Migrant workers' children break the ice at Disney show
Shot by Jiang Xiaowei, Li Qian. Edited by Li Qian, Jiang Xiaowei. Subtitles by Li Qian.
Children of rural migrant workers in Shanghai have been invited to meet and skate with Disney characters as part of a newly-launched welfare campaign.
The world-renowned touring ice show "Disney on Ice" has recently been staged at the Mercedes-Benz Arena, inviting the audiences to traverse through the Pride Lands with Timon and Pumbaa, team up with Woody and Bo Peep to search for Forky, and discover the enchanted world of Arendelle with Anna and Elsa, and much more.
In partnership with Shanghai Jiuqian Volunteer Service Club, the Arena invited nearly 40 migrant children to watch the show in late October in its "Chasing The Dream" campaign, part of its 2023 CSR project "Shine Program."
"Disney on Ice" is staged at the Mercedes-Benz Arena.
Before the show, about 20 children got the chance to learn how to skate from the performers.
"It's my first time to skate on ice and I'm so excited though I almost stumbled and fell," said 9-year-old girl Beibei, fan of Winnie the Pooh. "Skating is cool. Though I almost slipped over on the ice, I love it. And I want to be a skater when I grow up."
One of the skaters, Georgia Van Offeren from the US, grew up in an ice skating family as her grandparents, her parents and her brother all skate. The event just reminded her of her childhood when she was little and enjoyed skating.
"It's much fun to see the excitement and to watch them learn and develop, and just see the joy that ice skating brings," she said.
"China shows such a big respect for figure skating and the art form. So it's a joy to perform here in China."
Children of migrant workers have the chance to learn skating from the performers before the show.
Chen Zhongying, director of Jiuqian, said it's a rare opportunity for these children to meet world-class skating performers face to face.
"They told me they fell in love with skating and they hope to skate again," she said.
In megacities like Shanghai, migrant workers and their children play a big part. To help them better integrated into local communities, Jiuqian, a public welfare organization founded in 2008, provides migrant and poverty-stricken children aged between 9 to 18 with various classes and activities in music, English, reading, computer skills and much more.
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