Skater Stories: Kristina Yntema
The principal Elsa in Disney On Ice's Jump In left her kingdom of isolation to talk to this Kingdom of Ice-olation about her career.
The first Disney On Ice show I ever attended was in 2019. Since then I’ve seen “Let It Go” performed on the ice 31 times. It is the Disney On Ice song (with apologies to Magic In The Stars and Let’s Dance, which use Frozen 2 instead of Frozen). And on Friday night I’ll have the pleasure of seeing it performed again by Kristina Yntema, who is the primary Elsa performer on the newest Disney On Ice show, Jump In!
Ahead of those shows, Yntema took the time to chat with me about her skating journey, which has taken her from competing in Austria to bringing Disney magic to audiences around the world.
Q: Going all the way back, how did you get started in skating as a kid?
A: I started skating at 4 years old, and it happened to be that my mom’s best friend, she put her kids into the learn to skate groups, and they dragged me along. And then one of the coaches picked me out of the groups and said she should be a figure skater. And my mom had my sister as well — my sister was 2 years old — so [my mom] was like, “oh, what do you mean, skating lessons? I just came here for fun.” Also, my mom didn’t speak German at the time, and I also didn’t speak any German, so we got approached by the Russian coach, and he started saying, “Okay, three times a week.” And my mom was like, “Absolutely not. There’s no time for that.” Then we got a push from a different, very kind lady, her name was Tatiana, and she said, “It’s okay, you can just come once a week.” So we started going there once a week, and then, once a week, turned twice, three, four times, and then within a year, I think it was going five times a week.
Q: What excited you about going to the rink back then?
A: Back then? Yeah. I think... my... I don’t remember, ‘cause I was so young, but I think the next memory would be with my coach, Tatiana. She always tried to make it all about skating with your passion. I love that she sometimes would just put on the music and say, “Just skate to the music, and improvise, and just make up your own program, and skate just what you feel like doing in that moment,” and I feel like had a big influence on how I skate today. I often like to just put on a song at practice ice, and just improvise to it, and I definitely think she’s the reason why I like to do that.
Q: Were there any skaters back then that you watched, and loved their style or wanted to mimic?
A: I think I was a really big fan of this American skater, Rachael Flatt. She’s the first one that comes to my mind, and Carolina Kostner from Italy. I think those two, but I was a really big Rachael Flatt fan. That is the first one where I remember watching big competitions and being like, “I want to be there.” Um, spoiler, it didn’t happen for me, but...
Q: You did go on to compete, though, in Austria. What did what did you like and dislike about competing?
A: I really was always a performer, and maybe not the strongest technically, but I would always make sure to look at the judges and skate my program, and smile, and really go out there. For the longest time, I was also a performer that, in practice, nothing would go well. But then when it mattered, I would do what I needed to do. My coach, her name is Julia, and she would always be like, “Sometimes when you practice, people would think you can’t skate at all, and then you go out there, and then you do what you need to do.”
As I got older, I didn’t like the intensity of competing as much anymore. I remember on my last competition, I was glad that I came in second because I didn’t want the attention of first. It’s really weird. And my dad said, “Why are you competing if you don’t want to be first?” I said, “Yeah, I don’t know. I think that’s a sign, it’s not for me anymore.”
Q: Now, you said you did like performing, which obviously leads to, how did you get connected with Disney On Ice?
A: One of my closest friends now, her name is Sydney. She used to skate with me at the rink. And I remember watching her, she was on D34 on their big “Frozen” worldwide tour, and she was going to Japan and to Australia, and all of these amazing countries. Disney On Ice doesn’t come to Austria, so I didn’t really know what it was, necessarily. But I knew my friend is there, so I messaged her, and I asked her, “What do you do? Like, what is this job?”
It was around the same time of my last competition. So, I applied to Disney On Ice and to Holiday On Ice, and then I got contracts for both. I decided to go with Disney On Ice, because it had more countries at the time that I wanted to see. And because I grew up watching Holiday On Ice. My first ever ice show was Holiday In Ice, so I was very torn to which one to go. But I ended up being on D15 on their closing tour in 2017, and I got to tour with my friend Sydney. So that was a really beautiful, full circle moment, and that’s what got me into that.
