SOMEONE YOU SHOULD KNOW
North grad to star in Disney ice show
by ELIZABETH TAUFA

Trey Ehre

Like many Western New York children, Trey Ehre started playing ice hockey at four years old. By the time he was eight, he had also taken up figure skating as a way to improve his skills. By age 13, he was on the ice more than 40 hours a week.

"I was in two hockey clubs and competitive skating," the 1997 Williamsville North graduate said. "It was just too much so I had to choose one."

After much deliberation, he chose figure skating.

"I love hockey, but I'm not a very big guy so skating seemed like a better route."

A route, as it seems, that has served him well.

After graduating from North, Ehre moved to Jamestown to pursue competitive skating endeavors, training with Kirk Wyse and Lenel van den Berg.

"My last competition was the U.S. Nationals in 2000," he said.

Training and competing were very intense for Ehre due to the popularity of skating in U.S. sports. While training, he was also coaching and attending Jamestown Community College.

However, Ehre knew he had a different calling when it came to skating. At 21, he wanted to travel and perform, not necessarily compete and win.

"I preferred to hear the audience reaction," he said. "So it was a natural change to go to professional skating."

Seven years later, Ehre will soon be playing the lead role of Troy in the ice adaptation of Disney's "High School Musical on Ice."

"It's a huge endeavor," Ehre said of the production. "There are actually three productions of the show; one for the East coast, one for the West coast and one international."

Ehre will be a member of the international cast and his run will go from the early fall until mid to late June. The show will be featured in South America, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, Scandinavian countries, Australia and New Zealand.

"You got to give your preference to the casting director of which production you wanted to be in," he said. "It was a casting decision but this is the one I wanted so it really worked out."

Working with ice adaptations of musicals is nothing new to Ehre, having been a part of "Footloose on Ice," "Broadway on Ice" and the Ice Theatre of New York, but the challenges remain the same.

While the show will have voiceovers for the music, Ehre noted that in order to make it look like he is singing, he actually has to sing while skating the difficult routines.

Ehre's background and experience will help him with his undertaking, but also a famous figure skater helped influence his work ethic and attitude on the ice.

"When I was doing Broadway on Ice in Branson, Missouri, we had different guest stars like Nancy Kerrigan, Tara Lipinski and Tai Babilonia and Randy Gardner," he said. "I'll always remember Nancy because she was so determined. If she missed an element in the show - and she was always pushing herself to do top things - she would go out after the show and practice. It was that kind of determination and commitment to what she was doing that really hit home for me."

He continued that by seeing the sense of pride that Kerrigan took in herself and her skating instilled that same quality in him.

Ehre also noted that when contemplating a professional skating career, he didn't think of himself as a lead skater in a production like this, but is honored to be given the opportunity to be one.

"It's very fulfilling to give something back to an audience," he said. "There's no greater feeling than skating and knowing that the audience is right there with you. It's one of my favorite things."

While Ehre won't be performing in the area, "High School Musical: The Ice Tour" will be at HSBC Arena at 7 p.m. Feb. 1, 3 p.m. Feb. 2 and 1 p.m. Feb. 3. Tickets can be purchased online at Tickets.com or by calling 888-223-6000 or at HSBC Arena. The show will also be in Rochester Jan. 18 through 20 and in Syracuse Jan. 25 through 27.

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