Jessica Caprio
Jessica Caprio played high school hockey in nearby Burlington and attended UMass/Lowell.
“I played hockey at Burlington High for three years and I was on the dance team all four years,” said Caprio. “I also skated at the Winchester Figure Skating Club out of the Burlington Ice Palace.”
That combination of talents is serving Caprio well in her role as a professional skater in the Disney On Ice show, “Worlds of Fantasy,” that is presented by YoKids Organic Yogurt. Caprio makes her return to the Boston area Friday night at the Agganis Arena. The show allows fans to experience a magical Disney fantasy live on ice.
Caprio’s introduction to figure skating came at the age of seven when she arrived early for one of her brother’s hockey practices and there were figure skaters going through their routines on the ice.
“I knew I wanted to try that and so I started with the Burlington Hockey and Figure Skating associations and then signed up for private lessons with the Winchester Figure Skating Club – and I’ve been skating ever since.”
Caprio received degrees in Marketing and Management from UMass/Lowell where she served as president of the dance team. As a student, she would often attend UMass/Lowell hockey games, including some against the BU team at Agganis Arena.
Following her graduation, she performed in a Christmas skating show, “The Holiday Ice Spectacular,” in Atlanta. She signed a three-month contract to perform in “Snoopy Great America Show,” in San Jose.
Then it was on Disney on Ice for a full-time career in skating. She has been a member of the Disney on Ice cast for the past four years.
The attractive 26-year-old traveled with Disney on Ice to Europe last year. She has also skated in shows in Canada, South Africa, Israel and Mexico. She had the opportunity to perform at the DCU Center in Worcester in 2013.
“Worcester is the closest I’ve come to my home so it’s going to be really exciting to play Boston because that’s about 25 minutes from where I live,” said Caprio. “I’m super excited. Especially to be here for two weeks – it’s going to be amazing.”
Caprio said she’s been handling the numerous ticket requests and determining the shows when her family and friends will be in the audience.
Caprio is an ensemble skater in the show that has a cast of 40 performers. “What that means is that anytime there is a big production number, I’ll be out there – for the openings and the finales and things like that.”
One of the stunts Boston fans might see Caprio perform is a cartwheel on the ice. “That’s more of a fun one – maybe I’ll do one because my family is going to be there.”
Caprio is a fan of the Disney experience herself. She has visited Disney World in Orlando, Disneyland in Paris.
“I really like working for the Disney brand and doing the Disney shows because I wondered if would tire of the same songs, but these shows always take you back to that time when you were a little kid and the movies seemed so real and connected to you so much – I genuinely enjoy skating for Disney.”