Disney's High School Musical: The Ice Tour rocks with the same music that captivates kids on the Disney Channel's original hit movie, High School Musical.

Storyline over Technique

Have you ever tried to dance a few eight-counts on your toe picks? Trust me; it’s not an easy thing to do. Unfortunately, it’s probably the most technical of skating moves performed by the athletic cast of High School Musical: The Ice Tour.

Top performers are, of course, capable of much more, given their competitive and performance experience. Lead rolls are filled by skaters who have competed at National and International levels.

Choreography offers solos and duos that incorporate more technical moves. During their Today Show dress rehearsal, however, principle skaters fell out of double jumps. They even appeared rigid and lacking in confidence while completing standards skating moves.

The choreography focuses less on figure skating and more on popular club-dance moves, like bunny hops with overhead claps, slaloms, and two-footed spins. But let’s face it: You can do many more tricks and present a greater range of visual effects using a sheet of ice instead of a regular stage. Enjoy the energy of the production, and cross your fingers in hopes that performers land their jumps.

Street-Wear Skating Costumes

Regardless of the possible absence of great skating, the entertaining music and trendy street-wear costumes are fun. The East High Wildcats do their thing on ice skates covered to look like sneakers. Cast members lip sync while wearing school backpacks, cheerleader uniforms, and other stylish attire.

Idealistic team spirit complements these costumes and props with simplistic, appealing charm. 18 experienced figure skaters reminisce about their own high school experiences while they headline the show’s three separate touring productions. They play familiar character rolls of East High’s Troy, Gabriella, Ryan, Sharpay, Chad and Taylor.

Roster of Skaters

High School Musical: The Ice Tour’s producers announced that their production features: “skating stars that include Olympic & World Championship competitors, National Champions from around the world, and a host of professional ice skating elite.” It’s true that many of their performers come from the professional touring circuit, but let’s admit a definite on-ice distinction between Michelle Kwan and Mickey Mouse.

To grant them their due, we gladly concede that these figure skaters who have put in enough hours to hone their sport to reach a performance-level of competency. But the skaters featured on this tour are not the same caliber we’re used to seeing at “On Ice” shows.

Nevertheless, these performers have arrived on a stage that brings the joy of figure skating to mainstream audiences. Hopefully lead male roles will encourage more young men to try out figure skating. Diversity in casting will prompt kids from all ethnicities to get involved in the sport. And certainly the skaters “cast in this show know all about reaching for their dreams.” Their personal achievements have only come after dedicating years to working in cold ice rinks at all hours of the day.

Troy Bolton

Each of the three different touring productions stars a leading male who plays Troy, one of the head hunks in the story line. Two-time Australian National Champion Brad Santer is one of them. Jordan Brauninger also landed the lead after winning a bronze medal in pairs at the Junior Worlds Figure Skating Championships. Trey Ehre isn’t a medalist of note, but he has certainly put in his time with Footloose on Ice, Broadway on Ice, and Ice Theatre of New York.

Gabriella Montez

Best wishes to Lane Walker, a five-time US Regionals competitor, as she plays this role alongside Gladys Orozco, six-time Mexican National Champion, and seasoned ice performer Amanda Billings.

Ryan Evans

Adam Loosley, the very capable quadruple Gold-test figure skater, and fellow Canadian, novice skater Bonard Muck, landed this role. They are overshadowed as Ryan by Vyacheslav Chiliy, an international singles and pairs competitor most known for being the Former USSR’s Junior National Champ and first Senior Men’s figure skating champion from the Ukraine.

Sharpay Evans

Olympian and two-time Swedish National Champion, Helen Grundberg struts her stuff in this leading role. Skating also as Sharpay is “Skating’s Next Star” winner Kristen Treni and the 2005 US Junior National Champion, Sandra Rucker.

Chad Danforth

While the guys in this role aren’t noteworthy champions or experienced performers, all of them are USFSA gold medalists, so they definitely know how to skate. They are Stephen Smith, Simeon Hanks, and Jamie Loper.

Taylor McKessie

Chrissy Lipscomb won the Junior Olympics bronze medal and also performed in Ebony on Ice and UniverSoul Circus before playing Taylor in this Disney ice tour. Hamidah Ahmad and Tetona Jackson’ US competition experience will help them bring this character to life.

Feld Entertainment

Choreographer Chucky Klapow hopes his dance moves from the movie will bring audiences to the ice adaptation of High School Musical. Feld entertainment produces Disney on Ice and other shows that appeal to over 25 million viewers each year. With those kinds of numbers, and given that High School Musical: The Ice Tour is showing in over 100 cities, producers have a good chance of making it big with this fresh, teen-rock, trend-setting, feel-good, figure skating hit.