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Arts & Entertainment

Ice Skating Show to Feature Johnny Weir, Young Skaters

About 100 local skaters will perform in "Ice Dreams" Saturday.

A group of lucky, young Chicago-area ice skaters will perform alongside champions including Olympic figure skater Johnny Weir south of Des Plaines Saturday.

Nine Olympic, World and National skaters and 100 youngsters will perform “Ice Dreams” for the second year in a row at Edge Ice Arena in Bensenville, 735 E. Jefferson St., said Tara Modlin, executive producer of the show and president of Fireworks Sports Marketing.

This year’s theme is DJ dance party, compared to last year’s USA Olympic team theme, Modlin said. The show is a great opportunity for aspiring skaters to meet their heroes, she said.

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“It’s kind of like their jaw-dropping moment,” Modlin said. “They get to meet their ideals really.”

Hannah Singer, 11, of Chicago participated in “Ice Dreams” last year, and said this year her group will perform a dance number which includes two songs: “On The Floor” by Jennifer Lopez and “Til the World Ends” by Brittany Spears. Singer enjoys the show because unlike many of the other events she participates in, this one is not a competition, she said.

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“We got to have costumes, and it was really fun because it was just about dancing,” Singer said. “It wasn’t about your skill. But we got to show our personalities, and it was really fun.”

When asked about her personality while skating Singer said, “I’m pretty outgoing I guess.”

Hannah’s mother, Ileene Singer, said she signed her daughter up for “Ice Dreams” because she thought it would be a good experience performing with skaters at such high levels, and would hopefully motivate her. Singer said the experience of trying out for the show was also good.

“[I hoped she would] really see what all of her hard work and effort could lead to,” Singer said. “And also to have a more personal interaction with skaters at that level, because they do interact with the kids, to really connect a little more.”

Singer said the kids work really hard at skating, and it’s easy to say ‘I want to be an Olympic skater,’ but to actually meet an Olympic skater is really cool for them.

“Everyone is really, really excited,” Modlin said. “Chicago is a hotbed of figure skating and we’re really excited to go there, and to have all these skaters there. We’re excited for these young kids to have this amazing opportunity. It’s like if you’re in Little League, how often do you get to play with Derek Jeter?”

World Junior Bronze Medalist Agnes Zawadzki, who is originally from Des Plaines, will perform in the show, according to a press release. Patch hoped for the opportunity to speak with Zawadzki but she could not be reached by publication time.

Tickets for “Ice Dreams” may be purchased through the show’s Web site.

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