Discount code - Disney on Ice presents Rockin' Ever After

To think, just a few weeks ago I was complaining about having to plan activities way in advance, and now I find myself thinking about March Break. I figure a little bit of advance thinking is much better than having a bored kid for an entire week.

Well, to help you plan for some March Break fun here is a coupon code for Disney On Ice presents Rockin' Ever After.

As the name implies, it is a skating show; and this one features some very famous Disney characters including the stars of Brave, Tangled, The Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast.

The show will be at the Rogers Centre in Toronto from March 13 – 17. For more information about showtimes or performances closer to you, please visit www.disneyonice.com, and check out the Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/DisneyOnIce.

Code: MUM4

What you get – FOUR! Tickets for $44 on weekday shows and $4 off per ticket for weekend shows.

Fine print - Excludes Front Row, Rinkside, and VIP tickets. No double discounts. Additional Fees May Apply. Weekday is defined as Monday thru Thursday. Weekend is defined as Friday through Sunday. Limit of four (4) per purchase.

Have fun and enjoy!

And here is a little Valentine's Day card, that you can print and make, for you from the people bringing you the show.

Feld Entertainment may be providing me with complimentary tickets to this show, in exchange for my time and efforts in attending the show, and reporting my opinion within this blog. However, the opinions about the show, and everything else are 100 per cent mine.



pictures courtesy of: Disney characters and artwork, © Disney. Disney/Pixar characters and artwork © Disney/Pixar.

Going to the Theatre... sort of...

When I was a little girl, my parents took me to see Andrew Lloyd Webber's Cats, and I fell in love.

Now, I am by no means a theatre buff; I had been to Stratford and Shaw Festivals only once in my life - basically if you can compare to my theatre going experience to books: I am more of a Jane Austen girl as compared to War and Peace, more Dan Brown than Umberto Eco. I like theatre lite.

However, I still feel there is something quite magical about a live production; for one thing, you are watching something in actual 3D! And, it is always fun to dress up and go out on a special occasion.

So, I would really like to share the experience of going to musicals, concerts, theatres and other extravagant live shows with my little one. I think it is good for her to experience different sorts of art and culture and entertainment, and to learn to sit still.

Now, just because I want to bring my daughter to a show, does not mean I can just pick any show, buy tickets and just go. There are very important considerations.

• We have to consider subject matter – I have a five year old, so the show has to be family friendly, and for us, MUST have a happy ending. Hopefully it will be entertaining for adults as well.

• There should be a easy to follow plot – i.e. no time paradoxes, weird soap opera like subplots, or anything else that will require me to spend the entire time of the show trying to explain what is happening to my daughter.

• Colourful costumes, and cheerful characters – once again, my kid is five, and she likes colours and cute things. She is also terrified of the dark, so I doubt we will be seeing a show like Phantom of the Opera anytime soon.

• Stuff should happen (besides plot) – people or things should move, and talk/sing, and do stuff, to hold her attention. There is no way my child can sit through anything slow and cerebral, nor do I expect her to.

• Length of show - the show should not be too long, unless the show is spectacular with lots of special effects, my child cannot sit still for more than an hour at a time.

• Price – I am hoping that it would not be too expensive. I just do not want to feel bad if I have to leave in the beginning or middle of the show, or feel that I have to force my kid to stay for the entire thing even if she is not happy (“mommy and daddy paid a lot of money for this so you are staying and you are going to like it”). I understand this is not always possible, but one can hope.

So, when I saw the Disney on Ice presents Worlds of Fantasy, I thought maybe this will be a good continue introduction to live shows. Last year she saw Disney Live! presents Three Classic Fairytales and loved it.

Let us see if it can meet my pre-show checklist:

• Subject matter – it is a Disney show, and since I see nothing that would imply Old Yeller or Bambi's mom will be involved in this show, I think we are good.

• Plot – there are cars, toys, mermaids, fairies and of course two very famous mice. I think she might be happy even if there is no story.

• Colourful costumes – we are talking about cartoons coming to life, so the costumes are probably going to be pretty spectacular.

• Stuff should happen – it is an ice skating show, pretty sure there will be lots of action, spins, jumps and tricks. And, I believe there will be cars on ice (granted, I can always watch cars driving on ice by looking out my window in January...)

• Length of show and price – I am not sure how long the show is, and the tickets are not cheap, but not unreasonable either (okay, I think the top tiered seats are a little bit much, but they are supposed to be the best seat in the house).

I think my kid might really enjoy this show. Hopefully, if she has a great experience, she will be more open to other kinds of shows (the only show she likes so far is the ballet the Nutcracker, and I can only watch the Nutcracker so many times before I go nuts, and my wallet empties)

And maybe, when she is older, we can do a family trip to Stratford or Shaw.

For more information about the show, please visit Disney On Ice .

Fine Print:
Feld Entertainment may be providing me with complimentary tickets to this show, in exchange for my time and efforts in attending the show, and reporting my opinion within this blog. However, the opinions about the show, and everything else are 100 per cent mine.
pictures courtesy of Disney characters and artwork, © Disney. Disney/Pixar characters and artwork © Disney/Pixar.    

Review: Disney Live! presents Three Classic Fairytales

Recently, my daughter, her friend (and friend's mom), and I had the opportunity to go see Disney Live! presents Three Classic Fairytales. If it was only me, I would not have gone to this show; I am more of a Rock of Ages gal, i.e. cheesy 80s hair rock... and I have outgrown my Disney Princess phase for a couple of years now...

