Some of the world's best skaters will glide into town when "Stars on Ice" lands at the Allstate Arena in Rosemont on Feb. 21.

The figure skating extravaganza, now in its 23rd season, will take the theme "On the Edge."

"Stars on Ice," the brain child of champion skater Scott Hamilton, was founded in 1986. Through the years, it has featured skating greats such as Kristi Yamaguchi, Dorothy Hamill, Torvill & Dean and Katarina Witt.

This year, fans will enjoy the dynamic style of more than a dozen skaters, including Evan Lysacek and Sasha Cohen. Lysacek, a native of Naperville, is only scheduled to do about 15 performances on the tour, with the Chicago-area show being one of them.

Lysacek called Chicago-area skating fans "respectful and knowledgeable" about the art.

"I love performing in Chicago. We have a lot of support there," he said.

Among other skaters on the roster are Todd Eldredge, Ilia Kulik, Jennifer Robinson, pair champions Xue Shen and Hongbo Zhao, Michael Weiss and Yuka Sato.

Lysacek, a two-time U.S. champion and two-time world bronze medalist, is currently preparing for the 2010 Winter Olympics. He said he's happy to take time out of his practice schedule to perform in "Stars on Ice."

"This is a little break for me. It's an opportunity to skate with friends and have fun," he said. Since he's also immersed in preparing for the Olympics, he said the "Stars on Ice" show allows him to "get the best of both worlds."

Champion Todd Eldredge, who has performed in the production for the past eight years, said he enjoys the noncompetitive spirit of the show.

"The fact that there are no judges in the crowd is what I like," he said, laughing. "You don't have to worry every night about the pressures of going out and doing a certain jump and pleasing the judges and having them score you correctly or incorrectly. You just go out and entertain the crowd," he said.

During the production, the champs perform solo routines as well as group numbers.

According to Eldredge, the fact he can just "let loose and have fun" during "Stars on Ice," is a definite plus.

"When people see us in competition, we're focused on what we have to do for that. But, when we're out of that realm and can get into something a little more interesting, we can branch out and do something different than what they've seen us do before. You can show a lot of different sides of yourself," Eldredge said.

The tour, which began in mid-January, will run through April.