Disney opener as smooth as ice ‘Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs’ a faithful and colorful production

Walt Disney’s first groundbreaking animated classic came alive Wednesday night as Disney on Ice presented “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs,” the first of nine shows at the Bangor Auditorium.

Set against the backdrop of a giant library, the theme of the evening was “reading is fun.” As host Mickey Mouse looked on, skating characters re-enacted songs from such Disney classics as “Beauty and the Beast,” “The Jungle Book,” “The Little Mermaid,” “Aladdin” and “The Lion King.”

Then the company launched into a faithful and colorful re-creation of the hoary fairy tale “Snow White,” which was made new again for many of the young children among the 1,045 in attendance. The production follows the travails of beautiful, perky Princess Snow White, as she escapes the nefarious plots of her vain stepmother, the Queen, meets her photogenic paramour, Prince Charming, sets up house with her seven vertically challenged friends and makes a bad food choice, which she eventually overcomes.

The solo skaters acted their roles well. But the standouts among the skating cast were Russian pairs skaters Svetlana Dragaeva and Stanislav Joukov, dynamic in their portrayal of the Apple’s Furies and Aladdin and Jasmine.

There were some first-night glitches. The show started late (a no-no with kids staying up past their bedtimes) because of a lighting problem. There were a handful of on-ice collisions as the skaters familiarized themselves with the half-sheet of ice, but it didn’t resemble a Bruins game (the Disney skaters checked harder).

But overall, it was a slick production. Stagehands moved wheeled set pieces and props on and off the ice fairly seamlessly; many coming through gaps built into the colorful backdrop. And, of course, the show was costumed beautifully.

Off the ice, it was caveat emptor, as Mouse marketers were set up in kiosks about every 6 feet. This led to parents being badgered by their youthful Disney devotees to buy $6 cotton candy (hyperactivity in a bag) and $8 slushies in Dopey (the character, not a commentary on the design) cups. “Those have a two-year warranty” intoned the earnest salespeople, as if that made the $15 magic wand more palatable.

But within the arena, many youngsters went away happy into the frozen tundra after seeing many of their favorites brought to life.

Remaining shows are at 7 tonight, 11:30 a.m., 3 and 7 p.m. Saturday, 1 and 4:30 Sunday, and 2 p.m. Monday. Tickets are available from the auditorium box office at 990-4444 and from the TicketMaster outlet at Filene’s customer service center, Bangor Mall; and through TicketMaster at 775-3331.