[chuckles] ...coming,

especially because my injury
did impact this season a lot.

The only thing that matters

is what move
am I going to do next.

-[announcements over PA]
-[audience cheering]

[♪ soft music playing]

I'm out. Vashti! Vashti! Vashti!

I'm down.

♪ Better than I've been ♪

♪ Yeah... ♪

-You all right?
-I have a Charley horse.

Okay. [speaks indistinctly]

-[Laura] You okay?
-[Vashti] We have a cramp.

-She's a cramping. She's okay.
-[chuckles softly]

-[Vashti] You want to stand up?
-It's really bad.

[Vashti] You gotta stand up
and put pressure on it.

That's how it's going to help.

-[Laura] Here, ready?
-Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait.

[Laura] Here, we got you.

[Vashti] Only way to get rid
of it is to put pressure on.

-So you gotta stand up.
-Ow. Oh, my knee really hurts.

-[Laura] I know.
-[Vashti] You need to put

pressure on it.
You can't be on the ice with it.

-You're okay.
-[Ariyana] It's like right here.

-[Ariyana] Ow! [grunts]
-[Vashti] I know.

-We gotta get you up, though.
-Here.

Okay, just extend
your feet down.

-Extend it.
-[Laura] Okay, ready?

It hurts. It really hurts.

We're gonna get you
up on that chair.

-Are you okay?
-I want to bend it again.

-Can you feel your toes?
-I can feel my toes.

-It's just right here.
-It's cramping.

-Yeah, yeah, yeah.
-Really bad.

-[Laura] Okay.
-[Vashti] It's all right.

[Laura] Let's try to get you
up on the chair. We got you.

But my knee, my knee, my knee.

-One, two.
-I'm too scared, I'm too scared.

No, it's gonna be fine.

Ready? One, two, three.

-There we go. Okay.
-Ow!

[Vashti] The girls forget
that they have such long days

on the ice,

and they need to take care
of themselves.

Can you get both
knees parallel to each other?

No, no, no, no. Ow!

You know, having breakfast,
drinking enough water,

stretching.

[Laura] All students
off the ice, please.

-[Ariyana] I'm like really...
-Ready?

Slow, slow, slow.

Okay.

Got her, got her,
got her, got her.

-[groans]
-Okay, I got you. I got you.

I started tearing up because I
already missed one ice show,

and I did not
want to miss another.

[woman] I need you to sit back
in the chair so I can move you.

[Ariyana] This is my last year,
so I just kept pushing,

and my body stopped me.

That was my reset moment.

This is not the first year
that this has happened

where I'm not
eating and hydrating, so...

[Michele] That's why
I bought you this Gatorade.

I prayed that when I put
the money in, it came out,

because you know,
sometimes it does not.

-[chuckles]
-God was on my side today.

[Ariyana] Yup. Yes.

-Thank you for that.
-[Michelle] You're welcome.

[Ariyana] I love Miss Michelle.

-I love you, too.
-I'm gonna drink this just for her.

That's right. [chuckles]

[indistinct chatter]

[all chuckle]

[birds chirping]

[♪ uplifting music playing,
Unlike Pluto "No scrubs"]

[vocalizing]

[all] ♪ And no
I don't want no scrub ♪

♪ A scrub is a guy that can't
get no love from me ♪

♪ Hanging out the passenger
side of his best friend's ride ♪

♪ Trying to holler at me
I don't want no scrub ♪

♪ A scrub is a guy that can't
get no love from me ♪

♪ Hanging out the passenger
side of his best friend's ride ♪

♪ Trying to holler at me ♪

[tires screeching]

[Ariyana] I went to the doctor.
I got x-rayed.

I got a sports massage right
before I came here, actually.

And I'm pretty much
good now, I guess.

[both chuckle]

♪ A scrub is a guy
that can't get no love from me ♪

♪ Hangin' out the
passenger side ♪

♪ Of his best friend's ride
trying to holla at me ♪

♪ I don't want no scrub
a scrub is a guy... ♪

It's 3:48 right now.
The show starts

-at seven o'clock.
-At seven o'clock. [chuckles]

But we're here early because
we want to get the best seats.

I practice the dances
with her at home.

-She's a little nervous today.
-Yeah.

♪ Shake it to the left ♪

♪ Shake it to the right ♪

[Dwayne] It's always a big deal.

So, you know,
I'm just looking forward to it

because I enjoy being here.

I'm going to see my sister
Adrianna skate.

[♪ upbeat music playing]

[Adrianna] I have a lot
of people cheering me on,

so I think I'll be okay.

And I got to be on this ice show
flyer with my teammates.

Yeah, I'm a star.

So I've come this far from
working hard people.

[Raquea] All right, it's time
to get really excited.

We got five minutes
to show time.

[all cheer]

[all cheer]

Your family, your community,
they are here to see you.

[yells] FSH how you feelin?

[all] Fantastic! Terrific!
Great! All day long!

