Look Mummy, it's snowing!! {Review of Disney on Ice presents Magical Ice Festival}

We started off the March school holidays with a bang last night! Actually, it wasn't with just a bang but fireworks, snow, lighting effects, music and sing-along as well. Best of all, we got to see some of our all-time favourite Disney characters come alive on stage! How awesome is that? Yup, it's the event that my two princesses have been yearning and looking forward to - Disney on Ice presents Magical Ice Festival!

They have been ecstatic since I told them that Elsa and Anna would be performing in this year's Disney on Ice and being the ever ardent Frozen fans, they were dressed in Elsa and Anna dresses, tiaras and we even made our own DIY snowflake wands which can glow in the dark!

Check out our very own Queen Elsa and Princess Anna along with their glow in the dark snowflake wands!

We made our way to the Singapore Indoor Stadium where the event was held. One thing to note is that we realise the show usually starts promptly so you would want to be on time or even arrive a little earlier at the venue so that you do not miss the start! For us, we were waiting for the husband to arrive and just managed to enter as the show was about to begin.

Check your tickets to determine which entrance to head towards

Before you go into the stadium, there will be a bag check and although it seemed like they were not entirely strict on this, do try to avoid bringing in your own food and drinks. If you are afraid that the kids might be hungry, there will be finger food, such as hotdog buns and popcorn chicken, available for purchase after you enter.

Happy to meet their friend, Lil Pumpkin, lovely daughter of fellow blogger Ai from Sakura Haruka

If you have time to shop around, there are also booths selling Disney merchandise and you can purchase them as souvenirs too. Some of them are quite fanciful and cute, but be warned, they are not that cheap too!

Thanks to our wands, the girls felt special and happy without me needing to spend extra!

Moving onto the show, Disney on Ice presents Magical Ice Festival is an enchanting mix of royalty and revolves about four classic stories - The Little Mermaid, Tangled, Beauty and the Beast and Frozen. If your kid is a fan of Princess Ariel, Rapunzel, Belle, Elsa, Anna or adores Sebastian, Flynn Rider, Olaf, Kristoff or the Beast, then be sure that this show is going to make his/her dreams come true as these fairytales unfold and get re-told before their eyes.

Wait, I hear you, what if you grew up in the same era as me and might prefer Mickey, Donald, Minnie or Goofy instead? The good news is they are the narrators and will appear before every segment to interact with the audience. As appealing and attractive as the Disney princesses are, good, old-fashioned Mickey will never lose his charm, don't you think so too?

Mickey looking all suave in the modern, stylish outfit

The first princess to come on stage was, to the delight of the toddler, Princess Ariel! Yes, my girl loves the red-haired princess who impressed the audience with her gravity-defying stunts on the rope. We also enjoyed listening to familiar songs like Under the Sea and Kiss the Girl while watching the story of Ariel being reenacted on stage.

Remember that I sewed a long wig for Angel for her 5th birthday? Yup, Rapunzel was her favourite princess (before Elsa came along) and we are all very familiar with the story of Tangled. If I had to choose my favourite scene from the night, it would the one with the floating lights because these were just so dreamlike and enthralling.

A romantic moment as Rapunzel and Flynn get together under the floating lights

One of my biggest surprise was to see Maximus on stage! Yes, the royal horse! And he looked exactly like he did in the movie. Did you know that there are approximately 180 costumes presented in one Disney on Ice show? It is only when you sit down to watch the show from start to end that you start to realise all the labour and hard work that goes behind the scene. For me, the fanciful costumes were definitely a highlight of the show. I also liked that they brought in the pub thugs from Snuggly Duckling in Tangled and let some of the lucky children from the audience ride in a carriage around the rink.

Maximus takeing the spotlight during the finale song for the Tangled segment

The show lasts a little less than two hours and for those with little ones, you will be glad to know that there is a 15-minute break in between. You can get a drink or two, go to the nearby toilets, change diapers for the baby or just get up to have a stretch. There will be an announcement just three minutes before the second half commences so you will have ample time to return to your seats.

Happy Angel with her snowflake wand, all set for the second half of the show

While the girls might know the names of all the princesses, they have not watched all the movies. So, even though we have a princess Belle barbie at home and they know about the Beauty and the Beast, they were not familiar with this particular fairytale and I've forgotten a good part of it too.

It was then that I realised if you have not watched the show, it will be tough to keep up with the lines or what the cast is trying to portray because everything happens at a rapid pace and the scenes keep changing. This might be a good or a bad thing and for me, more than keeping up with the story, I was admiring how graceful and skillful Belle was on stage. She was on point for every move, every jump, every spin and I thought she was the best dancer that evening.

Belle doing an awe-inspiring solo performance

They make pair skating seem so effortless and we can only guess how much goes into their practice

We were tickled to see the Beast's castle entourage on stage too, including a teapot, teacup, clock and candle! Do you remember their names? Obviously I don't but if you don't too, here you go - they are Mrs Potts, Chip, Cogsworth and Lumiere. You are welcome!

Another of my favourite backdrops in the show is the library where Belle and the Beast revealed their feelings for each other. I loved that instead of being on ice all the time, they could walk up and down the staircase or simply sit on the steps as their romantic story unfolded.

