“Disney on Ice: Follow Your Heart” is family friendly. Most of the Disney characters’ stories are fantasy. Parents will enjoy their favorite Disney character from when they were growing up and children can enjoy watching the latest Disney characters like Dory from “Finding Dory” or Elsa and Anna from “Frozen.”

The first half of the show is an alluring way of tying all Disney stories together. All the stories are different genres and years. It must have been difficult to combine the stories in a way that makes sense.

The story starts by Riley, from “Inside Out”, struggling to focus in her hockey practice. The emotions, Joy, Anger, Fear, Disgust, and Sadness try to find a way to make Riley feel more sure of herself while playing hockey. They begin playing memories of other Disney characters’ stories that include different feelings.

There are many different color lights that display the mood of the scene. When Beast becomes angry at Belle, the lights change to a fiery red. A projector displays different images on the ice rink, like seashells when Dory is finding her way home to her parents.

The skaters have no microphones because they don’t sing or talk. They prerecord and play their lines in the background. Although the voices are without feeling, their facial expressions and body movement reveal emotion. The skaters do a wonderful job making sure that’s clear to the audience.

There aren’t any original songs. They’re all from older and newer Disney movies. People probably heard the song once or multiple times, like “Let It Go.” The songs are clear because they’re played on loudspeakers. There’s no live singing because performers move a lot. It’s difficult to sing while skating quickly across an ice rink.

The choreography is thrilling and enchanting to watch, on the ice and in the air. A Prince gracefully lifts a Princess above his head and moves around the ice. A Disney Princess climbs a rope and performs acrobatics. The dancing seems difficult since they’re skating in masks. It must be hard to see.

There are many wardrobe changes. Spectators can admire the beautiful dresses of some of the Disney characters. Women mostly wear short dresses so they can move around freely. All costumes are designed well enough that the audience can quickly identify which Disney character it is.

The set changes as often as costumes. The props for each set have to be easy to move around, so they are small. Some props move around by themselves. There’s a staircase used for “Frozen” that lights up and moves along the ice. There’s also a fountain that shoots sparks and water.

The special effects makes the show very appealing. At one point Merida shoots her arrow. A firecracker is used as the arrow. Fire sparkles across the ice rink. Fire is often used as special effect, mostly when magic is used. While the skaters perform “Frozen” feathers fall from the ceiling giving the illusion of snow.

“Disney on Ice: Follow Your Heart” captivates the audience because people wait to see which Disney character will appear next and how their story will be shown. This show engages audiences to see which memory makes Riley feel more confident in herself. 4 PAWS

Purchase tickets online or at the box office for around $23. Performances run in the United Center February 1 – February 12, 2017.