-[all] Ah, ah, ah!
-[all stomping feet]

[all cheer]

[announcer] Welcome to
Figure Skating in Harlem's

26th annual ice show.

Let's make some noise.

[Ila] We got this, we got this!
Don't be scared,

just do it! Just do it!

[♪ upbeat music playing]

[Ila] Yes, oh my God.
This is amazing.

Glamorous. Yes, girls.
I love it.

-[all cheering]
-[Ila] There you go.

You guys are incredible.
Perform. Have fun.

[audience cheering]

[all cheer, applaud]

-[♪ music fades]
-[all cheer, applaud]

[♪ hip hop music playing]

Yes!

[Ila] You ready?

-[Ariyana] No.
-Yes you are.

-Say, I'm ready. Say, I'm ready.
-The wind is, the wind

-is hitting my hair.
-You're ready?

-Cause you're ready.
-I'm ready. I got this.

-You got this.
-I got this.

[announcer] Let's make some
noise for Ariyana.

[all cheer, applaud]

[all chanting] Ari! Ari! Ari!
Ari! Ari! Ari! Ari!

Ari! Ari! Ari...

[♪ mellow music playing,
John Coggins "Still here"]

[indistinct mumbling]

♪ Today I'm gonna love myself ♪

♪ Better than I've been ♪

♪ Yeah ♪

♪ Stop tryna
please somebody else ♪

♪ And just be who I am, yeah ♪

[Ashley] I was like, oh, yeah,
that's so cool.

You know, it was, like,
super inspiring and stuff.

And now it's, like, close
friends that are graduating.

I'm going to start crying now,
I think. [chuckles]

But, yeah, um. [clicks tongue]

So I feel like, I've been
connected with this program

for so long and stuff.

[voice quivers] Um,

I'm gonna start
crying now because

I'm gonna miss
all my friends and stuff.

♪ Still here, I'm still here ♪

♪ With all of my flaws
and my fears... ♪

[Ariyana] Performing on the ice,
it's like a breath of fresh air.

Every move, every skill,
it all comes together.

It makes people smile,
and they're happy to see us.

-♪ I'm still here ♪
-[all cheer]

♪ I've been beaten down ♪

♪ I've been broken to the core ♪

♪ Washed up on the shore ♪

♪ And I, I've been let down ♪

♪ It's been a
tough couple years ♪

♪ But I'm still
I'm still here ♪

[audience cheering, applauding]

[Ariyana] Seeing
everyone's reaction,

everyone there watching me,

It doesn't feel real yet.

And it's so, like,
heartbreaking that my season

really is coming to an end.

[all cheer, laugh]

[Vashti sobs]
When you know a child,

and they go through a lot,

and skating
is that central thing

that keeps them happy,
and then everything

kind of works together
and the fact

that I got the chance
to be here to see it,

It's difficult to put
into words that feeling.

[all cheer]

[announcer] Please
give it up again

for the incredible students
of figure skating in Harlem.

Weren't they amazing?

-[all cheer, applaud]
-[announcer] Amazing!

And on behalf of the entire
organization, I want to thank

all of you for supporting our
girls today and every day.

I'd like to invite
onto the carpet

the godmother
of figure skating in Harlem.

-Please welcome Bernice Deabreu.
-[audience cheers, applauds]

Now, you guys know we call

this Girls Glide globally,
right?

-Yes.
-And that's because...

Figure skating in Harlem
is sending its first delegation

of international skating
ambassadors to South Africa

this summer.

Emily, Isabell, Zoey, Nadia,

Victoire, Natalie,

Ariyana, Ashley,

and Adrianna.

These young women
are gonna bring

their passion for skating
and their skills

all the way to Cape Town,
South Africa,

where they are going
to teach a group

of girls how to ice skate.

We're so proud of you...

[Tori] I really did want to go,

because just like the
sisterhood that I earned here,

it plays a big
factor in my life.

It's something
that I would take with me.

[announcer] So now we are going
to step into our finale.

But I feel like the Ice Show
is just like a celebration

of everything that we learned.

[♪ upbeat music playing,
Altitude Music "Keep On Moving"]

[Tori] So I'm just gonna
channel, like, Aretha energy.

Because, like, I feel like she
just conveys, like,

get it, girl.

[singer scatting]

♪ Keep moving, hold me down
Still get up, hold me down ♪

[vocalizing]

[singer scatting]

[continues scatting]

[singer continues scatting]

[all applaud, cheer]

[singer scatting]

♪ Still get up, hold me down
Still get up, hold me down ♪

[announcer] Figure Skating
in Harlem, everybody.

[all cheering]

[announcer]
Thank you again for coming.

The next stop, South Africa.

We look forward
to seeing you next year,

and the year after that,
and the year after that,

and the year after that.

-[♪ music fades]
-[audience cheering, applauding]

[indistinct chatter]

[♪ theme music playing]

[♪ theme music concludes]