Q: Had you watched much Disney growing up before joining Disney On Ice?
A: Yes. Definitely. The first ones were probably Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast. I really enjoyed “Frozen” when it came out. I wasn’t a kid anymore. It was a teenager. But the character looked so similar to me, and my sister’s name is Anna, so we could really relate to that sisterly bond. I remember when it came out, we were both like, “Oh, these characters look so similar to us, in behavior, but also in appearance.” So when I got to do for the firs time Elsa, it was so special, because that was a movie I really enjoyed. I never thought I would be able to skate to the movie.
Q: Now, we’ll get to Elsa, but I wanted to start with the first time I saw you skate in person, you were Mother Gothel, which is a role that they don’t even have anymore. You obviously you spend so much time as Elsa now, but what is it like portraying those non-Elsa roles?
A: I really enjoy it. Mother Gothel has a very special place in my heart. It was a cute little segment, and it was a really short number. I wish I could have skated to “Mother Knows Best.” They had it a few years prior, but I was not on tour yet. But I really enjoy portraying her, because you got to be evil, and you got to, at the same time, act out more than skate. My favorite part was when some audiences would get really into these characters and who they are, and when I would get off the pods for my exits, they would boo me. That’s what I knew that I had portrayed a really good evil mother.
Another, one of my favorite roles to portray was from the triplets in Beauty and the Beast. I was the green one. Her name is Paulette, and I enjoyed having the the interaction with Gaston, and also at the same time, like, being sassy, and the costumes were so beautiful. So that show, Find Your Hero, definitely has a special place in my heart, because I got to do all these fun characters.
Q: Is there a character you haven’t gotten to do yet that you sit there and you’re like, “Oh, I would love to do her at least once.”
A: I don’t think so. I’m very happy with my career in this company. In our show, we have the Princess Power number, and I got to do Cinderella in it, and that was a very special moment. I feel like young Kristina would be very in awe to see Cinderella. So there was a cute moment for myself.
Q: Now, you’ve gotten to portray Elsa with a few different shows now. What is it like bringing such an iconic character to life for audiences night after night?
A: It’s so hard to answer this question, because it’s so, so special that I feel like words sometimes don’t it do justice. Especially with the journey of how long it took me to be at the level to portray this character. Now it’s so special to me. Every show is special, and I truly enjoy doing it for the audiences. I can see every show, there’s so many kids dressed up as Elsa, and they always stand out to me, because I can spot them right away in their blue dresses. I always try to engage with them, because if I can inspire someone to also want to skate, that is just a plus. But I think it’s just about making that moment and that dream come true and making them believe in something good.
Q: What goes into the preparation to be Elsa? Because I can’t imagine it’s as simple as “I put on the dress and I put on the wig and I put on makeup and I’m Elsa.”
A: I think you have to live and breathe her. It sounds maybe a bit strange, but watching the movie many times, watching “Let It Go” over and over, really trying to not just sing the song, but also feel it with your heart. It takes time, and you have to open yourself up to being vulnerable in that sense, and really let her in. I think I also have a lot of pride in my performances. So, when something goes wrong, I have a hard time with it, because I care so much about her that I always want to be the best I can, and as perfect as I can.
But at the end of the day, if you really listen to the song, it’s a very healing song. I find myself often going through what Elsa goes through. For example, this tour is the new show, new tour, new schedule, it’s definitely the hardest, demanding routine that I’ve ever done, and you kind of find yourself relating to the character even more. But then, as I’m skating, I’m overcoming my own fears of doing it, and then growing in that sense, it becomes a very powerful healing journey.
Q: You mentioned it being a demanding routine. Compared to a competitive skate, when you’re on the ice for four minutes at most doing your program, for Jump In! as Elsa between the pre-show, the “Frozen” segment, and the finale, you’re out there for 20 minutes a night, sometimes three shows a day. How do you develop the stamina to do that?