However, I do not think the show was designed to awe me, the important person to impress was my four year old. And, she LOVED IT. I do not think the child blinked once after the lights went down. The two girls were completely enthralled by the show, and especially the princesses.

The show was essentially shortened versions of Snow White, Cinderella, and Beauty and the Beast, with Goofy, Donald, Minnie and of course, Mickey serving as narrators and guides. The costumes were beautiful, the staging was quite impressive. I was a bit worried that my daughter would find it a little boring; after all, there was only so much you could do on a stage with real people, i.e. instead of hundreds of dancing plates, dishes and cutlery, there was one fork and one knife and a few dishes (I think), but it turned out she liked it just fine. The music was great, but I already liked the songs in the movies (there were no new original songs), and there were some pretty cool 'special' effects, like when Cinderella changed from her rags into her ballgown. And, the length of the show was perfect. It was about an hour and a half long, including a short intermission, which is about the maximum amount of time that my little one can sit still.

So for parents, the show is not bad. I do not think it will win a Tony, but it will also not cause you to run to the dentist to make sure you did not get cavities from all the sweetness. It was pretty much what I expected it to be, a show targeted at children (princess obsessed children) under 7. There was one thing that was a bit disappointing: I find most Disney films had some jokes that would amuse the grown ups in the audience, but this show lacked that, granted they did have to cut the stories down to about 20 min each.

For the kids, I think as long as your children love princesses, they will love this show. My daughter's favourite part was seeing Belle, and at the end of the show when all the princesses came out with their ball gowns and princes (I shall refrain from commenting on the whole princesses' goal is to marry a prince thing).

Here are my little one's exact words on the show:

“I love it; I love it; I love it!!”

Here is a caveat though. There are some darker parts in the show which may scare the more sensitive souls in the audience – the magic mirror that the wicked queen in Snow White talks to is a bit spooky; the wicked queen turning into an old hag might be scary to some; and during the fight scene in Beauty and the Beast, there is a simulated thunder storm, so it gets dark and there are lots of flashes of light and thundery booms. Having said that, my daughter who usually gets upset quite easily, was fine for the entire show.

Now, for the thing that I definitely did not like, and had nothing to do with the show itself: the prices at the concession stands. I believe it cost $12 for a snow cone. Unless that cup, which you can keep, can sing the show back to me, there is no way I am paying that much for some ice and syrup.

So would I recommend this show?

It is hard to say; for me, it is an okay show, but at the same time, I think it is a nice treat if your child loves princesses and fairy tales (mainly princesses). It was fun, and entertaining, and the little ones LOVED it. And, I loved watching my child's face glow as she watched the show. Plus, it is always cute to see a bunch of little girls run around in costumes (it is also a great way to get more wear out of that Halloween costume).

I also think this show is a great way to introduce kids to going to a live stage show. It was a comfortable setting, full of other children, so you did not have to worry too much about constantly hushing your child. The plot was simple, and it was pretty much guaranteed the kids would like the story (why would you go if you do not like fairytales).

Oh! Using the show to get my child to behave for a week was a bonus.

On the other hand, if you are deathly allergic to pink, stay away.

Off to see the princesses!

In a week and a bit, we are off to see princesses - Disney Live! presents Three Classic Fairy Tales.

My daughter is very excited to see Belle, her favourite princess. I think my favourite was Ariel, but I never quite understood why she wanted legs, I would have loved to live under the sea.

Okay, I admit that I am starting to get a little excited about this too; partially to see the look of love in my little girl's eyes. But mainly, I am looking forward to being transformed into the role of Fairy Godmother, which is a huge promotion from the Evil Witch (okay, bitch) Queen that I have been for the last couple of days – yes, I am very much looking forward to the start of school again.

I am looking forward to the show itself too. I think even those who think Disney is some evil corporate entity will admit that Disney really knows how to put on a show. Disney is one of those things and places that for a few hours can make me believe in magic and feel like a kid again. It is like some weird drug.

Here is the description of the show from their website:

Join Mickey, Minnie, Donald and Goofy as they bring the timeless fairytale adventures of Cinderella, Beauty and The Beast, and Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs to life right in your hometown. Featuring dynamic storytelling, award winning music, stunning costumes and glittering special effects, audiences will be captivated by the humor, fun and adventure of these spellbinding stories. Dream with the princesses, cheer for the heroes as they conquer evil villains, and marvel as these classic tales are brought to life in an theatrical experience that’s pure magic.

And here are some more interesting tidbits about the show:

• Hours it takes to set up the production – 16 hours
• Hours to tear down the production – 5 hours
• Number of performers – 16
• Fabric used to make the costumes – 1200 yards
• Number of costumes – 100
• Number of light bulbs used on the stage set and curtains – 2,353

And do not forget the discount code: MAMA (see previous blog on information regarding code)

What are some of your favourite Disney characters or memories?

Showtimes:

Kitchener, Ontario, Centre in the Square Jan. 6, 2011

Kingston, Ontario, K-Rock Centre Jan. 7, 2012

London, Ontario, John Labatt Centre Jan. 8 - 9, 2012

Oshawa, Ontario, General Motors Centre Jan. 12, 2012

Toronto, Ontario, Rogers Centre Jan. 13 - 15, 2012

Fine Print:

Feld Entertainment may be providing me with complimentary tickets to this show, in exchange for my time and efforts in attending the show, and reporting my opinion within this blog. However, the opinions about the show, and everything else are 100 per cent mine.

pictures courtesy of Feld Entertainment.© Disney.