Disney On Ice presents Passport To Adventure, Manchester Arena Review

We were lucky enough to be invited to see Feld Productions Disney On Ice presents Passport To Adventure at Manchester Arena on Wednesday night. This show kicked off the Manchester run, which ends on Sunday 15th October.

It's safe to say we were all in good spirits and really excited about the show - especially seeing Peter Pan and of course the characters from Zootropolis! My children weren't in the mood for press photos, so we obliged.

The children were impressed by the Fit To Dance team and their boomerangs though - throwing and catching on skates is very skillful. I didn't see a single skater fall all night, it looked to be a near perfect performance.

After the Fit To Dance and an introduction with Mickey, Minnie and the gang, it was a great performance of It's A Small World with amazing national costume. I want those dresses!

The storyline for the show, as the name suggests, involves travelling the world, and Africa was next with The Lion King. Some of the costumes weren't as impressive as this one - how fantastic is Rafiki!

Then it was off to England, specifically London, and the location, plus the timeframe for the 'genuine London Bobby' gave away what was coming next.

Peter Pan really did not disappoint. There was lots of flying on wires and it was very elegant. They really made use of shadow to great effect as the dancers were raised up and down on the wires.
 

We were all really into it by this point. The boys didn't take their eyes off the performance.

It was a huge cast and they were perfectly timed. The cast really were excellent, I can't fault their professionalism and obvious commitment to the show.

The huge inflatable crocodile was awesome! He wasn't the only gigantic inflatable either. The next segment was The Little Mermaid and as Ursula grew, she became pretty scary-looking. Don't worry though, she was already beaten by Prince Eric and deflating rapidly...

Mickey, Minnie, Donald and Daisy Duck and the rest of the crew regularly appear throughout, connecting the parts of the adventure together.

The next location was not as out-of-this-world as Neverland, but it's certainly not somewhere us mere mortals can visit - Arendelle, and Frozen. It is perfect for Disney On Ice, and don't tell anyone, but all 3 of my boys were singing along...

The show finale included what must have been the entire cast and it really is massive this year. So many fabulous Disney favourites all on (and flying over) one rink together.

The show was brilliant. I much prefer the mix of characters and different films than as last year when it focussed on one alone. We all especially enjoyed Peter Pan, with both of the boys saying the flying was their favourite part of the whole evening.

For a different opinion, find out what We're Going On An Adventure and Red rose Mummy thought in their reviews.

Disney On Ice presents Passport To Adventure has 3 more days to run in Manchester and TICKETS ARE STILL AVAILABLE for all shows. Prices start around £31 per person including the booking fee and Venue Restoration Levy

After Manchester, Disney On Ice presents Passport To Adventure will visit:

Arena Birmingham 18-29 October

SSE Arena, Belfast 3-5 November

Citywest Hotel, Dublin 10-12 November

FlyDSA Arena, formerly Sheffield Arena 15-19 November

The O2, London 20-30 December

To find out more, including showtimes, or to book tickets, go to the Disney On Ice presents Passport To Adventure website.

It was lovely to be back at the Arena, but also incredibly poignant. Security is very tight now, with everyone searched and absolutely no rucksacks and no bags permitted larger than 35cm x 40cm. Some exits and entrances are barred and there is a heavy Police presence. Even so, it didn't feel scary. You go through airport style screening metal detectors, which delighted the children because they'd seen it before on TV.
As we passed near to where the bomb went off, and saw #wearemanchester and the Manchester Bee everywhere, it was incredibly humbling, and I saw several people choke back tears or look to the ground. 
The arena was 2/5 empty, which broke my heart as it's always looked full when we've been before. If you are contemplating tickets, support the arena. Show the bad guys they didn't win.

We were treated to our evening for review and the boys were each given a toy and books.