“Another row of sequins, please…“

The late, great Peggy DeLio is the reason we are all here.  The reason there are now over two hundred skaters that show up for auditions and can’t wait for the cast list to be revealed, rehearsals to start, costumes to be distributed and the curtain to rise on opening night. Showtime on Ice was Peggy’s vision and over the years Peggy touched thousands of lives through her passion of performing on ice.  Showtime on Ice is Denver’s only local ice production and we thank her every year for her vision and her dream of creating magic on ice!

The Beginning

Peggy DeLio created Showtime on Ice with Christa and Carlo Fassi at Colorado Ice Arena in 1973.  She was involved in the producer/director role for “Showtime on Ice” from 1973-2012 (she passed away in December 2011 but was involved in the planning of the 2012 show).  Peggy created the show experience to expose figure skaters and their families to Broadway musicals and classics. The first show was modeled after Ice Follies and each subsequent show has featured a different theme.  Peggy loved her work and always said she was helping to create memories for all of the participants.

DeLio Family

DeLio sisters (Kitty, Heidi, and Becky) were all performers in the first several productions of the show. As high schoolers, Kitty and Heidi developed as assistant choreographers under Christa Fassi.  In 1979, Kitty returned from touring/performing with Ice Capades and worked on the show as Performance Director/Choreographer until 1990.

Peggy promised sparkle costumes to her granddaughters if they would take Learn to Skate lessons and sign up for the show! In 2010, Kitty’s daughter (Kathryn) and Becky’s daughter (Xtabay) responded and the girls took their first show by storm! Xtabay skated for a couple of years and even brought her beautiful vocals to the ice, performing the national anthem.  Kathryn was hooked, soccer was over and she spent the next nine years involved in every yearly production. The DeLio sisters and their daughters (Kathryn LaForte, Katrina Thilbert and Xtabay Trampler) performed together in 2012 in a beautiful on-ice tribute in memory of Peggy DeLio.

Guest Skaters

Audiences are dazzled by the brilliance that shines under the ice show spotlight as some of the finest skaters in the world have graced our ice.  These Olympians, National/Junior World champions, and competitors have been truly a “Who’s Who in figure skating” for the past fifty productions.  The late Helen McLoraine, former Colorado Skating Club President and board member, invited and funded the guest skaters.  She so enjoyed them and thought the show was a valuable experience for the up-and-coming US Figure Skating Team members.  She created a grant to be used each year to secure the special talent.

Headlining the Showtime on Ice productions has included these familiar names and more: Scott Hamilton, Paul Wylie, Kristi Yamaguchi, Gracie Gold, Alex/Maia Shibutani, John Curry, Dorothy Hamill, Robin Cousins, Rudy Galindo, Alexa Scimeca/Chris Knierim, Polina Edmunds, Tiffany Chin, Carol Fox/Richard Dalley, Randy Gardner/Tai Babalonia, Mirai Nagasu, Starr Andrews, Ashley Cain/Timothy LeDuc, Hanna Harrell, and Tomoki Hiwatashi.  Max Aaron and Ryan Bradley are true favorites, each making multiple repeat performances in Showtime on Ice.

Show Alumni

Showtime on Ice has been an amazing stage and training experience, preparing skaters for professional shows for years! Some show alumni have pursued careers in Ice Capades, Ice Follies, Holiday on Ice, Disney on Ice, and many of the cruise ship shows.  Several have returned after their professional show careers to share their expertise and magic with our show skaters.  Those skaters include Justin/Laura Gaumond, Kitty DeLio-LaForte, Kelly Corcoran Smith, Parry Snyder, Carol Fox, and Amy Schneider (our current Performance Director).

In 2018, a former skater (Maddison Bullock) made news in Hollywood and in the skating world with a movie premiere.  “Ice, the Movie” featured her in a starring role and as director.  More Stars and headlines are surely in the making!

Recent or current professional performers include several former Showtime on Ice skaters, namely, Janie Ochitwa, Daniel Arsenault, Phoebe Schneider, Phoebe Flynn, Sarah Pultorak, Kaylee Holloway, and Kimmy Huckabee.

Forever Family

We treasure the family we call the Showtime on Ice community.  Without the vision, audience and far-reaching support (coaches, skating clubs, sponsors, families/alumni and countless volunteers), Showtime on Ice would be a distant memory.  For many, “it is the best time of the year.”  The show is shaped by tradition, talent, stage and song but memories and friendships last a lifetime, long after the lights are dimmed.