Behind the magic: Sneak peek of Disney on Ice skaters at practice before Macon show
Try personifying a movie character without talking or singing.
Then throw on some ice skates and dance to Disney songs for hundreds of hours.
Professional skaters Breelie Taylor and Jules Alpe have done just that in preparation for their “Into the Magic” Disney on Ice world tour hitting Macon this weekend.
Taylor, from Georgia, has played as one of Cinderella’s evil stepsisters, Anastasia, for about two years in the production. She uses comedic but dainty body movements and sour but bright facial expressions to bring the stepsister to life.
“The longer I’ve spent time with her, the more I enjoy her,” the 25-year-old said. “It’s fun to step out of that comfort zone with someone like Anastasia who’s just a bit more quirky, very different.”
Taylor usually performs for arenas double the population size of her hometown Ringgold, which has about 3,400 people, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. This weekend’s tour stop at the Macon Coliseum has a capacity of 9,000 people, according to its website.
“Sometimes when we’re in other countries or across the US, it’s harder for my family to come see me but since I’m in my home state, I drag them along, like ‘please come watch,’” Taylor said, giggling.
She started skating at 3 years old and has been ranked one of the top 10 competitive ice dancers in the U.S. Most cast members must go through a rigorous audition process, figure skating tests or prove their abilities through previous accolades like Taylor’s.
“God bless my mother for taking me to all those practices when I was so young and couldn’t thrive,” Taylor said. “It takes a village. But it’s so worth it.”
Part of the production’s allure is its transformative, avant-garde set design, which weighs about two tons. The ice rink will evolve between Moana’s oceanscape, Coco’s mystical land of the dead and Belle’s enchanted castle from classic Disney movies.
“We’ve got a more old fashioned set,” Taylor said. “It’s this gorgeous castle, and it can rotate into multiple castles to help tell our stories.”
The performance will feature shiny, larger-than-life costume garments, masks and makeup so the whole arena feels close to the performers.
“We’ve got thousands and thousands of hand-placed rhinestones on all of these costumes to make sure we just shimmer,” Taylor said.
Her colleague, Alpe, has played a lead role as a masked character in Coco for about five years. His act was left anonymous to maintain the fantasy.
“It’s like revealing Mickey’s identity at Disney World,” Mandy Rodgers, founder and CEO of Mandy Kay Marketing, said. “The princesses are different as we see their faces.”
Alpe, who is from the Philippines, resonated with Coco’s Mexican culture, which embraces strong family roots like how he felt being raised in the Philippines.
“There’s somewhat the same kind of culture, but also we value family, and that’s what got me interested,” he told The Telegraph.
Watching the show is just as fun as being in it, Alpe explained.
“As a grown-up like myself, I turn back to my childhood memories…,” he said. “I like to see my cousins having fun, enjoying the songs in every segment… that’s why I love doing this job because you make kids happy.”
This story was originally published November 1, 2024 at 5:02 PM.
