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o ?╜0 C SUCK PRODUCTION 'Holiday on Ice A -u o I CT. j V... ~ UJ I mm, I Another slick concoction put >gether by the "Holiday on *ce" company has glided into ?╓¬he San Diego International Sports Arena for a week's stay. Everyone who responds to colorful extravaganza punctuated with some impressive athletic skill and a laugh here and there is urged to take notice. This is the 25th anniversary edition of the touring ice show, and the experience gained oyer the many long seasons shows in the production. It moves fast. There are no delays between various routines. Every prop is in the right place at the right lime. The lighting cues are handled with precision. Little Enthusiasm But the virtues which come from long experience are counterbalanced to some extent by ingrown faults. The show has a methodical look about it. There is less enthusiasm in the performing than there should be. It comes across as a job of work to be done by a group of experts who know exactly what they must do and how to do it well. But there is precious little joy in the process. Ronnie Robertson, the whirling dervish, was absent from last night's opening performance, a victim of the flu. But everyone else was on hand and in good form. Ray Balmer, the energetic and muscular Chuia Vistan, performed ?√ß above and beyond the call of duty by filling in on a couple of Robertson's routines as well as doing his own turns. Balmer doesn't have the grace or the blazing speed of Robertson, but he's a powerful skater. Some of his leaps are prodigious. Others Earn Praise Alice Quessy contributed an abundance of grace and beauty, as did pert Grete Borgen and, of course, all of the love- I lies in the chorus line. They've got two varieties in this production, the long-stemmed beauties who do most of the posing and the more compact size for some of the intricate skating patterns. Tommy Allen once again displayed a disdain of gravity and a recklessness with the safety of his partner, Juanita Percelly, who gets tossed around with abandon. And Cal Cook's family, wife Dori and children Kim, Kris and Kelly, repeated their faith in his stability on elevated skates by allowing themselves to be spun every which way. Paul Andre and Johnny Leech worked hard to produce laughs with standard comedy routines that depend a lot more than is necessary on squirting water all over themselves and occasionally on spectators in ringside seats. There are a couple of surprise comedy bits that are effective, and Werner and Denise Muller's chimpanzee act is humorous. But the real delight is .Kossmayer's mules, a routine that has absolutely nothing to do with the ice rink but is a howl nonetheless. Costumes Stunning The costuming is stunning and seems to be in much better repair than wardrobe "Holiday on Ice" brought here last year. Some wigs that are almost comic do not help the show girls in the opening number, but otherwise their glamour remains intact. Loveliest routines are the Easter pageantry ending the first act and the finale celebrating Christmas. But celebrating holidays is not really a very inspiring theme for a skating show. It's all about as predictable as the cah ndar on the wall- DAVE MclNTYRE