|Photo by Derek Redd| Several groups come together each year to put on "Symphony On Ice." Pictured are, from left, Brian Joseph and Julie Joseph of Touchstone Laboratories, Wheeling Symphony Orchestra Executive Director Sonja Thoms, Lynne Exley, WSO Music Director and Conductor John Devlin, Nina Rosenthal, Main Street Bank President Rich Lucas and Wheeling City Manager Robert Herron.

Maestro John Devlin, music director and conductor of the Wheeling Symphony Orchestra, gets phone calls from friends across the country all asking the same question – how does the symphony pull off “Symphony On Ice” every year?

“‘Draw me a picture here,’ they all go. ‘I’m ambitious. We’re going to try that here in my city,'” he said.

“No one else has ever been able to copy it.”

“Symphony On Ice” – a performance that combines the WSO, singers from across the Ohio Valley and ice skaters from local and regional skating clubs to the national and international levels – will return to the WesBanco Arena ice rink once again at 7 p.m. Dec. 5.

One of the most beautiful aspects of the performance, Devlin said, is that it marries so many artistic endeavors and it showcases how hundreds of people in the Ohio Valley can come together to present one of the jewels of the valley and a holiday staple.

“We do a lot of things very uniquely Wheeling,” Devlin said. “And, for the beginning of the holiday season, I think this is a marker for our community. We love having this here and we love the involvement of so many different people in the community as participants.

“And then we have over 2,000 audience members,” he continued. “It’s a beautiful thing.”

On top of the popular sounds of the WSO, “Symphony On Ice” will feature guest performers both on the ice and on the stage. This year, figure skater Ryan Dunk, a 2019 U.S. junior national gold medalist, and former Team USA member and seven-time national medalist Stephanie Roth will perform with figure skating clubs from Wheeling and Pittsburgh.

The symphony will welcome guest vocalist Amanda McGovern, a Wheeling native who is now a senior acting major at West Virginia University. The night also will feature the Festival Choir, a choir made up of nearly 250 middle school and high school students from around the Ohio Valley. The Festival Choir will perform on several numbers that night, including Handel’s Hallelujah Chorus.

“Symphony On Ice” is presented by Main Street Bank and EQT Foundation. Main Street Bank President Rich Lucas said his bank is ecstatic to lead the way in bringing such an iconic Ohio Valley event to the public again this year.

“‘Symphony On Ice’ had gone dark for a couple of years, and I really think it was overwhelming how much the Ohio Valley missed it,” Lucas said. “It’s the start of the holiday season and a huge family event.

“We dove in as a major sponsor and it has been a wonderful 11 years,” Lucas added. “I love the fact that this is a signature event for the Ohio Valley.”

Additional support for “Symphony On Ice” comes from the City of Wheeling, Paul T. Tucker, Belmont Savings Bank, the Exley Family Foundation, the Rosenthal Family, Touchstone Laboratories and the Spadafore Family.

Devlin said “Symphony On Ice” is the culmination of months of work among many different groups to put on a performance enjoyed by thousands each year.

“It really is a year-round effort by all these constituents that come together for one day to make this happen,” he said.

Tickets begin at $16.50 with student tickets available for $10.50, and can be purchased online at wheelingsymphony.com, by phone at 304-232-6191, via email at boxoffice@wheelingsymphony.com or in person at the symphony box office at 1025 Main Street, Suite 811 in Wheeling.