A: Repetition. We’re almost at 100 shows this tour [editor’s note: they’ve passed the 100-show mark since we did this interview!] and I feel like it’s gotten into my body a bit more comfortably, but it’s always a challenge. This routine is always a challenge, but because I have so much love for this character and so much love for this role, it fuels me to get through every show, and at the end of the day, I just feel happy that I get to do this. And that I get to skate my heart out, then go home tired, and then do it all over again, because the next day, there will be again a full audience to watch, what we do, what I love. I mentioned the kids in the little Elsa dresses earlier, but I often also like looking at the parents, and I just love interacting with the audience so much that all of this goes by, but I feel like I’m in the best shape of my life, for sure.
Q: I can imagine you’d have to be to do all that skating every night. I skate once a week and I’m wiped out after like 30 minutes.
A: It’s intense. This sport is intense. But it’s a good workout.
Q: I’ve probably seen more Elsas than most people. I’ve seen so many different show, and I feel like the most iconic moment in “Let It Go” is that big forward spiral, but you put your own unique twist on it. So how did you develop the strength and the edge control that it takes to do that Biellmann spiral?
A: I always enjoyed doing spirals. I used to do my competition programs. I used to do a change edge Biellman spiral. So we start on the outside edge, and then go on the inside edge over the entire ice space. I remember D29 was the first show I got to do Elsa, and my PD, Sue Brodie at the time, had given me a video to watch Maria Starr and her spiral. She wanted to create something that also had a big spiral moment instead of doing like three seconds and then a spread eagle, or something like that. She wanted me to work on my spiral and have a nice spiral moment. And then, with this show, since the Ice Palace is so round, and the way the staircases are shaped, it creates this beautiful circle. I figured out at rehearsals that I could just hold it longer, and hold it all the way, so that it completes an entire circle. That was just a matter of how, on this show, it just really worked out. With the staircase, and just by accident, I just kept holding it longer, longer, longer, and then at some point, it was the whole circle. And I really loved doing it.
Q: Now, I’m gonna put you on the spot here. You’ve worn Elsa’s coronation dress. You’ve worn her. “Let It Go” dress and now in the new pre-show segment, you wear her winter dress. So I’m curious, which is your favorite?
A: I think the holiday dress from Olaf’s Frozen Adventure, solely because that one was the only dress that I was part of the process of getting to try it on when it’s just a blueprint, and when there’s nothing else on it. It was fitted to me, and it’s such a special, special thing, and the designer, her name is Colleen. She did such an amazing job, and it’s so special to wear it, and I love the way the light hits it with the blue velvet.
Q: You also got to build the show this year. This is the fifth version of D30 because it’s D30e. What is it like building a new show over the summer?
A: I’ve always wanted to do this, and I feel so, so grateful that I got to check this off my list. It was so special watching both Adams, Adam Loosely, and Adam Blake, how they create numbers, how they come up with ideas. I don’t know how they do that, because they would come in every day and have a new idea and just put it on the ice and see if it works, and it’s such a beautiful process, and I learned so much from them.
I also got to see a bit more behind the scenes with all the frozen effects on the ice, and they took some time out of their day to, like, show me what they had planned with this new, intentional arm choreography towards the screen more, rather than towards the pyro hits like in the past, and I’m so, so grateful.
I think those three weeks that we had were the best three weeks of my life. Going into the opening night in Orlando, all of those weeks were hard, they were intense, but I woke up so happy every day that I got to spend time in these studios being a part of a creative process. And we also have some costumes that were all made for me, and it’s, like, no one else has worn this costume before, and it’s just so, so special. I really felt, like I’m at the right place at the right time, as if all those years of hard work paid off, just to be there in those moments, and that’s kind of how I’m taking this tour with me in general.
Q: Speaking of creating things, last season, you got to create your in-show program, which was based off of Anastasia. I’m curious, how did you how did you come up with that?
