Ice cool

Scrat, Sid and Manny come to life

By Suwitcha Chaiyong
Photos courtesy of BEC-Tero

The 2002 blockbuster animated film, Ice Age, and its sequels introduced the famous characters Scrat the squirrel, Sid the sloth and the woolly mammoths Manny, Ellie and baby Peaches. All these characters will come to life in Bangkok this month at Ice Age Live! A Mammoth Adventure.

This two-hour and 50-minute ice show will be performed by more than 40 international artists

The story begins when the herd of Ice Age animals leave their home because of a drought. They travel to a forbidden land ruled by the wicked bird Shadow who doesn’t like visitors. To show his anger, Shadow and his gang abduct baby Peaches. Manny, Diego and Sid team up to rescue her. We can find out how the Ice Age heroes rescue Peaches in Ice Age Live! A Mammoth Adventure from November 12 to 15 at Impact Arena.

Student Weekly recently interviewed two stars of the show — 22-year-old American Veronica Hochstein and 29-year-old Mexican Brian Garcia Buenrostro — who answered our questions via email. The actors told us about their experiences travelling the world with the show.

Student Weekly: What was it like to perform your first Ice Age Live show?

Veronica: My first show was the best day of my life. I’ll never forget hearing the audience clapping and cheering, and seeing the smiles from people of all ages. I was in tears of happiness and thought that my dreams had come true!

Brian: I’m always nervous at the beginning of any show. I have to do my best and thinking about this is a big responsibility. In the first show, I messed up. It was a challenge since working on ice is not easy. After that I became more confident but sometimes I still mess up. [Laughs.]

Student Weekly: What kind of skills should Ice Age Live performers have?

Veronica: Performers have a high level of skill. The cast includes skaters, aerialists, martial artists, acrobats and gymnasts. We all have different techniques which really brings an awesome performance to the stage.

Student Weekly: What is the best thing about being in the show?

Veronica: The best part is seeing the reaction from the audience. It gives me so much joy knowing that our performance can bring so much happiness to everybody. As a team we bring this show to life.

Brian: The best thing is travelling. We get to know the world while doing what we like. Getting to know a huge variety of cultures is priceless.

Student Weekly: Are there any difficulties that you have to deal with?

Veronica: It’s always hard being away from friends and family for long periods of time, but the friends I have made on tour are my family away from home.

Brian: As an aerialist, the weather conditions can cause difficulty when I have to perform in cold countries because the body takes longer to get ready for action and is more likely to get injured.

Student Weekly: Which country’s audience impressed you the most?

Veronica: Every audience reaction is different, which really makes my job special. Estonia had a very nice crowd. The audiences were clapping along to the music in every upbeat scene. Kids were dancing around and interacting with the characters. It really makes the show enjoyable. That’s why I love my job so much.

Brian: Each country surprises us. Because of the different cultures, sometimes we have audiences that are easy to amaze and some others that don’t clap until the end. But if I had to choose my favourites I would say places like Vienna, Paris and Russia where there were lots of kids watching the show.

Student Weekly: Which character in the show does you like the most?

Veronica: Sid is probably my favourite character. He’s so silly and brings humour to everything he does.

Brian: That’s a tough question because I would like to say mine. [Laughs.]

Student Weekly: What kind of advice would you give anybody who wants to join the Ice Age Live team?

Veronica: Bring your smiles and positive energy. You can never have enough. We’re more than just friends here, we’re family. We have such talent throughout the group and I’m so lucky to be part of such an amazing cast.

Brian: It’s easy. First, ask yourself if you like the cold. If so, the next step is to get your material ready and submit it. The casting department is always looking for new faces and we’re always happy to welcome new people into the herd.

comments powered by Disqus