Skaters will be using the George Preston Recreation Centre ice surface as a massive dance floor Saturday.

The Langley Figure Skating Club is hosting its bi-annual ice show dubbed "Dancing the Night Away" on March 2.

Dancing is the theme with all different styles on display including swing, disco, can can, and ballroom.

The show started to take shape in October, with the first round of planning. The roughly 200 skaters involved ranging in age from three to adult began rehearsals the last week of January.

Over the past five weeks, excitement is building amongst the skaters, says LFSC head coach Julie Kivinen.

"We've been having our [non-dress] rehearsals and the hype is there," she said.

"I'm really excited for the skaters to be able to showcase the skills they've been working on all year," added show chairperson Christa Sharman. "For the skaters who are not yet at a competition level, it's a great way to showcase how far they've come."

One of the highlights will be the routine by the show's youngest set of skaters, with the ballroom portion involving the club's preschool-aged performers.

"They just go out and do their thing," Kivinen said. "If they remember where they're going, that's good, but if they don't, they don't. We have program assistants helping them out."

Sharman said the preschool skaters are "really fun to watch."

"This is their first time skating in front of a crowd," she said. "The little ones are definitely showstoppers."

Soloists include Diana Hong, 13, who has fewer than five years experience and already has a bright future, according to Kivinen, and Amanda Warwarick, 21, who came to the LFSC from the Victoria

area. Warwarick will be taking her gold freeskate test in the near future.

Guest skater is Coquitlam's Larissa Horobec, a 2013 BC/YT provincial team member who finished second overall in the senior women's division at the B.C./Yukon Territories Sectional championships.

With the number of skaters and the amount of talent on the ice this year, Kivinen is looking forward to a stellar show, similar to past years. The LFSC event has become an institution in Langley for more than three decades. "We only do it every other year and this is the 14th show I've done," Kivinen said. "They were doing shows before I got here in 1985."

The show has changed a fair bit through the years, Kivinen said.

"We try to keep it a little shorter, and costuming is not quite as extravagant as it used to be," she said. "Something you can use out of the closet and jazz it up sort of thing, rather than going out and getting all kinds of fancy stuff. As far as the skating program, it's pretty much the same from year to year, more or less."

Each show has a slightly different complexion.

But the challenge of organizing the army of volunteers involved, as well as coming up with the necessary funds for lighting - the most expensive element of the show - remains constant.

Kivinen added, "The lighting is huge - that really makes the show and that is the most expensive part. We have to come up with fundraising ideas [to finance it]."

"The lighting is a third of our entire budget for the show, but it's the single-most important thing," Sharman said.

"We need to put them [the skaters] in the best light possible."

Kivinen applauded the effort of the organizers and in particular, Sharman.

"Christa is a real go-getter," Kivinen said. "The committee has done a great job. They've really stepped up but its always tough to get people involved all the time."

There are two shows, a 2 p.m. matinee and a 7 p.m. performance. Each of the shows runs for about two hours, with an intermission.

Tickets, at $12 for adults, $8 for youth and seniors, and $5 for children 12 and under, are available in advance at the GPRC or Langley Sportsplex, or at the GPRC box office the day of the show.

tlandreville@langleyadvance.com