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P$38eT? Wednesday, September 4, 1968 MAfS. JO.; f,5.';-, j Holiday Oil Ice | Madison Square Garden-Morris I Chalfen presentation with Ronnie I Robertson, Anna Galmarini, Grete I Borgen, Alice Quessy, Tommy j Allen & Juanita Percelly, Cook \Family (5), Alfredo Mendoza, John I Ladue, Werner Mutter's Chimps, 'jMarei Langenbein, Darolyn Prior, 1 Paul Andre, Johnny Leech, Little j Lito, Ballet, Ben Stabler Orch. ; Created, stage & directed by Donn Arden; production director, John \ Finley; costumes, Freddy Wittop; sets, Glenn Holse; lighting, Dorothy Morris. Opened at Madi- son Square Garden, N.Y., Aug. 28, ' ; '68; $7.50 top. explodes, and is laugh ?╟÷ productive. The major production number, closing the show, is a spoof of Hollywood, concentrating on the silents with its own versions of the early Hollywood musicals. A lot of the material is imaginative and some is obvious. The paca and costuming provide a lot of entertainment, albeit in a familiar vein. There's an old New York scene, a Spanish arid a Jungle- sequence, all of which come off exceedingly well, providing picturesque and colorful excursions. The music under the direction of ( Ben Stabler is another strongpoint \ in the layout. Jose. II . director Donn Arden made all the production nun? bers move with the fluency of the lavish Las Vegas revues for which he has become famous... beautifully costumed by Freddy Wittop." ~$nver,New$ EVGS. Wed. & Thurs. 7:30 ?╟≤ Fri. ft Sat 8:30 MATS. Sat. Sun. & Labor Day 2 PM (no evg. perf. Sun. Mon. or Tues.) Res.: $7.50,6.50, 5.50,4.50, 3.50 CHILDREN (under 12 years) HALF-PRICE SAT. MATS. St LABOR DAY MAT. MAIL ORDERS PROMPTLY FILLED Add 25c per order for handling. Enclose self-addressed unstamped envelope : . . l ::-.?√ß.; PENNSYLVANIA PLAZA, 7 to 8 Ave., 31 to 33 St.-For information, phone 564-4400 S The general aim of ice shows is i ; to dazzle the customers and provide f 1 cold Comfort for its producers, j "Holiday on Ice," which opened] j Wednesday (28) at the new Madi- i son Square Garden, N. Y?╟? is able ' to do both. "Holiday," which is a Garden subsidiary, has upgraded the general entertainment values of the entire show. They have enlarged their bankroll, dressed the show elegantly and provided sufficent splash and color to satisfy the frappe fans. In its quest for new and better values, they have brought in Donn Arden to create stage and direct its 24th edition, with John Finley as production director. Arden, it so happens, is an old hand at icers. j He directed other major shows in j the past and is one of the better i: | stagers of live talent in several | fields. He has done Le Lido in Paris, j the Stardust in Las Vegas and other shows for many years. Unfortunately, Arden has a long memory of iceshow production and has called freely upon it. Although he failed to infuse any new ideas into the show, he has dressed up the proceedings so that it glitters and entertains. He has caressed production cliches to a new gloss, endowing the show with pace and liveliness. The Freddy- Wittop cos-1 tumes are also bright and Glenn Holse has designed some striking -?╟≤'I sets for use up front. The use of I important scenic pieces in front J of the house is a comparatively ] new development in the ice field j and Holse has decorated that area i in a showmanly manner. ?√ß | However, the skaters, particularly Ronnie Robertson, provide the I major strength in the layout. I Robertson still the best in the I business, is reaching a maturity, I having improved his dance move- I ments without impairing the speed I of his skating. He gives the show | a highlight, no matter in which ij sequence he appears. Anna Galmarini is another of the high powered gliders. A smallish but bigboned girl, Miss Galmarini gives strength and smoothness to her leaps. She has imaginative routines and a spirited style ?╟≤ which promises much in the future. ! Another promising skater is Marie Langenbein, a tallish blonde ' who uses her height gracefully and displays a lot of energy in her work. She works well with Robertson in several sequences. Alice Quessy, who has been with this show for several seasons, is used frequently. She has the feel of the show, and does well not only in her solo turns wherein she also displays aero skill, but also in the production. Alfredo Mendoza is another utili- j tarian skater. He knows the frozen surface intimately, doing well either as one end of the dog sequence or with Darolyn Prior in a comedy routine. Other skaters in specialities include Grete Borgen, Little Lito, Helga & Jorge Valle. The top tandem this show is Tommy Allen & Juanita Percelly who lend " "' ?√ßL1~~5" Mllroom Alien &C juami-a j.v.--~ ?╟÷j, - I grace and speed to their ha work .Three talented youngsters and a trio of chimps stole the scene at the 1969 Holiday on Ice Show that opened at Madison Square Garden last night. The youngsters' are Kim, Chris, and Kelly Cook, who appeared in a family act with their parents, Cal and Dori. Dressed in green, they performed a number called "Harrigan's Hooligans"- like a troup of ingenious leprechauns. Kim is a small girl with a long blonde, pony tail who also skated. an imitation of Shirley Temple. KIM AND brothers Chris and Kelly performed skating maneuvers" that would be term- : cd sophisticated by older stars. My ]3-year-old son voted the chimps his' favorite skaters and immediately renewed his bid for a chimp .of his own. These chimps can: Jump hurdles and continue skating, perform somersaults and splits, assume a professional stance with their e^ (^ei^mg^L^ hands behind their backs, wear striped stockings, wear hair ribbons, and draw "ohs" and "ahs" from the audience. STAR OF THE show Ronnie Robertson had to be magnificent not to be overshadowed by the ' kid and chimp brigades, but magnificent he was in an imitation of Fred Astaire and again in a Spanish dance routine. He demonstrated more ways of de-, fying the law of gravity than we non-skaters can imagine. His skating partner, Marci Langencoin, was a skillful performer, as was Anna Galnarini, the 1965 professional w o rj^' skating champion from Italy. Miss Galnarini performed an African dance' number with poetic frenzy. THE ANNUAL ICE show - now in its 24th year ?╟÷ rivals the Folies Bergeres for pageantry j andi staging. Produced and, directed by Donn Arden, it! presents a spectacular display of.lj lighting and extravagantly cos-.' turned men and women. A take-off on Hollywood with ' imitations of stars from ?╟≤ Pearl-j White to Judy Garland was trite' but pleasant. The ice show is probably o?·e of America's best traditions. il s6*o-m u?╜)