Kapeikis auditions for Disney on Ice, makes first cut
While the majority of teenagers were sitting in class last Friday, Nov. 21, senior Kaela Kapeikis was auditioning for a part in the Disney on Ice show at the Xfinity Center in Everett. She was invited in for a live audition after sending in an audition video.
“It’s a really great opportunity, [you could] travel the world doing what [you] love – I feel really blessed to even just get an audition,” Kapeikis said. “It went really well. They really liked me — they said they hoped they’d see me in July.”
Kapeikis found out about Disney on Ice through her parents, who have both done it before, and it’s been her dream since she was 6 years old. Disney on Ice are figure skating shows that are made up of characters from Disney films, and can be combinations of the movies. They draw crowds of 3,000 to 4,000, if not more, and an in-person audition helps screen potential skaters for the right personality and mindset.
Kapeikis won’t find out her results until April or May, but if she gets in, she will go to a six- week rehearsal in Florida in July, and will then start traveling. The first two years includes touring the East Coast of the U.S. and Canada, and the second two years tour the West Coast of the U.S. and Canada. After that, the tour goes around the world and lasts up to six years. However, most skaters only stay for three to four years.
Kapeikis has 16 years of experience and is currently skating with the Wenatchee Figure Skating Club, where she trains year-round. Competitions last from March to October and November. Currently, the club is working on its Christmas show.
In August, Kapeikis went to a the National Showcase figure skating competition in Los Angeles, placing fourth.
Kapeikis sees figure skating in her future as well. If she gets into Disney on Ice, Kapeikis hopes to pursue a career in figure skating, possibly as a choreographer.
“I think that’d be really fun,” Kapeikis said. “I know I want to stay with figure skating, but I don’t know what I want to do with it.”
