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Market square skater fulfils Disney On Ice dream

News imageJak Brown and supplied A composite image of Hanyu Wong. The still on the left side side shows Hanyu skating in Nottingham's Old Market Square. He is wearing a grey long sleeve top and grey trousers. He is balancing on one leg on the grey slabs of the square. In the image on the right, Hanyu is wearing a long black coat, a black baseball cap and black trousers. Behind him are people sat down looking at a stage, where stars are projected on to a curtain illuminated in red and blue. Jak Brown and supplied
Hanyu Wong practised his skills in Nottingham city centre during the pandemic - now he's performing with Disney On Ice

An ice skater who honed his skills in a city centre during the Covid pandemic is preparing to perform with Disney On Ice in the US.

Hanyu Wong, 30, was filmed practising his skating in Nottingham's Old Market Square when ice rinks were closed in early 2021.

At the time, Wong told the BBC it was his "goal" to one day perform with Disney On Ice.

Now, he's preparing to embark on the show's tour of the US later this year.

"I'm super proud of myself," he said. "I never thought this would come around to me."

News imageHanyu Wong. He is wearing a black baseball cap and a long sleeve black top. He is smiling at the camera. Behind him is an ice rink with several people skating.
Wong fell in love with ice skating during school trips to the National Ice Centre in Nottingham

Wong, who fell in love with ice skating at the age of 16 during school trips to the ice rink, had always dreamt of performing in a show.

But his hopes were derailed during the pandemic when the National Ice Centre in Nottingham, where Wong practised each week, abruptly closed to the public.

Determined to maintain his skills, the Nottingham College student instead took to the city's mostly empty Old Market Square in his specially-designed roller skates.

His performances drew interest from onlookers and videos were posted on social media.

By-standers enjoyed watching Wong practise in the square

"I was nervous when they saw me skating," he said.

"They [passers-by] were very interested in [me]. They came and asked 'where do you get [the roller skates]' and 'what can you do? Can you show me something?'

"It's a great feeling."

After a successful audition with Disney On Ice, Wong secured a short-term contract as part of the ensemble cast last year, and he has since toured Europe, performing to thousands in Belgium, Finland and Sweden.

The experience of skating on a crowded rink in front of arena-sized audiences was a far cry from his trips to Old Market Square.

"It was the biggest audience I'd ever performed in front of and that's a huge thing for me," he added.

"It's stressful because it's a new thing for me. Performing in such a small space, it's really hard to co-ordinate people around.

"So many people audition for Disney On Ice and I'm part of it now and I'm really, really happy with it. I love it. I really love it."

News imageSupplied Hanyu Wong stood in an empty arena. He is wearing all black and his arms are aloft as he looks towards the camera.Supplied
Wong will perform in scenes taken from several of Disney's biggest films

Now, Wong has been awarded a longer contract with Disney On Ice as he looks ahead to performing on a nine-month tour across the US in August.

He will play the role of a starfish during performances of Under The Sea from the Disney classic, The Little Mermaid, and a seagull during a depiction of scenes from Frozen.

But his favourite role is that of a donkey for a scene taken from the film Encanto.

"The dance movement is really quirky, it's really jazzy, sassy - and I like that," he said.

"It's going to be the longest contract I've ever had. I've never toured the States before, so I'm really looking forward to it.

In the meantime, Wong is busy perfecting his techniques at the National Ice Centre before he goes on tour.

"During the break I'm focused more on my basic skating skills because, in the show, skating skills are a must" he said.

Wong said the training sessions in Nottingham city centre during the pandemic helped him to fulfil his dream.

He said: "Do what you love, never give up and keep going."

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