I attended one of the weekend performances of the new "Disney on Ice" touring show "Let's Celebrate!" during its one week stint last month at the United Center in Chicago.

And now, the second leg of this show's Chicagoland visit completes its stay with a string of shows this weekend at AllState Arena in Rosemont, Ill.

This icy entertainment offering clocks in at just under two hours and is billed as "one colossal party on ice, with all your favorite Disney friends."

But noticeably absent are some familiar holidays you might be expecting Mickey Mouse and his friends to pay tribute to during their skate routines.

Fourth of July and fireworks, along with Easter, St. Patrick's Day, Thanksgiving and New Year's are all left out in the cold, at least this time around.

The ice segments featured include  "a winter wonderland" (obviously avoiding the word "Christmas") with Mickey and Minnie Mouse and some of the gang from "Toy Story," a Halloween haunt with the Disney Villains, a "Very Merry Unbirthday Party," themed with an "Alice in Wonderland" slant, a Valentine's Day Royal Ball with Disney Princesses, all followed by a lengthy second act all about summer vacation adventures, described as "a magical medley of holidays, celebrations and festivals from around the globe."

Kids and parents alike will be thrilled with some of the staging, especially in the first act, which pulls out all stops for the Disney Princess segment, including swags of draped fabric, a large fountain, flowers, heart-shaped trellises and vine-covered arbors and a roster of every favorite princess, alas ... except Princess Aurora aka Sleeping Beauty.

Snow White, Pocahontas, Ariel, Cinderella, Jasmine and Belle are all front and center, along with their "dream come true" male counterparts. And they are joined by the latest Disney addition, Princess Tiana (which is why I suspect Sleeping Beauty got the boot for this run) from the latest Disney flick, "The Princess and the Frog."

I also liked the rather brief, but enjoyable, action-packed "Mad Tea Party" segment featuring a recreation of "Disney's Alice in Wonderland" and the "Unbirthday Song Celebration." This icy recreation features Alice, The Mad Hatter, The White Rabbit and Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum, along with Mickey, Goofy, Donald Duck and Pluto, all caught up in an array of icy antics, all of which held my attention.

But my favorite number of all was a salute to Halloween featuring a who's who roll call of all of the most rotten bad guys and gals to ever torment Disney's tried-and-true favorites. One by one, Captain Hook, Cruella de Vil, Jafar, The Wicked Queen aka the old crone from "Snow White" and Maleficent, the evil fairy from "Sleeping Beauty," gang up to do in Mickey.

The second part of this show, following the intermission, has a few bright spots, but I didn't find it to be as strong and interesting.

Most of it involves Mickey and Minnie with a teleportation device that sends them around the world during their summer vacation. From the Orient to New Orleans (where Princess Triana again enters the scene), much of these segments seem to only fill time. And though I'm not a huge fan of the Disney film and characters "Lilo and Stitch," I did enjoy their Hawaiian luau number, which included a dramatic dance featuring ice literally set on fire.

Tickets, ranging from $15 to $25, for "Disney on Ice: Let's Celebrate!," are available at Ticketmaster.com, (800)-745-3000 or disneyonice.com. There are some front row VIP seats available for a slightly higher price.

The opinions expressed are solely those of the writer. He can be reached at philip.potempa@nwi.com or 219.852.4327.

Today's Celebrity Birthdays

Actress Zsa Zsa Gabor is 93. Actor Patrick MacNee ("The Avengers") is 88. Actor Rip Torn and actress Mamie Van Doren are 79. Actor Mike Farrell is 71. Former NBC news anchorman Tom Brokaw and actress Gigi Perreauis are 70. Actress Gayle Hunnicutt and singer Fabian are 67. Actor Michael Tucker is 66. Singer Natalie Cole is 60. Actor Jon Walmsley ("The Waltons") is 54. Actor-director Robert Townsend ("The Parent 'Hood") and actress Kathy Najimy and drummer Simon Phillips of Toto are 53. Actor Barry Miller ("Saturday Night Fever," "Fame") is 52. Actress Megan Gallagher ("Millennium") is 50. Country singer Richie McDonald (Lonestar) and vocalist Axl Rose of Guns N' Roses are 48. Singer Rick Astley is 44. Bassist Tim Brown of the Boo Radleys and actress April Lerman ("Charles in Charge") are 41.