Cirque du Soleil hits the ice at Scotiabank Centre this month

The ice show, called Crystal, will have eight performances in Halifax from August 28 to September 1.

Cirque du Soleil's Janie Mallet says this show is the first to incorporate both ice skating and acrobatics.

“Ice was always on the radar and this was just the right time,” she says. “This show Crystal was really the blend of the acrobatic world, that we know pretty well because we've been doing it for so many years, and then the world of ice skating, which was a new thing.”

This will also be the first time Crystal, which has been touring since 2017, is coming to Eastern Canada.

“We have 20 plus nationalities on the show at the moment, so not only are we travelling around the world, but we're also with our teammates, and they become a second family,” Mallet tells NEWS 95.7's The Sheldon MacLeod Show.

Shawn Sawyer is a figure skater performing in Crystal who originally hails form Edmunston, New Brunswick.

“I started figure skating when I was nine years old,” says Sawyer, who had played hockey before that.

Sawyer used to skate competitively, but says he has found a passion for performing with Cirque.

“When I think of competition I think of stress. You train for months and months for one competition,” he explains. “Us, we get to perform up to 300 shows a year.”

The skater says that at soon as the music begins, his nerves fall away, and he gets into character.

“I don't feel the stress anymore, I just feel excitement. And when the show's over, I'm always looking forward to performing the next one,” he adds.

The story follows Crystal, a young teenager who runs away from home to find herself, but falls through the ice.

“She's a young teenager that's a little bit of a misfit,” says Sawyer. “I'm various different characters throughout the show to support the story line of Crystal.”

Sawyer and Mallet agree that Crystal is one of Cirque du Soleil's most intriguing story lines of recently.

“I've seen a lot of Cirque du Soleil shows, I've never seen a story line as easy to follow and as solid as this one, because everybody can relate to it,” Sawyer adds.

Mallet says that on top of combining figure skating with acrobatics, there are other unique feats.

“We have some extreme skaters, they jump on ramps, they do crazy tricks,” she says. “The two worlds are blended together at every point, creating this new disciplines and never before seen acts.”

The show also features a live band that will do something else new for Cirque — play pop music.

“We had to rethink everything to bring this show up,” Mallet says. “We have four pop songs that are integrated into our original music.”

For Sawyer, being on stage is more than a blending of two genres, it's a chance to show off.

“I'm a high-end athlete. Mentally and physically you have to be at the top of your game,” he says. “We're not just doing Cirque on ice, we're doing something that's never been done before.”

Visit the Scotiabank Centre website for more info and tickets.