Disney brings their magic to a whole new level in venues across North America with their touring production “Disney on Ice: Roadtrip Adventures”. Bringing extended classical musical scenes from such 1990s Disney staples as Aladdin, Mary Poppins, Lion King and more, Disney on Ice: Roadtrip Adventures combines the classics with the more recent Disney additions of Frozen 2, Moana, The Incredibles and Toy Story 4, which although somewhat familiar to older audiences, will have the younger audience members on their feet.
Running at about an hour and a half (including intermission) at Laval’s Place Bell, Disney on Ice: Roadtrip Adventures is an experience for all-ages. Although parents may be hesitant in bringing younger children to sit attentively through an hour-and-a-half show, the performance features some physical movement, encouraging audience members to get up and start dancing before the show starts (and after intermission), to ensure that the younger audience members have the opportunity to burn a bit of excess energy before the show begins. Kids of all ages were well-engaged throughout the show, excited and high-energy from start to finish. Kids were even allowed to sit closer to the ice on a special section near the stage towards the end, to get an even closer look at all of the action.
For those who are seeing Disney on Ice for the first time, it’s not anything like a standard competitive or artistic figure-skating show. This production is absolutely a spectacle with aerial acrobats, beautifully intricate costumes, rapidly changing set pieces, colourful projections on the ice and screens and pyrotechnics that are absolutely spectacular, all of this coming together without missing a single detail. All of this combined with artists performing on skates, with rapid costume changes, without missing a beat! There was some humour in the show relatable to adults, especially about Mickey’s vehicle being stuck in traffic in one scene, breaking down in another (in which energy from the crowd’s applause generates the car to get going again), to Goofy accidentally snapping the steering wheel off the vehicle, leaving Mr. Incredible, Elastigirl, Dash, Jackjack and Violet (The Incredibles) to come in and save the day, to stop the out-of-control vehicle driving around haphazardly on the ice.
For a high-energy skating show, it was noted that many of the classic Disney soundtrack hits from the movie soundtracks were revamped/re-done for this show, bringing energy to the show and acting as a strong support for everything happening on stage simultaneously. Many of the solo/duo numbers were absolutely spectacular – including “Can You Feel the Love Tonight” and “Let it Go” among others. The production ends with a tribute to Disney Princesses, having all of the female cast members come out in costumes, each as a different Disney princess – from Ariel to Jasmine, to Elsa and Anna, to Mulan and Belle–the effort of the show to celebrate women at the end, was certainly even more applaudable.
Disney on Ice also offers the opportunity for those who purchase “Extra Magic” seats (at an extra cost), the opportunity to ride in the back of Mickey and Goofy’s vehicle as a family, getting to see the show while being a part of the show–for those young diehard Disney fans, this is a great opportunity for making the Disney on Ice experience extra special.
With all of Disney’s acquisitions (Lucasfilms, Marvel, Pixar, Fox among others), a question coming to some minds, is “will there ever be live performances around the acquired characters? Will we ever see Wall-E, Inside Out, the Marvel Comic Universe or Star Wars (Mandalorian–including “The Child” (AKA Baby Yoda)) added to future Disney on Ice productions, to reach other audiences and expand on the possibilities for Mickey’s adventures in future shows?
All-in-all, Disney on Ice: Roadtrip Adventures is a must-see for all ages–and definitely a great way to have a family night-out, that all ages can enjoy!
Disney on Ice: Roadtrip Adventures is running at Place Bell, with several performances daily until March 8th. Please note that performances exclusively in either English or French. For details and showtimes for performances remaining in Laval before the show continues onwards on its tour, check out https://www.disneyonice.com/en-ca/tickets.
