‘The great thing about Dream Big is that we have eight stories all within one show’
It has been seen by over 283 million people worldwide in more than 60,000 performnances in its 35-year history. JESSICA SANSOME travelled to Glasgow to see Disney On Ice’s latest opening night
THE Braehead Arena in Glasgow is the first stop for Disney On Ice Presents Dream Big, which arrives in Nottingham for a mammoth eight shows at the Motorpoint Arena on November 21 to 25 – and there is definitely a touch of Disney magic in the air.
As families take to their seats, children decked out in the finest princess dresses and mouse ears (there are also some adults wearing them), the spectacular show opens with Disney icons Minnie and Mickey mouse taking to the ice to lead the crowd in a special 90th birthday celebration in honour of Walt Disney’s “The Original” Mickey Mouse.
Crowd participation is encouraged – so don’t forget your dancing shoes.
Audiences are then transported to a French village, where you’ll find Belle as she tries to capture the heart of a beastly character, to the kingdom of Arendelle with Anna, Elsa and Olaf in a dramatic retelling of the sisterly love that saved a kingdom. There’s even a colourful trip under the sea.
And, for the very first time in Europe, we set sail with the fearless Moana and the greatest demigod that ever lived, Maui, in an action-packed voyage to restore the heart of Te Fiti.
“Disney is moving in a way towards more empowerment, less so towards pretty, pretty princesses and always having the true love story,” says Freddy Allain, who portrays Prince Eric in the show.
“It’s great to see somebody who is not necessarily looking for love.”
As 2018 marks the ninth decade of the iconic company, Joshua Rothschild, tour manager for Disney On Ice, believes that its ability to bring families together is what has kept the brand at its peak for so long.
“[Disney] find stories that touch every person in one way or another, which then allows people to really relate and get into it and enjoy,” he says.
“We all know things are changing from year to year, decade to decade, but to still see things like Snow White have such an impact on people is so cool.”
But what does it take to bring the show to the ice? An army of 98 cast and crew.
“Lucky for me we have a great time,” says Joshua.
The tour requires 14 container lorries and it takes about 10 to 12 hours to set up the entire show at each venue. And one of the team is from Nottingham. Professional figure skater Alex Hodgkinson portrays the Daughter of Triton in the ice spectacular. Her journey into the team was a family affair.
“My brother used to skate for Disney On Ice with his wife,” says Alex. “So after I heard he had joined and he loved it so much and had a great time touring, doing what he loved every day, I thought I’d give it a try.”
The tour visits nine cities across the UK and Ireland but, of course, there is one place Alex is looking forward to playing more than most.
“I’m super excited to play my hometown and being able to perform to my friends and family. Being on tour, that’s the one thing I miss – your friends and family.”
“The great thing about Dream Big is that we have eight different stories all within the one show,” adds Freddy. “So anyone who has their favourite Disney characters will likely find it in the show.”
The sets are what help transport audiences into each fairytale and production stage manager Shane Saxon is on hand to help make sure each set change goes without a hitch.
“A couple of the sets have a 30-second changeover and others even less,” says Shane.
“One of our biggest is going into our Frozen segment and there’s about 20 seconds to get everything in, out and ready for the next. Organising where people are, where props are and making sure everyone is safe and comes out the way they need to can be trying at times.”
Disney On Ice: Dream Big is at the Motorpoint Arena on November 21-25 with tickets starting from £20.16. Full details at motorpointarenanottingham.com.