Drama, comedy, mystery, action - and, of course, pretty girls on ice.
The national tour of "The Magic of MGM" played May 2-5 at the David O. McKay Events Center at Utah Valley State College with a spectacular presentation from the MGM/United Artists film library.Pretty girls and pretty swirls - that's what the Ice Capades used to be. And while those times were briefly featured, so was the athletic excellence that ice skating has become. This tour features more than skating - Olympic events, gymnastics, boxing and rockets to romantic interludes.
The tour is nearing its end, and by now you should expect an almost flawless performance. Only one skater bit the ice. The main cast featured former Olympians Wayne and Natalie Seybold, a brother and sister team from Indiana; Vadim Shabeco, originally from Russia; and Charlene Von Saher, a skater who captured the 1993 British National Championship.
Von Saher's solos were especially captivating, while the Seybold duo held the audience spell-bound. For the kids, the Ice Capades featured cartoon characters, including the Lionheart family, characters from "All Dogs Go to Heaven" and "The Pebble and the Penguin."
A "Red Carpet" welcome started Act I with the troupe skating to "There's No Business Like Show Business" and "War" from "Rocky 4." Then the show slipped into a western theme with cowboys, can-can girls and the Pink Panther solving a crime. That segment ended with a Pink Panther line dance - and lots of Pink Panthers. Music accompanying the Pink Panther precision skating included "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly" and "Dance and Shout."
Special effects and pyrotechnics were highlights in the James Bond "Goldfinger" segment. James Bond theme music included "Diamonds Are Forever," "Nobody Does It Better" and "Live and Let Die." Here, fire and ice combined in a Bond pyrotechnic display with Eddi Vallon in the center of it all.
Nick Ruggeri acted as emcee under the guise of Mortimer C. Mudge and created audience interaction, particularly with a Macarena dance contest by the cartoon characters.
Act II kicked off with a sports theme, highlighting football, basketball, hockey, gymnastics, baseball and boxing with a "Rocky" theme. "Eye of the Tiger" was one of the selections featuring precision skating.
Then came the mystery and drama of "Stargate," featuring the pairs skating of Jennifer Bayer and Jeb Rand to the movie sound-track. While the costuming was spectacular throughout the show, it was especially haunting in this segment.
Then in rapid succession came an urban contemporary segment featuring snippets from "Tank Girl" and "West Side Story," although the latter was not well-defined and appeared to be just a demonstration of urban excitement.
Finally, the grand finale presented MGM with all its glitter and extravagance, including showgirls and feathers and familiar show tunes such as Chicago's "Caravan" and "We Are Family" by Sister Sledge.
About the only thing lacking in this presentation was the audience. Ticket sales and local support were disappointing, according to McKay Center staff. The center seated 5,000 for this show, with Friday's performance half empty.