Meryl Davis Interviewed By US News About DWTS, Stars On Ice, And More
In a new interview with US News, Meryl Davis talks all about her crazy schedule these days with ice dancing partner Charlie White. Where they use to get 8 hours of sleep of day preparing for the Olympics, now they only get 3 or 4 hours since they are touring and dancing on Dancing With The Stars. Below Meryl answers questions about the differences between dancing on the floor and the ice. She also answers a question for what it’s like dancing with a new person.
How is dancing on a floor on “DWTS” different from dancing on the ice?
It’s definitely an adjustment. I think the mechanics of movement are a little different – we’re used to taking a push and moving a certain amount of space, and what we’ve been accustomed to on the ice is certainly very different from what we’re doing on the floor. It’s been a big adjustment, but we have amazing teachers so we’re doing the best we can.
And we’ll absolutely be able to apply what we’re learning to the ice. From the different styles of dance to just performance, we’ll take it with us in the future – whether it’s on the ice or off.
You and Charlie have been a team for 17 years. What’s it like to be dancing with a new person?
It’s definitely different. But it’s a different dynamic already, because our partners on “DWTS” are also our instructors. So that’s very different from the dynamic Charlie and I have had in our career, just being partners.
How much sleep do you get these days?
Leading up to the Olympics, Charlie and I both tried to get around eight hours a night. But at this point, we’re getting closer to three or four. It’s been quite a change. And with both “DWTS” and “Stars on Ice” at the same time, we feel like we have two full-time jobs, so that doesn’t allow for a lot of down time when we’re not on the road. But we’re so excited to be part of both the tour and the show, so that really keeps us going.
Lots more at US News.
Meryl seems to be such a sunny person. For all that I thought their package last week seemed a little bit too much about the pro and not about the celeb, I think it did show that she’s a strong, perceptive, kind person. Do I remember correctly that she has dyslexia? I have this idea based on some people I’ve known that sometimes people with dyslexia have extra ability to sense other things, perhaps extra sensitive in a wise way. Trying not to be stereotypical thus all the hem and hawing.
And the goodies just keep on coming! Thank you, Vogue. 🙂
Meryl and Charlie are both so down-to-earth. They give very easy, conversational interviews. It’s not like pulling teeth to get them to answer questions, and they give honest answers about their hectic schedule without overdramatizing their busy lives. I particularly liked the fun little extra details Meryl threw in.
@Jess, Meryl does in fact have dyslexia although she does not talk about it (her mom has brought it up a little bit but not very often). She actually also has depth perception issues too, which made skating and I imagine perhaps dancing as well just that much more difficult.
I’m very impressed with her being able to learn all that choreography and perfecting it (and not making a big deal out of it) even though she has dyslexia. Brava, Meryl!
YW and thank you! I love them both too!! So humble and class acts!
@Leeann, I also marvel at how Meryl (with the depth perception issues which she prefers not to draw attention to) handles skating in a different rink every other night on the SOI tour. It’s one thing when she and Charlie were competing because while the arenas are different, they get there days ahead of time and have several days to familiarize themselves with the competition rink. Not so on the SOI tour, where they roll into town, probably do one quick run through with the rest of the cast, and then it’s showtime.
By now Meryl is probably getting familiar with the DWTS dance floor, but this week, when they get back to LA, she’ll be lucky to get one rehearsal on that floor with her 7 team mates before having to do the team dance. I’m sure she’ll be fine, but I do appreciate the extra effort she puts in to make it work.
Let’s not canonize Meryl just yet. 🙂 I’m allowed to say that because I’m a good bit older than Meryl and I’m dyslexic. And while I’m sure that some people have a much harder time with it than others do, the fact that Meryl made it through high school just fine and is in college likely means she’s a lot more like me. That is, it’s a pain in the ass when you’re tired and trying to read or do math, but other than that? They have special exercises and classes that you can take to re-train your brain. At least they did when I was a kid. I bet it’s even better now. It’s probably actually helped her skating because if she’s at all like me, it made her very anal retentive – wanting/needing to go over things a hundred times to make sure it’s right. I know I hold down a good career just fine and dandy. 🙂 And I’m very anal.
Now the depth perception…that’s got to be a bitch when you’re a skater.
# Cidra – have you seen any of the videos of their SOI performances? They’re skating on a postage stamp! It stinks because it really slows them down and limits what they can do. At least at competitions they are always skating on Olympic-sized rinks.
If they don’t start getting more sleep they are at a much greater risk for injury, and if one of them gets injured, that would really suck.
I’ve noticed something interesting and wonder if it’s Charlie helping with her depth perception issues.
1) When they skate onto the ice, she kicks up her leg and Charlie turns off to get into the starting pose first. In the Olympic FD, she dramatically raised her arm and he skated off.
2) When she gets into the starting pose first (Samson & Delilah), he looks at her to make sure their distance apart is right, and makes adjustments accordingly.
I could be totally wrong because I know nothing about depth perception. It’s an interesting idea, though. lol!
#JJ, quite possibly. I’ve seen them in competition, and she definitely hugs the boards during warm-up while the other skaters are zooming around, and Charlie definitely looks like he has to watch out for the both of them during that time. So I have respect for her and her partners–yes, Maks included–for working around that particular issue.
It’s especially striking when Meryl has to mostly stick by the sidelines during warmups because she can’t judge how far away other skaters are from her. I think Meryl has been incredibly fortunate to have Charlie as a partner too because she really trusts him and it’s second nature for him to look out for her on the ice now.
SOI is performed on NHL rinks so they are not small rinks.
I’ve been to many skating competitions over the past few years and could share countless photos of Meryl and Charlie. During warm ups, she is always one of the first skaters on the ice and then races ahead of everyone else and yes she does skate close to the boards. For about a minute, she and Charlie skate separately around the ice and then he comes over to her and takes her hand. A warm up is 6 minutes. For the rest of the warm up, they either skate around the ice together or practice some moves. I’ve seen them do this repeatedly. It’s one of those things that makes you wonder how these 2 are not a real couple. It really is very sweet watching them in action. I’ve also seen him take her hand when they are on the ice with a lot of other skaters(i.e. at an exhibition). I’ve never seen him enter or leave the ice without Meryl. If you have an SOI show near you, I encourage you to go watch them perform. It is a great show.
I’ve watched their Scheherazade program many times now and I only just recently noticed that on the entry to that first curve lift, Charlie doesn’t let go of her. I initially thought he did. But now I realize it’s probably to make sure she is positioned correctly on his back so that she doesn’t fall to the ice. I can’t remember if he let go of Sharna when they did it in their Contemporary.
Vogue–Thanks as always for posting these gems. Much appreciated!
Thanks PH for the perspective. And you’re anal? 😉
My oldest has dyslexia and is quite bright, I hope he does as well in life, gets through school and college, and if he ends up with 2 science degrees, yay!