Submitted photos From left, Goofy, Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck and many other Disney characters will be part of Disney on Ice’s “Mickey’s Search Party,” which will do seven shows at the Covelli Centre this weekend.

“Mickey’s Search Party” has the spins, jumps and solo and pairs routines that audiences expect from a Disney on Ice production.

But skater Allison Merges, who skates the role of Belle from “Beauty and the Beast,” said the show that includes Ariel from “The Little Mermaid” also includes plenty of aerial feats as well. The “Search Party” lands at the Covelli Centre for seven performances this weekend.

“We have a lot of different apparatuses on the show,” Merges said during a phone interview from a tour stop in Norfolk, Virginia. “We have an aerial strap number that Eric and Ariel do … There’s a carousel member in the show which has six napkins and me flying in the air during the ‘Be Our Guest’ segment. It’s fun I get to work with all of the other women to create this flying piece during that number.”

“Mickey’s Search Party” draws on Disney favorites old and new. Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Goofy and Donald Duck use Captain Hook’s treasure map to look for Tinker Bell, who’s been kidnapped by pirates who want her magical powers. Their journey takes them through the worlds of “Coco,” “Moana,” “Aladdin,” “Toy Story” and others.

It also shouldn’t surprise children or parents that it also includes a visit to the world of “Frozen.” Since the release of the 2013 movie, “Frozen” has been a Disney on Ice staple, thanks to its icy setting and the fact that “Frozen” and its sequel are among the top-grossing Disney films of all time.

Merges has seen the reaction the “Frozen” characters get firsthand. She is an eight-year Disney on Ice veteran, and three of those years were spent portraying Elsa.

“Everyone still loves ‘Frozen,'” she said. “Kids still come dressed as Elsa, and they sing along to ‘Let It Go.’ And it doesn’t matter where in the world you are performing, they are singing in that language. Elsa is still a huge part of kids’ lives today.”

However, Disney on Ice regularly reimagines the staging for each new production, so “Mickey’s Search Party” has new elements in its “Frozen” section.

Merges grew up in Utah and skated competitively into her teens, but she also appeared in holiday ice shows and other productions where the goal wasn’t to win a medal.

“That really got me into show skating,” she said. “I just love performing, because you get to work with a team to put on a performance and make people happy, and I think that is so rewarding.”

There’s plenty of work involved as well, and it’s not just mastering the technical elements of skating. Merges said she knows she’s performing for children (and adults) who have seen the source material, whether it’s “Frozen” or “Beauty and the Beast,” dozens of times or more.

“Because you’re performing for kids, you have to know the character fully in order to make the character come alive. Even if it’s a short segment, you want to know the character and have her backstory and take on her personality traits. Belle is a dreamer, and she’s always in her books and thinking about what life could be like, so you want to use that knowledge to enhance your facial expressions. You also want to take on her mannerisms and do her classic poses, so that the kids can easily recognize you. Then you can create this experience for them, actually being their Disney character brought to life. A lot of kids don’t get the chance to go to the park (Disney World and Disneyland), so we get to bring that to them.”

The magic for the performers is the opportunity to see the world. Disney on Ice has taken Merges to New Zealand and South America, and Japan is on her bucket list of countries she hopes to visit.

“Sometimes we’ll have three or four days off in these places, and sometimes we stay for multiple weeks,” Merges said. “It’s so cool that you get to see different cultures and almost be a part of the culture, because we do live there. We go grocery shopping, we go out to eat, we get to see the different areas of town, especially if we stay for longer.”

If you go …

WHAT: Disney on Ice — “Mickey’s Search Party”

WHEN: 11:30 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. today, 10:30 a.m. and 2:30 and 6:30 p.m. Saturday and 10:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. Sunday

WHERE: Covelli Centre, 229 E. Front St., Youngstown

HOW MUCH: Tickets range from $27 to $102 and are available at the arena’s Southwoods Health box office and through Ticketmaster.