Yuzuru Hanyu: “To be honest, I would like to create a 15-minute program.”
Translation of the interview with Yuzuru Hanyu marking 2 years since he turned professional. Part2.
original source: Hochi News / Hochi News dd. 20th July 2024 by Takagi Megumi
Two years ago on July 19th Yuzuru Hanyu announced his decision to switch to professional skating. In the interview with Hochi News he talks about his life as a pro skater. Here’s a translation of his comments.
“When I was a competitor, I needed to think about training my body or practicing all the time. When you are creating or choreographing a program, you don’t have the time that you can just spend on practice. So, in this period, I thought that I just had to strive to maintain it, that it was unavoidable that I couldn’t practice a lot, or that it was fine to cut down on sleep because it was a period of production. I want to provide something good, but I can’t sleep when I think about all sorts of things. I’m the kind of person who tends to live unhealthy lifestyle to begin with (laughs). I know that I should get more sleep for my skating and eat certain things but it just keeps falling apart.” Yuzuru started to describe how differently time pass now compared to the days of his active sports career.
How much sleep does he get? He says, “It depends on the day. Sometimes when I think I can’t bear it any longer, I just sleep for eight or nine straight hours, and sometimes I realize I’ve fallen asleep. On the contrary, there are ordinary days when I’m awake all day. Even when it’s not necessary to stay up all night, I often wind up doing so. But admittedly those are the times when some stories are born. It’s hard to say. It’s not very different from writing or composing. I think it’s just like that. I’ve accepted that I think that’s my style.”
The interviewer asked him about admitting being nervous during the rehearsal for ‘Notte Stellata’ and Yuzuru replied, “Of course, there’s that tension about whether I will screw up or will it be okay when I’m showing it in front of everyone for the first time. But more than that, I think it’s good, and the people close to me also think it’s good. That circle, from me to my close ones and then to the fans, and how it spreads to the general public, honestly, it’s really scary what people will think. The values differ completely depending on the person, and the impressions felt when hear that program or song, there’s no doubt that it differs for each person. There is indeed a fear that it might go in the wrong direction.
In this way, having made many programs including ‘RE_PRAY’, I’m happy to say that the tastes of who likes which programs are diverging. There are people who say they like self-choreographed programs, and there are also people who say they prefer programs that have been properly choreographed by a choreographer. There are people who say they prefer programs that feel like figure skating, and on the contrary, there are also people who say they like programs that have been fully choreographed like ‘MEGALOVANIA’. It’s really all over the place. That in itself is also my characteristic. That each person interprets and likes each piece in their own way is a really happy thing.”
When asked is there any program he would like to challenge in the future, Hanyu said, “To be honest, I would like to create a 15-minute program, but I also think it could be difficult. Of course, physically it is challenging. Even if I do not jump much, I do not want it to become boring. I do want to create something with contemporary movements, but I do not think I can keep up. I do have a vague concept, but I might not be able to fully commit to it yet. I don’t know. I haven’t yet come across the piece that I’d like to skate to. I haven’t found a song that I’d like to skate to for 15, 20 minutes, I think.”
Related topics: Yuzuru Hanyu
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