Disney On Ice celebrates ‘100 Years of Magic’ at Richmond Coliseum

It's time for cotton candy, light-up toys and beloved Disney characters -- an annual trifecta of bliss for little Richmonders.

Disney On Ice, running tonight through Sunday at the Richmond Coliseum, celebrates "100 Years of Magic" with more than 60 movie and cartoon favorites on skates.

Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Goofy, Donald Duck, Jiminy Cricket, Pinocchio, Mulan, Timon, Pumbaa, Stitch, the Disney princesses, Buzz Lightyear, Woody, Nemo, the Incredibles and more will skate through classic and new Disney stories set to music.

Eleven trailers haul show equipment from city to city. Production workers spend 10 to 14 hours setting up the production.

Set designing, costuming and choreographing the show are a massive undertaking. Bringing familiar Disney movie props to the ice was the task this year of designer David Potts, a veteran of Broadway productions, feature films and TV series.

Potts designed a 36-foot-tall castle and an incarnation of Monstro, the whale from "Pinocchio," who's 26 feet long by 12 feet wide.

A float carries 33 moving dolls representing 18 nations from the Disney theme park favorite "It's a Small World." An avalanche falls as Disney heroine Mulan battles the Huns.

Costume designer Scott Lane collaborated with Emmy Award-winning choreographer Sarah Kawahara on outfits that combine style, flexibility and breathability. A staff of more than 1,000 professionals created 147 elaborate costumes.

"The more comfortable a skater is, the better the performance," Lane said. "Real people have to wear the costumes. They have to be able to skate as well as do jumps and spins."

Special Olympic student-athlete skaters, including Mat Annecchini, a visually impaired autistic graduate of Matoaca High School, will perform for Disney on Ice cast members tomorrow afternoon. The ice-show performers will conduct a skating clinic for the athletes, concluding with an appearance by Mickey and Minnie Mouse.

Contact Julie Young at (804) 649-6732 or .