#BGReviewer: Disney On Ice Presents Dream Big
Not unlike most young adults my age, my passion for Mickey ears and energetic sing-a-longs is a defining character point for me; however, I tried to remain skeptic upon entering the arena knowing that a sweet melodic Disney song runs through my veins, yet my heart was immediately won over by the well-planned and spectacular performance.
Like all iconic Disney movies, the show begins with the cue of Disney’s intro music. Tinkerbell glides across the rink casting her pixie-dust to begin our two-hour descent through Disney favourites meeting all our favourite princesses and heros, both classic and new including Jasmine and Aladdin, Ariel and Prince Eric, Snow White, Rapunzel and Flynn, and our beloved sisters from Arendelle.
The entire show is broken into two acts and a full two hours long, with a 15-minute intermission. Although it was storming in downtown London, inside Budweiser Gardens was on fire! I’m not joking… During the Sleeping Beauty segment in the second act, the ice was actually lit on fire!
Filled with pyrotechnics, bubble blasters, and snowflakes dancing from the ceiling, Disney on Ice was easily one of the best shows I’ve attended in a long time whether it was a play, Broadway, or on ice!
Unable to bring my nephew on the journey through Disney, I attended the show with my best friend, and bridesmaid, Stephanie---an outgoing mid-twenties woman who though is cultured and well-versed in Disney had never seen an ice performance of any sort.
Minnie and Mickey Mouse introduced their first mini story and we were thrown into a world of amazing acrobatics, high-flying jumps and lifts, breathtaking skating and some of the catchiest songs known to humankind—if I hadn’t seen it for myself, I could have watched Stephanie’s dropped jaw for most of the show to verify the success and skill of the performers, set designers and choreographers!
If you haven’t attended a Disney on Ice performance, you don’t know true happiness until you hear an arena filled with children of all ages (and adults! —but it’s the sweet high pitch voices that truly embody the essence of Disney!) singing a long to the 2015 hit song “Let it Go.” I was not convinced that there are very many people that can outperform Idina Menzel until now—a group of young passionate Disney Fans. From the sweet hum of the shy three year old girl a few seats over from me to the loud shriek of the six year old boy scream-singing ‘under the sea’ and the loud group of middle aged women singing along who were not accompanied with children either—Disney creates a community.
Disney has a way of uniting masses in a non-age discriminatory manner, and Disney on Ice does not disappoint!
With unbelievable costumes—costumes that made me respect the ice dancers so much more after noticing that they could dance lengths seamlessly without stumbling over fabric, visuals that were beyond anything that I would have expected and including the technical effects that I could only imagine were distracting to the performers – Disney on Ice was fantastic! … But honestly, it’s Disney. What’s not to love?
Believing is just the beginning with Disney On Ice presents Dream Big, now at Budweiser Gardens through March 4th. Grab your kids, or let loose your friends—it’s a show you don’t want to miss out on. Appease your inner child, and accept a little bit of magic in your night because when you wish upon a star, makes no difference who you are—anything your heart desires will come to you!
#BGReviewer
Kathleen Binder
Photography: Bill Woodcock
