Regalia ushers in holiday season in Niles

By VIRGINIA ROSS SHANK

Santa is schedule to make an appearance Saturday.

NILES — Carla Barreca didn’t expect to meet a new dance partner when she arrived at Eastwood Mall on Sunday afternoon.

But it didn’t take long before the Girard woman found herself waltzing across the floor with Rob Hruby, aka the Toy Soldier.

“He kept bowing to me, and I thought I’d just better go up and dance with him,” said Barreca, 46. “So I did. It was a lot of fun. I hadn’t danced like that in a long time. It was really special. It was like being a kid. I was so nervous, but I’m glad I did it.”

For several hours, Hruby entertained hundreds of people who made their way to the mall for the second day of Family Fun Weekend. The schedule also featured appearances by Ballet Western Reserve and children’s entertainers Jocko The Clown and Spitunia. The program served as an opening to the holiday season and the highly anticipated arrival of Santa Claus this Saturday.

“This is really great,” said Jennifer Kostan, 27, of Niles. Kostan brought her two sons, Tyler, 6, and Tristan, 4, to the mall to meet the Toy Soldier and Jocko the Clown.

“It’s amazing that they make sure every child gets some attention,” she said. “They don’t miss anyone. It’s great. The kids love it. The adults love it. It’s definitely a lot of fun. The kids love the clowns and are really impressed by the Toy Soldier. They’ve never seen anything like that before.”

Dressed as a traditional, albeit living, toy soldier — including the jacket, boots and hat — Hruby whisked little boys and girls into his arms and swayed with them to favorite holiday tunes including “I’ll Be Home For Christmas.” Setting no age limitations, he danced with partner after partner including 7-year-old Arielle Hileman of Niles. Her sparkling eyes and beaming smile captivated much of the crowd as they watched her dance with Hruby.

She was just a month old when she first danced with Hruby at Tower City Center near Cleveland, where he has been performing the past 20 years.

“I love it,” said Arielle. “I love to see him and dance with him. It’s really nice.”

Hruby said his mechanical dance moves were inspired, in part, by Robby the Robot from the 1950s movie “Forbidden Planet” and the late pop star Michael Jackson. In college, Hruby put his own moves into action when he decided to dress up as a toy soldier to entertain youngsters at a children’s home.

“I’m self-taught,” he explained after a performance Sunday. “I didn’t study dance or acting formally. This is just something I started doing and work hard at. The whole idea is to make people feel special, to see their smiling faces. It doesn’t matter how old or how young someone is. It’s about making them smile.”

Along with his performances at Tower City, Hruby also entertains for a variety of activities, events and private parties. He doesn’t speak during a performance or appearance, but, after winding up, salutes, waves, marches and dances for and with his audience.

“He’s the Toy Soldier, but he’ll also do other characters as people want him to for their events and parties,” explained his assistant, Irene Wakut, also of Cleveland.

“He’s been a baseball player and other characters. The Toy Soldier is very popular. People really like it, and he does a really good job with everyone.”

Jennifer Addicott, 27, of Kinsman, stood a proud parent as she watched Hruby gracefully carry her 5-week-old son, Garrett, across the floor Sunday.

“That was really nice,” Addicott said. “That’s definitely something to remember. It’s something I’ll think about and remember. I really appreciate it, and I’m glad he [Hruby] was willing to do that.

“It makes for a really nice memory, not just for Garrett but for all of the kids, and that’s really neat.”

XInformation about the Toy Soldier is available by calling Hruby at (216) 315-7555 or by e-mailing him at rob@thetoysoldier.com. For information about upcoming events at Eastwood Mall, visit www.eastwoodmall.com.