VANCOUVER--Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin, the Russian ice dancers who have come under fire for their “Aborigine” costumes featuring loincloths, bodypaint and eucalyptus leaves, showed some new modifications to their routine at practice here Sunday afternoon.
While it is possible they may make further changes before competition, it appears they are responding to the severe criticism they have received for the racist nature of their program.
The routine will still feature the pair rubbing noses and waving bones around in a “native” style dance, but now has been modified to include the skaters banging rocks together and pretending to eat each other. The music, which already featured a didgeridoo, now also has Tarzan calls and a chorus chanting “ooga chucka ooga chucka.”
The strongest statement, however, may have come at the conclusion of the routine, when Shabalin hit Domnina over the head with a club and dragged her off the ice by the hair.
“We did a lot of research to make this program accurate in its reflection of a distinctive culture,” said Shabalin, adjusting the bone in his nose. “The number of old Bugs Bunny cartoons we watched would by themselves represent a significant time investment. And do you have any idea how many times those headhunters showed up on Gilligan’s Island?”
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