Welland skater featured in Cirque du Soleil's first ice skating show

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Cirque du Soleil entertainers will glide into St. Catharines, bringing with them what promises to be the company's coolest arena show yet.

Welland's own Hjordis Lee never in her wildest dreams imagined when she began skating at the age of seven that she would be among those performers, with eight performances lined up between June 30 and July 3 at the Meridian Centre.

‘Crystal’ takes audiences on a journey into a whimsical frozen playground where circus art and the world of ice skating intersect with acrobatics and aerial feats.

Starring as the title role Crystal, Lee describes her character as’ a misfit that doesn't quite fit in and is bullied for being different.

"We are in her mind all the time. One day she runs away because of pure frustration and she comes across this frozen pond and accidentally falls through the ice," Lee said.

When Crystal falls through the ice, the audience is along for the ride while Crystal goes through a journey of self-discovery.

"I feel like everybody can relate to her in one way or another," Lee said.

‘Crystal’, which was created by Shana Carroll and Sebastien Soldevila, is unique in that it's Cirque du Soleil's first and only show on ice.

"To see the types of acrobatics mixed with the beautiful art form of skating is so completely different and not like any other show out there. So, (the performances are) going to be wild and there's so much to see," Lee said.

The skater is looking forward to bringing the show to Niagara for its Canadian relaunch.

Lee said it feels great to be back on the ice performing after COVID-19 forced the Cirque ensemble to finish a few remaining shows and return home for a while.

With gyms, ice rinks and many other facilities locked down, continuing to train for the show wasn't an easy task.

During the show's down time, Lee said she would do workouts at home, and at times even rent a ballet studio when she could train. She also took skating to the next level.

"There's a form of frames with wheels that you can put on figure skating boots, that I started to do and it is a much different feeling from skating on the ice, but it was at least something that could simulate skating on the ice," Lee explained.

Skating has taken Lee all over the world. Originally from Vancouver, Lee competed for many years nationally and internationally medalling in singles, pairs and ice dance. Throughout her skating career, she also trained in ballet, contemporary, jazz and musical theatre for 10 years.

"I love the creative part of skating. And being on ice adds that extra element of freedom in the way that you move, having the wind the speed and that kind of thrill factor as well because it can be dangerous and we fall; I still fall even to this day and add that kind of danger. It's a little bit of an adrenaline rush," she said.

In her 13 years as a professional figure skater, Lee has travelled all over the world performing in various productions including Art on Ice where she had the opportunity to perform with Olympic skaters Evgeni Plushenko and Stéphane Lambiel.

She worked seven years as a soloist with Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines and three years in Germany as part of Phantasialand. Before joining Cirque du Soleil, Lee performed as Snow White in Russian Ice Stars. She joined Cirque du Soleil's ‘Crystal’ in February 2019 as one of the figure skaters performing as Crystal.

Lee hopes to continue performing all over the globe, and eventually have her own production company to contribute to the industry she loves so much.

Tickets are available for purchase online at www.cirquedusoleil.com/crystal.

CLARIFICATION: June 24, 2022: This article has been edited from a previously published version to indicate the show is being relaunched in Canada.

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