The Ice (ザ・アイス) is an annual touring
ice show in Japan held over the summer at the end of July and early August with a cast of national top skaters from Japan and around the world. The show includes a variety of group numbers, collaborations between top singles skaters, and dance battles.
History
Originally labeled a midsummer ice festival, The Ice debuted in
Aichi in 2007, featuring
Mao Asada and
Mai Asada. In the early years, the show was sponsored by
Olympus from 2007 to 2010.
Lotte took over the title sponsorship from 2011.[1][2][3] After the
"Great East Japan Earthquake" in 2011, the shows in
Osaka and
Hachinoe in 2011, and the show in
Nikko in 2012 were charity performances benefitting the recovery effort.[3][4][5] In 2020 and 2021, the tour was canceled as a result of the ongoing
COVID-19 pandemic. It resumed in 2022.[6]
Concept
The Ice has a variety show format with group numbers, special collaborations between top skaters that don't usually team up, dance battles, and other game show elements.[1] The 2022 and 2023 editions included duets featuring two-time world champion
Shoma Uno and Olympic champion
Nathan Chen set to music from The Mission by
Ennio Morricone[6] and "On the Nature of Daylight" by
Max Richter respectively.[7] The show introduced off-ice dance performances for the first time in 2023 with
Kevin Aymoz,
Daisuke Takahashi,
Cha Jun-hwan and
Ilia Malinin.[8]
Attendance and accessibility
The tour attracts up to 30,000 spectators on an annual basis, and ticket prices ranged from 3,000 yen to 29,000 yen for the shows in
Osaka in 2023[9] The shows have since 2007 been televised on local terrestrial channels and nationwide on satellite channels by
Chukyo TV[10] and
Nippon Television.[11][3][12] In 2023, The Ice stopped in
Aichi,[13]Nikko,[14] Osaka and
Morioka and all 12 shows were streamed live on four different subscription channels.[15]
Cast
The skaters performing in The Ice since its inception in 2007 include:[16][17][citation needed]