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MASTERPIECE !! An Original Mika-Angello !!

Skating circles around "2 Scotts" in a beautiful tribute to a legend......The Young man was equally flawless in what was no doubt his biggest performance to date.. This photo stirs more emotion in me than all the others from the evening.

COME ON AND DANCE WITH ME

WE'LL DANCE THE NIGHT AWAY !!

Tara Says Goodbye To Sweetest Arena

©2001-2002 Mike Mika Tara works the Hersheypark Arena crowd. The 4/10/02 appearance was SOI's last in the arena made from chocolate. Hey all you fellow TaraFans! I had the pleasure to attend the final SOI show that took place in the Historic Hersheypark Arena, on April 10th. This was unfortunately also Tara's last skating appearance in Hershey, Pennsylvania to date. The SOI performances have now moved to the new Giant Center, down the road. The Hershey crowd, though not a complete sell-out this year, was VERY loud and Extremely generous with applause throughout the show. Main ovations were for Todd, upon his introduction. Tara upon completion of her USA Tribute (Major Ovation) and the cast upon completion of their final program (Major Ovation). K&O also received a very nice ovation for their "Last of the Mohicans" routine, which once again they performed "FLAWLESSLY" Four shows and a couple days of practices, and I've yet to see this pair err? Is that possible?!!! This cast truly is an all encompassing assembly of REAL, "Stars on ice"!! Oh....lol..TARA!! Tara was SUPERB!! She had to hang onto that first jump of the night, but was perfect from there on! No errs, ALL SMILES and obviously overjoyed with the fantastic approval of the Hershey crowd! Spotted center ice, this night in Hershey, Tara's Uncle Phil & her mother Pat! Of course Tara was sure to make her way directly to the pair at the cue for the cast to shake the crowds hands... After greeting and hugging Phil & Pat, Tara managed to make her way down all the way to the very corner of the rink! That was a LOT of Handshakes...Tara just wouldn't stop till she got to the end of the crowd!!! Way to go Tara!!! We love you Too!! Tara also seemed a slight bit looser on the ice then in Albany, 5 days earlier. I'd say by watching, she's at 90% or better but I'm no expert...I just know that she's hitting everything, and skating with passion till the end of all her numbers, and everything seems to be flowing VERY WELL for Tara right now! Times are GOOD for TaraFans!! (Boy, wish we could still say this now) The Hershey security was "HOUNDING" anyone in the arena taking flash photos. But they bothered no one taking pictures otherwise. So that left me free to take every frame of film I carried in. There are now another 6 rolls of SOI images to get to the lab and ultimately to Tara's Fine Fans, Via www.TaraFans.com!! As I said...Times are good for TaraFans!! I had the honor of escorting my mother who was attending only her second ice show. She had surprised me earlier in the evening by disclosing her First show was an Ice Capades show in the very same arena with my late father, right after they were wed in 1941. Perhaps that was the very first ice show in the arena? Did my mother see Sonja Henie skate in Hershey to open the arena, and Tara Lipinski there to close it, 61 years later? WOW!..I think a little research is in order! Hersheypark Arena opens 1936 First Hockey Game played in it 1938 Ice Capades first conceived in Hershey 1940 Ice Capades first performance in arena 1941 Dwight D Eisenhower Birthday Party 1953 Wilt Chamberlain scores a record 100 points against the New York Knicks 1962 Arena is turned into evacuation center during the Three Mile Island nuclear emergency 1979 April 7th 2002, Last Regular season hockey game played. April 10th 2002 Tara Lipnski and the Stars on Ice cast perform for the last time in the historic arena. It was in this very arena I first had the chance for a photo oportunity with the champ, and a year later I was honored to meet her parents in a post show reception. And just this past month, I had the joy of seeing my own son posed on center ice with the entire Hershey Bears hockey team. Tony was invited in and honored by the team for his very own fan devotion during his recovery from a serious car accident. Those memories will live forever. and are truly the stuff dreams are made of. It will be sad to see the arena retired however: I'm also anxious to experience the inside of the new arena, and to get a feel for it's atmosphere. I believe it was Kurt Browning who took the ice and welcomed the crowd to the show and mentioned it was great to be back in Hershey to have another chance to perform in "This Historic Arena". All the stars know it's going, and nearly everyone's sad to see it retired. Brian Boitano earlier in the year mentioned that he had to get out his video camera to record the place before it was too late. "It's been one of my favorite places to perform in", he said. Photos from this HISTORIC SOI Hershey performance will be available to view here, as well as at www.TaraFans.com, in the near future!