Meet Disney on Ice Performer Antonia Mitchell

Across the nation, young and old alike are chEARing with delight as this year’s Disney on Ice “Rockin Ever After” featuring Mickey, Minnie, Donald and Goofy  skates into a venue near them.   Adventurous moments from Disney•Pixar’s BRAVE and Disney’s The Little Mermaid, Tangled and Beauty and the Beast are featured along with comical Disney characters performing their unique talents for Mickey and the gang. 

Last week I was able to sit down and talk to one of the talented young performers, Antonia Mitchell, who is living out one of her childhood dreams of skating as part of a professional company.  Antonia performs as a, “family friendly rock star,” who skates side-by-side with Mickey and friends during the show.  There isn’t a memory that doesn’t involve dancing or skating for this vibrant 22 year old from Sonoma County.  Antonia started dancing at the ripe old age of 2. Fate would intervene for her when her class took a field trip to the legendary Snoopy’s Home Ice, the ice arena of Charles Schultz, located in Santa Rosa, CA.  Antonia was a natural when it came to gliding across the ice and her parents immediately put her into lessons. Throughout the years, Antonia grew not only as a skater but also as an accomplished dancer, as well as a competitive tennis player and swimmer. 

To talk to Antonia is like being in the room with a bright burst of sunlight. Her enthusiasm for life and everything about it is not only apparent, but totally contagious.  Antonia first auditioned for Disney on Ice, along with her sister several years ago and although both were invited to join the cast, after considerable thought, both girls declined the initial offer in order to pursue college and other avenues in their lives . Luckily, both young women were given an open ended invitation to join the company at any time. Antonia joined the prestigious The Alonzo King LINES Ballet BFA program at Dominican University of California but after a year of following what she thought was to be her life,  she knew in her heart that her future lay elsewhere. Fate once again would step in when a best friend, who had been touring with Disney on Ice, called to let her know there was an opening in the company. Antonia called the program the director to let them know she was now ready and the rest, as they say, is history. 

Antonia is now living out one of her childhood dreams of skating right along side all of your favorite Disney characters and traveling all over the world. Antonia excitedly shared with me that one of the best parts of joining this show is the people she has been able to meet along the way. Even with the language barriers, she shared the idea that skating is a universal language and while, some of the skaters in the show are not fluent in English, they are able to understand each other through their passion for ice-skating. She dreams of one day being able to skate one of the principle roles in the show and you can feel the joy when she exclaims “This is where I am meant to be and this point in my life right now.”  When asked if she could pick any Disney movie to bring to the ice, our young skater did not hesitate when she exclaimed she would love to bring back some of the classic Disney movies such as Pocahontas and Mulan.  Where does our young skater see herself down the road in the years to come?  When she is finally ready to hang up her skates, Antonia dreams of attending the Culinary Institute Napa and becoming a professional chef.  But for now, you can see the vibrant Antonia Mitchell along side the rest of the talented cast of  Disney on Ice “Rockin Ever After” as they skate into a town near you. Want to know when they will be in a venue near you? Check out the latest schedule below. To discover more about Disney On Ice, log on to www.disneyonice.com, or visit Disney on Ice on Facebook and YouTube.

Rockin' Ever After will play at the following venues this tour season:

Sacramento, California, Sleep Train Arena       

Feb 12 - Feb 17

San Jose, California, SAP Center                  

Feb 19 - Feb 23

Oakland, California, ORACLE Arena               

Feb 26 - Mar 02

Salt Lake City, Utah, EnergySolutions Arena           

Mar 05 - Mar 09

Fort Myers, Florida, Germain Arena              

Mar 14 - Mar 16

Sunrise, Florida, BB&T Center                     

Mar 20 - Mar 23

Miami, Florida, AmericanAirlines Arena           

Mar 26 - Mar 30

Jacksonville, Florida, Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena

Apr 03 - Apr 06

Lexington, Kentucky, Rupp Arena                  

Apr 10 - Apr 13

Columbia, South Carolina, Colonial Life Arena     

Apr 17 - Apr 20

Pensacola, Florida, Pensacola Bay Center                

Apr 24 - Apr 26

Bossier City, Louisiana, CenturyLink Center             

May 01 - May 04

Little Rock, Arkansas, Verizon Arena                    

May 07 - May 11

Evansville, Indiana, Ford Center                          

May 15 - May 18

Cedar Park, Texas, Cedar Park Center                  

May 21 - May 25

Gayle is a Disney Gal that loves churros for breakfast, still gets giddy with delight at the first sight of the “Disneyland next exit sign”, loves the overwhelming emotions and memories that come with each and every return to the Happiest Place on Earth and dreams of one day being the Captain of the Jungle Boat. To learn more about Gayle, click here