Annual carnival trying something new
Amy Gregson – Times Reporter
Figure skaters are preparing for their yearly carnival set for March 14, but this year the club is shaking things up.
Instead of doing a regular showcase like previous years, where each group would skate to their own song and then leave the ice, the club is putting on a production called Gilligan’s Island, Adventures on Ice.
“With the four-acts there will be a lot more skaters on the ice, more interaction especially for the CanSkaters too as they will be out [on the ice] longer,” said Brenda Lochhead with the Strathmore Skating Club.
“Our kids have been with the skating club for more than a decade and we’ve seen so many carnivals before. We wanted to do something big and something different.”
Gilligan’s Island was one of the many ideas thrown around, said Lochhead, who said they wanted to have some kind of beach scene as the backdrop.
By using the idea of Gilligan’s Island they are able to use a wider range of characters because of the numerous guest appearances on the show.
Skaters will be dressed up like the Professor, the Skipper, Gilligan and pirates just to name a few.
A number of props will also be built such as the S.S. Minnow, a tiki hut and volcano that the skaters will use.
The coaches, Leanne Woodcock, Lisa Sargeant-Driscoll, Laura Dawn Lannan and Lindsey Woodcock are chorographing the show and writing the narration.
Most of the skaters from the club will be featured in the show, from the three-year-old Canskaters to senior skaters, where the oldest one is 18.
The club will feature guest skaters as they normally do, but will feature pair’s skaters this year. Lindsey Woodcock, one of the coaches, will also be skating.
The club will also be bringing back the crowning of the carnival queen and prince or princess.
The crowning was done previously, and the queen was carried around in a cutter from the farm that was pulled by a boys hockey team or the boy scouts said Lochhead.
“Since we have the props and S.S. Minnow boat, she is actually going to be pulled in the boat by hockey players just to kind of give it a little punch,” she added.
Tickets for the show will be sold at the door for $10. Children 12 and under get in for $5 and children under three are free.
This year the club will be having a limited number of VIP tables on the ice. A table of four is available for $100, which includes front row seats, tickets, door prizes, refreshments and program.
“If you think of the Stars on Ice or Disney on Ice they have seating you can purchase on the ice,” said Lochhead. “So I thought that would be really cool.”
There will be door prizes, raffles and a prize table draw.
“It’s going to be good,” said Lochhead about the carnival. “To watch the kids skating, they’re really getting into it.”
For more information or to reserve a VIP table phone Brenda Lochhead at (403) 934-3729 or Eileen Swan at (403) 934-5949.