Rockettes’ ‘Christmas Spectacular’ lifts audience into a holiday mood
Rockettes Ashli Bear, left, and Katie Forss flank Kidsday reporters, from left, Madison Chin, Francesca Remy and Natalie Waters backstage at Radio City Music Hall. Credit: Newsday / Pat Mullooly
We had an awesome opportunity to see the “Christmas Spectacular” at Radio City Music Hall last week. Besides seeing a great show, we were able to go backstage after the performance and interview two pretty and talented Rockettes — Ashli Bear and Katie Forss.
The show was incredible, and the Rockettes were amazing to watch. We really liked their synchronized tap dancing. They did a lot of tapping to the song “The Twelve Days of Christmas.”
The sound of the tapping was fascinating. Did you know that the Rockettes have microphones on their shoes so the audience can hear them better? We also like the snow routine. It was a very beautiful dance. At the end, “snow” fell on us like an avalanche, which we were excited about! There was also a dance routine where all the Rockettes dressed up as Santa Claus. At the end of this segment there was a special effect that made it look as if hundreds of Santas were dancing with them.
There were other special effects too. We all liked wearing 3-D glasses that made us feel like we were flying with Santa from the North Pole through the streets of New York City. That scene made it really feel like Christmas was coming. Other special effects made it feel that we were a part of the show too.
During another routine, the Rockettes danced on a bus. The bus had tires that moved, and the bus spun around. The scenery behind the bus made it feel like we were on the bus too. We also liked that dance because the Rockettes changed from winter outfits into pretty dresses right on the bus.
In another memorable scene, two boys, Patrick and Ben, go shopping for a Christmas gift for their sister. Patrick, the older brother, doesn’t believe in Christmas, but Santa persuades him otherwise through some pretty amazing musical and dancing demonstrations.
We also liked the closing scene — the Nativity scene — in which real animals such as sheep, camels and donkeys are on the stage. It is beautiful.
The interview with the Rockettes after the show was an exciting, one-of-a-kind experience. We met Ashli Bear and Katie Forss on the actual stage right after the show. They showed us around. We learned about how much they have to practice for each show and for the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.
They told us all about how they get ready for a performance. Ashli tells herself not to get nervous by thinking that there’s nothing that makes you more scared than yourself. Katie, who just started as a Rockette this year, said she’s usually more excited than nervous! We liked when Katie told us that her favorite dance to perform was one of our favorites — the bus scene! We were very interested in learning about how they learn to do the famous soldier fall. That’s when they stand in a line and all fall backward onto each other. It was so cool to watch.
When they took pictures with us, they showed us how to pose like Rockettes. We had to stand with one leg in front of the other and point our toes down.
It was the best time of our life! If you want to see this amazing show, visit them online: rockettes.com/christmas. The show runs through Jan. 1.
