Winter Skate Holiday On Ice Figure Skating Show To Benefit Cradles To Crayons

Dec. 13 event at Patriot Place’s outdoor ice rink to feature appearances by Santa and Mrs. Claus and performances by eight New England figure skating clubs and seven New England figure skaters. The event is sanctioned by U.S. Figure Skating.

Santa and Mrs. Claus are coming to Winter Skate at Patriot Place presented by Harvard Pilgrim Health Care on Sunday, Dec. 13, and they are bringing a talented lineup of figure skaters to perform in this year’s Holiday on Ice show to benefit Cradles to Crayons.

The show begins at 5 p.m. and will feature special figure skating performances by Maxim Naumov, Taylor-Rae Rocco, Brad Vigorito, Jade Esposito and Nathanial Rensing, and Jillian Smart and Matthew Rounis. Additionally, New England figure skating clubs from Boxborough, Boston, Warwick, R.I., Norfolk, Simsbury, Conn., Yarmouth, Smithfield, R.I. and Pawtucket, R.I. will perform.

Admission is a donation of a new or gently used coat or hat and gloves set to Cradles to Crayons. One admission grants access for up to four people.

“We have had the pleasure of hosting many of these talented figure skaters in a number of shows at Patriot Place over the years and look forward to their return to the Winter Skate ice on Dec. 13,” said Patriot Place General Manager Brian Earley. “The holidays are a great time to spend with loved ones and give to those less fortunate. Our Holiday on Ice show perfectly captures that spirit by giving families a wonderful event to attend together while giving back to those in need through donations collected for Cradles to Crayons.”

Henry Son, the national announcer for U.S. Figure Skating, will announce the Holiday on Ice show, which will be directed by Ashley Brouillette with music by Creative Music Productions. The event, sponsored by the Pawtucket and Providence Figure Skating Club, is sanctioned by U.S. Figure Skating.

FIGURE SKATER BIOGRAPHIES

Below are the biographies for each of the figure skaters performing in Patriot Place’s Holiday on Ice show.

Taylor–Rae Rocco, a sophomore at the University of Hartford, is currently the Junior Ladies New England Regional bronze medalist and three-time Eastern Sectional Championship competitor. Her coaches are the Olympic pairs team duo of Vadim Naumov and Evgenia Shishkova.
Brad Vigorito began figure skating at the Smithfield Figure Skating Club in 1998. In 2002, he qualified for the Eastern Sectional Championships for the first time at the Novice level. In 2004, he competed at the Junior National Championships in the Intermediate Pairs with former partner Marissa Castelli. Today, he is a seven-time Eastern Sectional Senior Competitor and is coached by Julie Graham and Sergey Minaeve.
Jade Esposito and Nathan Rensing represent the Colonial Figure Skating Club in Boxborough as an Intermediate pairs team. They have competed at the Eastern Sectional and U.S. National Figure Skating Championships for the past three years. They have won two silver medals and one bronze at Easterns and have placed in the top six in the nation for the past two years. The team is coached by Sheryl Franks and Chad Brennan.
Maxim Naumov, 14, is a Novice level skater and a member of the Charter Oak Figure Skating Club. In 2013, he won the U.S. National Juvenile title and is currently the New England Regional Novice men’s champion. Naumov is training year-round at the International Skating Center of Connecticut and has dreams of becoming an Olympian.
Jillian Smart and Matthew Rounis, are a Novice pairs team and have been skating together for eight months. Smart, 15, is a sophomore at Whitman-Hanson Regional High School in Whitman, Mass., while Rounis is a sophomore at Northeastern University studying political science.

Winter Skate, located next to CBS Scene Restaurant & Bar, offers public skating Monday, Wednesday and Thursday from 4-6:30 p.m.; Tuesday from 4-5:30 p.m.; Friday from 4-11 p.m.; Saturday and all school holidays from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Winter Skate will be open until late February. Concessions presented by Dunkin’ Donuts and bathrooms are available. Parking is free.

Standard skating price is $8 for adults and $6 for children 12 and under and seniors 65 and over. Harvard Pilgrim members receive $2 off admission by showing their membership card. On-site skate rentals are $4. Full-season passes for families are $125.

Individual season passes are $75 for adults and $60 for children and seniors. Individual admission and season passes do not include skate rentals. Group rates, private events and hockey rentals are available by calling (508) 203-2100 or by email at WinterSkate@Patriot-Place.com.

For more information, visit http://www.patriot-place.com/WinterSkate.