Dream job is a reality - but also a fantasy

It sounds like a Disney story: Relying on nothing but talent and spunk, a lovely but obscure young woman gets plucked from the pile and made a princess. For Stephanie Hilton, a May graduate of the University of the Arts, it's real life.

Hilton, 22, skates the role of Iridessa, a fairy friend of Tinker Bell's, in Disney on Ice's Worlds of Fantasy, a show ending its run at the Wachovia Center today.

Gliding onto the ice in a floating yellow-and-orange dress, Hilton-as-Iridessa drew oohs and aahs from hundreds of starstruck girls at a performance Friday. Claps and squeals greeted her jumps and spins.

But just a month ago, Hilton was a recent college grad with one goal in mind.

"I really needed a job," said the former competitive figure skater, who is originally from Denver and was drawn to Philadelphia because of the university's strong dance program.

After graduating with a major in jazz-dance performance, Hilton flew home to Colorado to recover from ankle surgery. She worked at a fitness center and as a skating instructor for children.

As her ankle grew stronger - the free ice time that was a job perk was a big plus, she said - Hilton quickly realized she wanted to make a career out of skating. On a whim, she made an audition tape and sent it to Disney on Ice in November.

Disney typically receives a few hundred applications a year, and hires only 20 new skaters. Six months generally pass before an applicant gets called for an audition.

But luck was in Hilton's favor. A few weeks after she sent Disney her tape, the skater who played Iridessa was injured, and the show's producers needed a strong, African American female skater on short notice.

Hilton was hired immediately, and joined the show for its run in Philadelphia. Her first show was Dec. 26.

"It was pretty cool. Philadelphia is where my transformation started, and it was great to make my debut here," Hilton said after a show, still looking magical in long, theatrical eyelashes, dramatic makeup, and pulled-back hair.

Hilton didn't have the luxury of much practice time before skating Iridessa. She jumped right into the show, learning as she went, using downtime between shows to perfect her performance.

Hilton's boyfriend and his family are local, and plenty of friends from school are in the area, so her first shows have been particularly exhilarating. "Everybody has been screaming for me. It was great," she said.

And because she's practically a local, Hilton has spent much of her Philly run playing tour guide, taking cast members to LOVE Park, South Street, and the movies.

"I don't mind," she said. "I love this city, and to spread my wings here is awesome."

And, yes, she grew up on the Disney princesses and fairies. Hilton remembers loving Ariel from The Little Mermaid and adoring her own Disney ice-show experience.

"I thought, 'That looks like so much fun. The costumes and the people are so great,' " she said.

Hilton began skating at age 6 after attending a friend's birthday party at a rink. Although her mother wasn't a big fan of the cold ice arena, she could tell that young Stephanie was a natural. Hilton began competing at age 7, stopping only when she started college and needed to focus on her studies.

Dance kept her in shape and prepared her for her current work.

"I was trained to be a professional performer," said Hilton, whose Disney contract runs for a year.

Hilton skates as many as three shows a day, playing a sea dragon and half a cyclone in The Little Mermaid, an ostrich in The Lion King, and featured skater Iridessa in the Disney fairies segment. She heads to St. Louis next, and will eventually tour in Boston and Chicago, where her family will fly to see her perform.

The pace is exacting, but she doesn't mind, Hilton said.

"It's good to know I get a hard day's work in, every day," she said.

Hilton said she loved the show and hoped to stay with Disney. Particularly exciting, she said, is catching girls' eyes as she whizzes past them on the ice. "It makes me smile, and it makes me want to be a better performer for them," Hilton said. "I just love it."

For Kaiya Pedro, a 6-year-old from North Philadelphia who was at a show as a birthday treat, seeing Hilton as Iridessa and the other Disney characters was a dream come true. "The fairies are so pretty," Kaiya said in a soft voice.

Her dad, Harry, nodded. "It's important to have skaters of all different cultures represented," he said.

That's important to Hilton, too. She is the only African American skater in the show. "It's so cool," she said. "I'm very proud to be a role model to minority children."