Cedar Rapids native skates into Disney dream

Figure skater Echo Cassill has landed a new passport to adventure — spinning, leaping and jumping into the wonderful world of Disney.

The Cedar Rapids native, who has been lacing up her skates since age 5, is ready to burst onto the ice Wednesday night in the Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines. She expects to see familiar faces in the crowd throughout the Thanksgiving holiday, as Disney On Ice is there through Nov. 27.

Audience members will see lots of familiar faces in 'Passport to Adventure,' which begins in Africa with Timon, Pumbaa, Nala and Simba from 'The Lion King,' then flies to London to meet up with Peter Pan and the pirates.

'That's my favorite section,' Cassill, 21, said by phone from a tour stop in Sioux Falls, S.D. An ensemble member, she loves playing one of the nefarious Captain Hook's pirates.

'We get to see all the Darling children fly, along with Peter Pan and Tinkerbell, and of course, we get to meet Captain Hook and his pirates, which is my personal favorite part of the show. And then we get to swim down under the sea with the Little Mermaid. That's a really fun part, too, because there's a lot of vibrant colors and it's super-upbeat and happy, so that's really cool.

'And then, of course, everybody's favorite: We get to go to Arendelle with 'Frozen,' with Elsa and Anna and Olaf and Kristoff and Hans. It's an amazing part of the show, as well. Everybody's so talented throughout the whole show, but 'Frozen' is our newest part, so it's really cool to see what that has to offer.'

Cassill loves watching the children's reactions as they see the characters spring to life.

'They have so much fun,' she said. 'I've seen from tears to laughter to running around all over the place.'

The cast also gets to interact with the kids, sometimes giving them high-fives.

'Even the parents really get a kick out of it,' she said.

She's having fun, too, in her first turn with the ice show after 'years of looking up to these skaters.'

Amy Blades, one of her coaches at the Cedar Rapids Ice Arena, is taking a group to see her in action in Des Moines. Blades plans to see the show at other tour stops as well, to cheer on her former student.

'Echo has been — since the time I started teaching her at 6 years old — a show skater,' Blades said. 'The artistry of the sport was the most important part to her. She would always do well in competitions, but she especially did well in the artistic part of the competition. ...

'She's had this dream forever, and it's taken a little while, but I'm just so happy that she finally realized her dream, and I think she'll be in that show for a while.'

Cassill, who said she's especially strong at spinning, is ready to twirl her way around the globe and is building connections to help make that happen. She's taking a leave of absence from her studies at the University of Denver, knowing she could always go back.

'I'm going to see where the show leads me,' she said. 'I want to travel the world with it.'

Her Disney journey began by sending her resume and skating video to the Disney casting director. She auditioned in Denver, and was hired in June. After learning the show, she joined the tour and is skating her way from stops in California and Salt Lake City, to the upper Midwest, then on to parts of Canada and the East Coast.

Discipline has always been her strong suit.

'Echo is an incredibly disciplined skater and we would be at the rink at 6 a.m. from the time she was like 9 until she was 18,' Blades said. She returned after school for a couple more hours on the ice, and practiced every day but Sunday.

Despite her aggressive schedule, her parents, Roger and Colleen Cassill, nudged her into extracurricular activities at Jefferson High School.

'They wanted me to do something other than skating,' she said. So she participated in West Side Delegation show choir and the poms dance team and was 'totally shocked' to be crowned 2013 homecoming queen.

Her parents not only supported her efforts, but also those of her older brothers Zac, a geologist, and Landon, a NASCAR driver.

'They woke me up at 5 a.m. since fourth grade and drove with me to competitions,' she said, 'while helping Landon with his racing career. They were pretty busy. I think they're having a lot of fun being empty-nesters.'

IF YOU GO

What: Disney On Ice: 'Passport to Adventure,' with ensemble member Echo Cassill of Cedar Rapids

When: Wednesday to Nov. 27, various times

Where: Wells Fargo Arena, 730 Third St., Des Moines

Tickets: $15 to $60, Iowaeventscenter.com