Lastly, it was the moment we had all been waiting for. As soon as we heard the narrators say "the story of an ice harvester...", we started to cheer. And when Sven emerged from behind the curtains, you can only imagine all the squeals of delight that sounded in the entire stadium. Seriously? Just now a horse, and now a reindeer? W-o-w. I was really blown away by how they could create these costumes which resembled the real characters to the max, fit the skaters inside nicely and made the whole thing run so smoothly.

When Anna made her appearance, the cheers got even louder and even I couldn't really control my excitement. How perfectly apt it was to replay the story of Frozen on ice! If I said we didn't really catch on to the lines in Beauty and the Beast, for Frozen, we knew every word, every song, every scene by heart. I do mean all of us, even the hubby. It's funny that the more familiar you are with the storyline and even if you jolly well know what comes next, the more thrilled you are to see these happenings taking place.

Anna makes her appearance! Actually I think we saw three different Annas in different costumes!

One thing about Disney on Ice is that they put some twists on these classic fairytales so the sequencing might be a little different and unexpected. The show is also kept lighthearted and at times, comical too so that everyone in the family can have a laugh.  The fact that it is so fast paced also means that you won't have a chance to feel bored at all!

Seeing Anna and Elsa right before our eyes felt so surreal and magical

Can you imagine how the crowd reacted when Elsa came on stage? Right. Crazy is the word.

All hail Queen Elsa!

I'm not sure how long the Ice Queen will reign but it seems like she has captured the hearts of millions all over the world and things will stay this way for a long, long time. My girls were definitely very, very happy that she was part of this year's show and we were glad that they saved the best for the last .

The girls went "Look, snow!" and I was as enthralled as they were at the moment

Beside the more usual lighting and firework effects, what captivated us most was the snow effect when the foam started coming down, turning the stage into a winter wonderland. Snow, it always has that magical feel to it, don't you think so? Sure, this wasn't real snow but did it achieve that sensational effect? Yes, it did.

Anna and Prince Hans falling in 'love' in the snow

As for my favourite character of the night, there was a clear winner - the ever so cheery and huggable Olaf! I mean, can it get any cuter than this?

If you've watched Frozen, then you will know what happened when he saw Anna and Kristoff for the first time and they were alarmed by this alive snowman. This was replayed on stage and I got the biggest shock of the night when........ (Right, I'm going to keep this a secret so you can watch it for yourself! Don't say spoiler, ok?)

Yes, he even has a walking stick too!

I was trying to see if Olaf would be able to execute his dance moves well but it seemed to be a bigger challenge than I thought, so many a time he ended up using his walking stick to poke bubbles that Kristoff was blowing from the corner of the rink.

Olaf trying to dance with style!

Nonetheless, hands down, he was my favourite character of the night. On the other hand, my girls apparently had their own favourite too and it's not hard to figure out who.

Time for Elsa's solo and for us to sing to the world famous song

Yes, who else but Queen Elsa. She had this gorgeous red cape on and we were all waiting for the moment when she would 'Let it go'.

The beautiful, dazzling bridge fit for a queen

Not to disappoint, she did so in style and it was time for a mass sing-along when the song played. We sang to our hearts' content and watched as Elsa took centrestage and displayed a breathtaking routine. I remember hugging my girl tight and kissing her on the head as we enjoyed this special moment together. Awwww.

For a moment, we were wondering if Marshmallow would appear but he didn't

This was the scene where Anna froze to ice. Can you guess how they made it happen on stage?

I was personally touched by the scenes of the sisters and how they would hold hands, hug and lean on each other's shoulders. While it was already awesome to see how they portray their sisterly love in the movie, it was yet another thing to see it being brought to live by two human beings. Despite the cooling ice, there was something stirring and heartwarming when Elsa and Anna got together.

My absolute favourite pic of the night. Awww, sisterly love!

Till we meet again!

All in all, we totally enjoyed the show from start to end and I have to say it is definitely one of the best ways to start the holidays! The show, which promises to delight the little ones and entertain the whole family, will make for an extraordinary and memorable time with your loved ones. I'm pretty sure we took away some fond memories and will remember this night for a long time to come.

Thank you, Disney on Ice, for this magical and wonderful night!

******

For those who have not grabbed your tickets yet, here are the event details.

Disney on Ice presents Magical Ice Festival

Show schedule:

Venue: Singapore Indoor Stadium

Ticket pricing: $25-$200

Duration: 2 hrs (including 15-min interval)

Child admission policy: Infants in arms and children under 2 years of age may be admitted free of charge provided they do not occupy a seat (they must be seated on the lap of a parent or guardian). Children aged 2 and above must purchase a ticket for admission. All children under 12 years of age must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.

Tickets for Disney On Ice presents Magical Ice Festival can be purchased online via www.sportshubtix.sg.

To learn more about Disney on Ice presents Magical Ice Festival, visit www.disneyonice-asia.com/magical-ice-festival/ 

Disclosure: We received a media invite and complimentary VIP tickets to attend Disney on Ice presents Magical Ice Festival. All opinion and pictures are our own.