Skating to the beat

Ice Arena hosts its 2nd-annual holiday show

Posted Wednesday, January 12, 2011 4:06 pm

Stephanie Chernick, Shannon Lenihan and Valerie Levine performed during the holiday show on Jan. 8

Members of the Ice Devils Synchronized Team — Emily Ertz, Caroline Franco, Casey Leimbach, Casey Morris, Jessica Politi, Sandra Quinn, Kaitlyn and Samantha Rodden, Dayani Rodriguez and Samantha Snow — performed a routine set to a Donna Summer tune during the Long Beach Ice Arena’s Holiday Show on Jan. 8.

Grace Sheaffer/Herald

The Long Beach Skating Academy and City of Long Beach Ice Arena hosted its second-annual Holiday Show on Saturday, Jan. 8. The show featured local and nationally ranked skaters of all ages performing in categories such as ice dancing, and synchronized skating, as well as a professional trio and single skaters.

Keith Casey, the arena’s recreation leader and coach of the Long Beach High School hockey team, said hundreds turned out for the annual non-competitive show, an event he said is growing.

“It’s really grown and a lot of the local skaters and skaters from surrounding communities came out,” Casey said.

About 20 groups and individual skaters participated in the event, including Bellmore’s Joelle Forte, a competitive skater who will be competing in the Nationals in Greensboro, NC, as she gears up for the 2014 Olympics. Other skaters included an 80-year-old performer and the Ice Devil’s Synchronized Team, performing a routine set to a Donna Summer tune.

“It was a great time,” Casey said. “A lot of [skaters] had their own songs, including some hip hop and rock.” — AR

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