DISNEY ON ICE CELEBRATES 100 YEARS OF MAGIC COMES TO METRO DETROIT
Show plays at The Palace of Auburn Hills Sept. 30 – Oct. 4

Disney on Ice: 100 Years of Magic - a Spectacular Evening

I'd love to share our evening at Disney on Ice with you! Our daughter, Lillie, wrote her own review, which you can see here. It was so much fun - all of the kids there were so excited, and Lillie said, "This is the Best Day of my Life!" at intermission. The Palace of Auburn Hills is a great arena, with a very easy-to-navigate floor plan. But I digress - here's more about the show!

Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse and their friends from Disney’s Mulan, The Lion King and Pinocchio, and Disney/Pixar’s The Incredibles and Finding Nemo, will be taking to the ice while Stitch from Lilo & Stitch drops in to wreak his usual havoc during Disney On Ice celebrates 100 Years of Magic. The show will run at The Palace of Auburn Hills Sept. 30 – Oct. 4.

Produced by Feld Entertainment, this fanfare production features more than 60 unforgettable Disney stars that span the decades, a sing-along score of award-winning Disney music and elaborate choreography, sets and costumes. It takes 10-14 hours to set up the production, and there are 11 show trailers needed to haul the equipment! With 20 skating genies, there are over 1,200 rehearsal hours by the incredibly talented skaters.

Emmy Award®- winner Sarah Kawahara, who previously worked with Michelle Kwan and choreographed the skating segment for the Opening Ceremonies of the 2002 Winter Olympics, is the mastermind behind the choreographed production numbers.

Disney On Ice celebrates 100 Years of Magic is a lavish, visually stunning production that continues to thrill audiences around the world. Part of that success can undoubtedly be attributed to the elaborate, highly innovative sets that serve not only as a backdrop for the show but also a vehicle to Disney’s most memorable, magical scenes.

From the start, when the genie from Aladdin pops out of a Zamboni, the show is on! Twenty genies take the stage, along with the REAL genie and Aladdin - there's something special about a line of skaters, in sync with each other and skating so beautifully. The Genie makes way for Nemo - complete with sharks! We loved the big shark - that had two skaters inside the costume! What fun this was, to see the fish fins float so beautifully, and 2 more sharks skate around Nemo and Dory. It was truly magical!

Pinocchio and a slew of puppets made magic on the stage, and he and Gepetto got trapped inside a HUGE!! whale. Finally, they made it out. Our daughter let out a big WHEW! when that happened.

I also loved the Disney Princesses section. Beauty and the Beast was spectacular, and showed a very talented Belle skating flawlessly around the ice. When the beast came out, he was so LARGE and furry, with a huge purple cape that swirled around him when he moved! The dancing was very moving - especially when he changed back into a man - so, so lovely.  Other Princesses came out for a short time only - Pocahontas, Snow White, Jasmine, Ariel (not long enough for us!), etc.

Mulan had her own skating time, with a story read by Mickey and Minnie. The most powerful parts were when the military was training - the lights on the ice, and the long sticks that they were all practicing with, were just incredible.

The It's a Small World segment made me laugh - the Scottish skater had on blue bike shorts under his kilt (good thing!), thus answering at least the Disney answer to the age old question...Each country's costume was beautiful, and there were 18 (we think) countries represented. This section ended with a light show, a la Disneyland, to segue into the intermission.

Parts of the show that didn't make as much sense included the Incredibles (not a lot of story there, in this show), and some of the basic Mickey Mouse and crew interactions. It was difficult to hear the speech of those acts, and so we focused on the talent of the skaters.

Lion King was cool - the 2 jokers Timon and Pumba came out first, and woke up the two lions.  This was the end of the show, and was fun to watch because of the joking and excellent skating.

The costumes were magnificent - from the fish costumes (and the shark!) to the Chinese warriors, each one allowed the movement of the skater while impressing us with the characters. I can't even imagine the thousands of hours it must have taken to outfit this very talented cast.

The Music was a trip down memory lane - it made you realize what great music Disney has created - and how this has truly soaked into our cultural conscience. We sang along (as did the rest of the guests) to most of the songs.  The choreography was amazing - they really matched the skating to the music, so that it flowed flawlessly. 

It was fun to see so many kids dressed up, and having such a good time. Truly, this was a great family event. We were so happy to have the chance to see it. And, our daughter was making plans to see the next one, not 5 minutes into the 3-hour drive home.

Disney on Ice has partnered with Children’s Hospital of Michigan, and the hospital will receive $1 per ticket from each of the first 2,500 tickets sold and $2 per ticket for any sold beyond 2,500 to the Friday, Oct. 2 show at 7:30 p.m.

Tickets for Disney On Ice celebrates 100 Years of Magic are available at the Palace of Auburn Hills Box Office, all Ticketmaster locations, The Palace Locker Room Stores and www.ticketmaster.com. To order tickets by phone, call (248) 645-6666.

Courtesy of Disney on Ice

Show dates/times:
Thursday, Oct. 1 at 7:30 p.m., Friday, Oct. 2 at 11 a.m. and 7:30 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 3 at 11:30 a.m.; 3:30 p.m.; and 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, Oct. 4 at 1 p.m. and 5 p.m.

To discover more about Disney On Ice, log on to www.disneyonice.com.

Feld Entertainment is the worldwide leader in producing and presenting live touring family entertainment experiences that lift the human spirit and create indelible memories, with 30 million people in attendance at its shows each year. Feld Entertainment’s productions have appeared in more than 60 countries on six continents and include Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey®, Feld Motor Sports, Disney On Ice and Disney Live!.

Courtesy of Disney on Ice: 100 Years of Magic

All photos copyright Jessie Voigts, except where indicated.