A: I love doing in-shows. I love skating. I love skating to different music. I mean, I love my job, but I also love skating to anything else, and as I’m growing as a performer, I wanted to do something that is a bit different for me, with a different type of dress. My friend, Sophie, made the light design. I wanted the lights to be first a bit cold, and then over time, it grows as Anastasia goes through her emotions of “In My Dreams.” And the funny thing is, I had to do that one twice, because the first time, the black tracks didn’t properly work, so then I asked if I could do it again the next week, because I really wanted to have a nice memory of this in-show, because I put so much work into the choreography and the light ideas, that I wanted to have a nice physical piece of evidence of it.
Q: Being on a new show this year means obviously saying goodbye to a lot of the people that you worked with on Into The Magic for a long time. But one thing that I’ve noticed from following the Disney On Ice skaters for so long is that you guys maintain these close friendships for years, even when you end up on different shows. How do you make these lifelong friendships and bond through skating?
A: It’s such a special part of this job. Just two weeks ago I visited a friend in New York, who now is a medical student in New York. She did one tour in 2018. Her name is Erica, and we only did one tour. But because we go through so much on this tour, and we’re around each other 24/7, these friendships grow so, so strong. The bond of going through a six-pack together or a nine-pack together is something you could never undo. And it was so nice to just be with her after six years like nothing changed, and we got to catch up.
I feel like every year, there’s a few of those people that — I mean, everyone in my cast is really great — but there’s always a few people that you are like family towards the end, because you support each other through hard times. We’re doing a show every week. We’re human. We have things happen at home. Our life is here, so you find these people that make it a bit easier when you’re going through harder times. But at the same time, you’re also having a lot of fun, so the friendships are just, just so, so strong.
Q: Obviously skating takes up a lot of your time, but what do you like to do for fun when you’re on the road and it’s not a show day or it’s a day where you have a little bit of extra time?
A: I like finding local coffee shops. It has kind of become my hobby alongside with a few other of my castmates here, and just finding something local, going, and sitting down, and eating, with time, with no rush. Then usually we go to the grocery store, and then find something to do, or just relax. If we have, like, three days off, I go to the gym, on the days off as well, to, otherwise, it becomes quite hard on opening day, if you just took three days and did nothing. So you kind of have to maintain the shape on the days off as well, but it’s a bit more relaxed. It’s just for your own well being.
Q: Again, I’m gonna ask you a hard question, and feel free to say it’s impossible to answer, but what is what is the best thing about being a skater for Disney On Ice?
A: That’s hard. I was gonna say everything. I’s hard to answer. There’s not one single thing. I think if you enjoy skating and you enjoy Disney, this is definitely the place for you. But I think it’s also great if you enjoy performing, and... really the audiences. That is my answer, the audiences, because they are so excited to see Elsa, or Mickey, or Minnie, or Olaf. And they’re coming up there, like, dressed up as them. I feel like that’s the best part of this job.
Q: All right, now, I wanted to wrap this up with a quick lightning round. What is your favorite move to perform on the ice?
A: The Biellmann spiral.
Q: What is your favorite city that you’ve gotten to visit with Disney On Ice?
A: Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Q: What’s your all time favorite Disney song?
A: I was gonna say “Let It Go,” but I think… “Show Yourself” makes me cry.
Q: Have you ever gotten to skate the “Show Yourself” program?
A: No, I have not.
Q: It’s so beautiful. I cry too every time.
A: Yeah, I wanna watch it. I wanna see Maria do it. My life goal.
Q: All-time favorite Disney movie?
A: Mulan.
Q: All time favorite figure skating movie?
A: Ice Princess.
Q: There are six main kinds of jumps in figure skating: Loop, Toe Loop, Flip, Salchow, Lutz, and Axel. Which one is your most hated?
A: Hated? Well, I never had a proper Lutz edge. I enjoyed doing them, but it was a flutz. It was a Lutz with the exclamation. That was the best score I could get for it. Yeah, so I think a Lutz.
Q: And last but not least, one piece of advice that you would give anyone starting out in skating.
A: You grow the most when you’re uncomfortable and just, don’t give up. If you want to do this, you have to go through hard times, but you come out at the end after all these years, and you get to do what you love.
Disney On Ice: Jump In! is currently touring the United States through early May. Visit DisneyOnIce.com to see tour dates near you. You can follow Kristina on Instagram at @kris_ynt.