Aspen Ice Spectacular back Saturday with star-studded lineup

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Are two days enough to learn a complete show from scratch?

It is when the performers happen to be some of the best figure skaters on the planet.

“The nice thing about this cast is a lot of the performers have been in the show business for so long,” Ashley Wagner said. “So when you get a great group of people together, it kind of meshes really well.”

Wagner, one of the top-ranked figure skaters in the world and a 2016 World Silver medalist and Olympian, among other accolades, is among the headline names for Saturday’s Aspen Ice Spectacular at Lewis Ice Arena.

Presented by Aspen’s Revolutions Skating Club, the fourth-year event is once again bringing in some of the top talent to put on a holiday-themed show on the ice. Many of the skaters got to town Thursday, giving them all of two days to get their routines down.

Headlining the show is Aspen’s own Jeremy Abbott, who along with Revolutions Skating Club’s Peggy Behr, started the Aspen Ice Spectacular.

“Jeremy gets the skaters, and I do all the real work,” Behr said with a laugh. “It’s great for Revolutions Skating Club, because all our little local skaters get to meet these famous ice skaters and it’s just a big deal to them.”

Abbott, who was born and raised in Aspen but now lives in Michigan, is a four-time U.S. national champion and two-time Olympian. Saturday’s show will feature some of the biggest names in figure skating, like Olympian and two-time Japanese champion Yuka Sato, Olympic silver medalist Rosalynn Sumners, and the American duo of Ashley Cain and Timothy LeDuc.

For competitive figure skaters, this time of the season is at the heart of their competition schedule. So getting a chance to take a break from that grind and put on a fun, holiday show in Aspen is truly a treat for the skaters.

“I have always kind of begged (Abbott) to bring me to this show,” Wagner said. “I’ve always wanted to go to Aspen, and on top of that, this show benefits such a great cause. So this year it kind of finally worked out with my schedule.”

The lone show will begin at 5 p.m. Saturday at Lewis Ice Arena in Aspen. Doors open at 4 p.m.

Tickets can be purchased at the Wheeler Box Office. General admission costs $35, while students 18-and-under are $20. VIP tickets are $75 in advance and $100 at the door, although Behr expects them to sell out ahead of time.

A portion of the proceeds will benefit the Michael J. Fox Foundation, which is dedicated to finding a cure for Parkinson’s disease.

The show also will include a special performance from noted Aspen musician Bobby Mason, which Abbott will skate to.

acolbert@aspentimes.com