Kylie Joson
Staff Writer
OCEAN CITY – On your
next day off, enjoy dinner and a free ice show at the Carousel Resort Hotel
& Condominiums on 118th Street.
This is a fun
family-oriented performance that is performed every night starting at 6:30. The
Next Ice Age skating company puts on a ravishing performance that will exceed
your highest expectations.
When they think of
ice-skating shows, most people think “cheesy”, said choreographer and
co-founding director Tim Murphy. This show is all but that. It has dramatic
focus and is pure quality skating.
“There is not someone
coming out in a clown suit. They are really dedicated skaters that like to put
on a good show,” Murphy said.
The New Ice Age has been
invited to the Kennedy Center twice and to the Dance Festival. Both
accomplishments any dance company would die for. They are an accomplished skate
company with headquarters in Baltimore and a new location in Laurel, Md. The
Carousel gladly houses the skaters and choreographers for the summer.
Nathan Birch, the other
half of the founding directors, said, “We started the company in 1988 as a way
of exploring our own artistic vision as far as skating. We were apart of the
John Curry Skating Company in the early 80’s, which represented modern dance on
ice. Tim and I were skaters in that and when the company folded we decided that
we wanted to carry on the tradition of focusing on the finer points of skating.
We wanted to focus on showing how dance and sport really intercept and while
trying to legitimize skating as a true dance form.”
Michael James, managing
partner of the Carousel, conveyed, “I was looking for a group that could put on
shows for a consecutive run. Everyone was saying we can do shows these nights
or this day and I was getting very frustrated with other companies. I said I
wanted a company that can do 70 consecutive nights. I wanted 10 straight weeks
so it’s not three nights a week of four nights a week. The show is every night
and that’s how I wanted it.”
This is the ninth summer
The New Ice Age has performed at the Carousel. It is a different show every
year but the same show every night. The last show of the summer will be Aug.
22.
“There is nowhere else
you can get this level of entertainment for free in Ocean City,” James added.
The name and theme of
the show this summer is “Look”. There is a story line you can follow along
with, in which a woman that plays an eccentric character wonders where her
youth went and takes advice on love.
The Next Ice Age skaters
embody Birch and Murphy’s vision with superb skating and an enthralling show.
“The quality of the show
is probably a lot higher than any show you would have bought tickets to,” James
said. “That’s where the value comes in. Our customers are getting a free
complimentary ice show that would usually cost money to see.”
James added, “If you get
here around 6 you are sure to see people walking toward the Carousel,”
On the 4th of
July weekend, all of the balconies were full and the Carousel had an estimated
800-900 people surrounding the rink.
“We get a lot of positive comments about the
show. One is that the show is much more than they expected and there is
high-end, high-caliber skating,” James said.
The show features six
skaters from all over the country, most of collage age. This year The New Ice
Age hosted an online tryout where they got a wide variety of quality skaters.
Megan Marschall, member of the University of Delaware Collegiate Figure Skating
Team, commented that, “It’s a fan-based show and we do it for them. It’s really
rewarding doing something you love and when the fans enjoy it, too.”
Alicia Jackson, the
costume designer for the show and a student at the Fashion Institute of
Technology in New York, added, “My favorite thing is to perform for a live
audience every night and there is something different to offer each year.”
The ice show is
performed every evening and to heighten your night out you can eat dinner and
watch the show rink side. Bring the family and show up early to grab a good
spot. Reservations are suggested for rink side setting, according to James.